PacketCable is a CableLabs-led initiative aimed at developing interoperable interface specifications for delivering advanced, real-time multimedia services over two-way cable plant. Built on top of the industry’s highly successful cable modem infrastructure, PacketCable networks will use Internet protocol (IP) technology to enable a wide range of multimedia services, such as IP telephony, multimedia conferencing, interactive gaming, and general multimedia applications.

A group of 18 participating vendors tested a variety of equipment that has been developed according to PacketCable and DOCSIS (known as CableLabs® Certified™ cable modems) specifications. The equipment included 10 multimedia terminal adapters (MTAs), 4 call management servers (CMSs), 3 cable modem termination systems (CMTSs), 2 PSTN (public switched telephone network) gateways, 1 provisioning system, and a record keeping system.

In total, well over 100 experiments were performed successfully across dozens of different combinations of vendor equipment. Experiments included basic voice calls, multi-codec calls, feature demonstrations, device provisioning, and billing output. The majority of the testing took place at CableLabs’ facilities in Louisville, Colorado with supplementary testing conducted remotely across 5 different test locations.

"The level of product maturity and interoperability demonstrated in our labs was quite impressive," noted Ed Miller, director of PacketCable. "It is clear that PacketCable-based products are well on the way to becoming a market reality."

Successful interoperation at the October test cycle, and the subsequent integration week for the Western Show, was a requirement for companies participating in the PacketCable demonstration at CableNET. One of the highlights of the demonstration was a group of phone booths from which visitors could place phone calls, free of charge, to anywhere in the continental United States using PacketCable technology. Each of the booths used a different combination of vendors’ products to route calls across the on-site cable network and out to the PSTN for completion.

"With 11 PacketCable 1.0 specifications nearing the interim mark, we’re quite satisfied that so many vendors have come to our labs with such a wide variety of capabilities and features," said Tom Thompson, Interoperability Program Leader. "It will be exciting to see many of these products in action at the Western Show."