Additionally, operators can provide fast access to data services in response to the growing interest in data communication among residential users, for example, for teleworking. Finally, the behavior patterns of TV viewers are changing. In the medium term they will demand more interactivity. This will require a dramatic increase in the capacity currently offered by most CATV networks and the addition of a return channel. Advanced digital coding techniques will increase the capacity of a traditional analog TV channel by as much as ten times.
Large businesses are potentially a major source of revenue for cable TV operators.
The deployment of fiber deep down into the access network will enable cable TV operators to extend fiber cost-effectively to the premises of big business users, thereby providing high speed access to the information superhighway. Once such a fiber is in place, the operator can offer an extensive range of advanced services, including company-wide telephone services, high speed corporate data networking, and videoconferencing, to name but a few. Alcatel offers a full portfolio of solutions that meet the many varied needs of large businesses.