- Different Architecture: Ethernet over Coax from Head End to Residence
- DOCSIS Is Overkill for MDUs
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In all the whoop-di-do over the coming versions of HomeGrid (G.hn), P1905, MoCA 2.0, HomePlug AV2 and the new HD-capable versions of Wi-Fi, the oft-overlooked standard has been HomePNA but that might not be for long. HPNA, as HomePNA is affectionately called, uses coax wires in the home.
The HPNA crowd is courting cablecos in Brazil, Russia, India and China (the BRICs) where coexistence with DOCSIS is not required because DOCSIS is not widely deployed there.
There’s a version of HPNA called “HPNA Fast EoC” that is well-suited for use by pay TV operators that use coax to connect to an MDU (multiple dwelling unit) and coax within the MDU to individual residences. Such configurations are very prevalent in the BRICs where most people live in MDUs and also to a lesser degree in Europe. There are 200 million to 600 million pay TV subscribers in the BRICs that could use home networking, according to Sigma Designs, which is the sole producer of HPNA chips.
HPNA Fast EoC in the BRICs
Cablecos in the four BRIC countries typically have a different network architecture from the US and Europe. It consists mainly of a cableco, not a telco, running fiber or coax to an MDU and then Ethernet-over-coax within the MDU for broadcast. The cablecos use Ethernet-over-coax for the entire network — from head end to the residence.
Most incumbent telcos in the BRICs have an ancient copper wire network that is not capable of delivering multiple channels of pay TV or high speed broadband, typically $15 a month for 250 Kbps to 512 Kbps.
The EoC architecture is much less expensive, especially in the head end, than what Western countries deploy. Prices have to be kept low because currently pay TV is eight to 10 channels and goes for about $5 a month.
Sigma’s version of HPNA Fast EoC has remote diagnostics and management. Sigma said it’s the same physical chip as the HPNA chip that’s used in the States but has different firmware.
It estimates there are already about 100 million residences in India that have a cable TV subscription, slightly more than the US. The satcos have about 25 million subscribers in India. Estimates are that China has about 200 million cable TV subscribers, double the US or Europe, Sigma says.
The subscriber number is growing rapidly as the middle class in BRIC countries expands. It’s a big market although fewer HPNA chips are used — one for the MDU and one for each residence, which typically has only one TV set or broadband modem.
Sigma says EoC from the head end to the home is better than the telcos’ DSL or the cablecos’ DOCSIS because the pay TV companies’ need for speed is limited by capital constraints and low subscription rates.
HPNA seems to be off to a faster start in India than HomePlug EoC but HomePlug EOC appears to have the jump in China with several orders, based on interviews with executives at home networking chipmakers.
Sigma says the home networking market in Brazil and Russia is similar in architecture and cost constraints but is much more fragmented than in China and India. Very little consolidation has taken place in these markets, leaving a large number of cablecos with small footprints.
HPNA’s Momentum
In addition to the opportunities in the BRICs, the HPNA coax version for in-home networking has momentum elsewhere.
AT&T, the largest telco in the Western world has standardized on HPNA, which has led a number of other telcos in the US and Canada to follow suit, such as Bell Canada, Telus and the US’ third largest telco CenturyLink. However, HPNA lost Verizon and most cablecos in the US and Europe to MoCA because, unlike HPNA, MoCA can coexist on the same coax cable as DOCSIS broadband.
Verizon does not use IPTV technology to transmit TV broadcasts to or within the home so it is more like the cable TV companies because it uses the same pay TV technology that they do.
HPNA’s large installed base is growing as the telcos expand their pay TV subscriptions. Now it wants to become the major player in the BRICs with their very different network architectures.
Sigma Designs is developing a combination chipset that will support both HPNA and the coming HomeGrid, giving HPNA customers an upgrade path.
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