Patent ID: 8320376

Claim:
An apparatus comprising: a device configured to output a customer premises equipment (CPE) identifier; and a modem in communication with the device, the modem configured to receive the CPE identifier and configured to scan downstream channels for a matching channel information message, the matching channel information message having a channel information message identifier that matches the CPE identifier, the modem further configured to tune to one or more tunnels identified in the matching channel information message and deliver out-of-band (OOB) messages included in the tuned-to tunnels to the device, wherein the out-of-band (OOB) messages and the channel information messages are transmitted over a network, wherein the OOB messages are output over the one or more tunnels where each tunnel is identified with a network address, and each channel information message is output over the downstream channels, wherein each channel information message identifies at least a portion of the network addresses associated with the one or more tunnels and includes a listing of tunnel types and a listing of tunnel identifiers for differentiating between different tunnels identified with a same tunnel type but associated with different types of CPE.