Standards-based DAA reduces total cost of ownership

Cisco Korea has unveiled a new version of its Infinite Broadband Remote PHY solution (RPHY) and is now fully committed to supporting cable operator network automation.

Cisco supports cable network capacity expansion through automation and virtualization, enabling cable operators to seamlessly deliver broadband cable and video services to any device. Cisco's Infinite Broadband Remote PHY solution for cable access networks is the industry's only standards-based Distributed Access Architecture (DAA) on the market.

Remote PHY (RPHY) is a technology that moves the physical PHY circuit layer away from headend devices, such as Converged Cable Access Platforms (CCAPs), and into transmission equipment at the network edge (RPHY Node) or a small hub site (RPHY Shelf), closer to the customer. Remote PHY is the preferred method for many cable operators to achieve Direct Access Assurance (DAA), as defined by Cable Labs. It significantly reduces total cost of ownership (TCO) by reducing power, cooling, and hub site size.

“Cisco Infinite Broadband is the solution that best aligns with DLive’s desired business direction and strategy,” said Yongdeok Kim, Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of DLive. “DLive is currently providing services to 2.35 million digital cable subscribers in Seoul and other metropolitan areas. To achieve sustainable growth, we are strengthening our over-the-top (OTT) video services and constantly exploring new technologies to enhance customer service. With Cisco solutions, we have simplified and automated our headend and substation operations, and most importantly, unified hub site operations, enabling us to operate a more sophisticated network topology. Reducing hub site space, power, and cooling costs was also a key factor in adopting Cisco solutions. We have now established a solid foundation for expanding DOCSIS 3.1 services to all hub sites without space constraints.”

“DAA is a significant shift for the cable industry and is the foundation for moving cloud-based software architectures to cable access networks,” said Sean Welch, vice president and general manager of Cisco’s Cable Access and Carrier Business Unit. “Cisco is taking a big leap forward in this direction with Remote PHY. The software automation provided by RPHY frees customers from complex configuration and provisioning processes, enabling them to reduce operating costs and accelerate time to market for new services with DOCSIS 3.1 broadband.”

Cisco's RPHY solution is based on open, standardized software and was also contributed to the Cable Labs OpenRPD Forum in 2016. This open-source initiative has created an ecosystem of Remote PHY Device (RPD) vendors, allowing operators to choose the RPD vendor that best suits their needs, rather than being locked into a single vendor solution.