Powerline Networking

“Just plug it in” technology lets consumers easily install a home entertainment backbone

By Mark E. Hazen

Telecom service providers worldwide are deploying next-generation networks that dramatically expand their ability to deliver new revenue-generating services such as VoIP, IPTV, digital music and video on demand to consumers. Yet while billions of dollars have been spent installing high-speed networking technologies such as VDSL and fiber to the home, a significant challenge remains in moving digital content around within the home. The short list of requirements for the in-home entertainment network consistently includes:

1. Whole-house coverage (providing connectivity everywhere the customer wants it);
2. Reliable, real-time distribution of multiple types of content (standard and high-definition video, music, high-speed Internet, VoIP, etc.) with the ability to prioritize traffic in the network;
3. Easy self-installation by the customer, with no wiring or cabling required.

Powerline networking (also known as powerline communications, or PLC) is a mature, robust digital technology that delivers broadband and digital entertainment content over household electrical wiring to every AC outlet. This technology has been developed and embraced by a global community of manufacturers and service providers under the banner of the HomePlug Powerline Alliance (HPA, see sidebar), an organization that provides standards, compliance testing and certification of products containing powerline connectivity technology.

Powerline Networking Technology at Home

Though carefully crafted to act as a reliable backbone over the harsh conditions of in-home AC power wiring, powerline networking can actually work over any wire in the home. Some service providers prefer coax cable for distributing television content in the home, and some powerline adapters will support coax and power wiring with the same chipset. Figure 1 illustrates how powerline networking technology transforms the existing AC power wiring and coax cabling in customers’ homes into a “hybrid” Ethernet network using modular adapters or embedded powerline solutions.

The HomePlug AV standard, ratified in August 2005, is designed to support data sharing along with streaming audio and video, both standard and high-definition, at physical rates up to 200Mbps. The high data rate and advanced features of HomePlug AV standard-based devices are required to enable the whole-house entertainment backbone that supports multiple streams of both standard-definition and high-definition video.

Whole-House Access to Digital Content

With approximately 43 AC outlets in the average single-family home, powerline networking technology gives customers the freedom of choice to enjoy video and other entertainment content anywhere they choose. For example, powerline-enabled set-top boxes can be placed at any location in the home by simply plugging them into an AC outlet at the desired locations. Each set-top box is connected in the usual ways to a TV or PC monitor, and optionally, a surround-sound audio system. A typical remote control and on-screen menu are used to select programming. Program content is delivered from an outside server over the home’s AC wiring to the set-top box. A coax jack may be used if there is one nearby—the flexibility to use the closest existing outlet or phone jack is the power of the hybrid PLC/coax approach. Power lines provide the most distributed physical medium for whole-house distribution, creating a truly ubiquitous backbone. These sockets are readily available in all areas of the home, and do not require new wiring or the installation of jacks and signal splitters.

neuf cegetel Simplifies Digital TV Installation for Customers

In 2005, French telecom service provider neuf cegetel launched its neufTV service, which delivers TV programming over an ADSL connection. neuf cegetel customers typically self-install the equipment necessary to run the provider’s services, and initially, there was only one option for connecting the ADSL modem and the set-top box for neufTV—an Ethernet cable. It was an arrangement some customers found inconvenient. “Customers would sign up for the service and discover during installation that they had to run a cable through the living room,” says Olivier du Besset, residential department marketing manager at neuf cegetel. “We needed a solution that removed the cable and simplified the installation process for customers.” After successfully testing HomePlug powerline adapters from Intellon Corporation, neuf cegetel decided to partner with LEA S.A.S., based in Paris, to offer co-branded adapters to its subscribers. LEA offered NetPlug adapters, based on Intellon’s HomePlug 1.0 with Turbo chipset, which offers plenty of throughput for both high-speed data and standard-definition television.

PCCW Extends Reach without New Wiring

PCCW Limited, the largest telecommunications provider in Hong Kong, needed a less visible means of connecting customers to its next-generation fixed-line and mobile telephony, broadband, information technology, wireless communications and IPTV services. PCCW is the leader in Hong Kong’s broadband market with 800,000 subscribers, of which 550,000 have also signed up for the company’s IPTV service, called nowTV. The provider conducted a thorough evaluation of powerline chipsets before selecting Intellon. “We’ve been looking for a solution like HomePlug for two years,” says Dr. Allen Wong, director of product development and management-consumer group at PCCW. The HomePlug solution provides reliable connectivity and a very simple installation process for customers.” Today, PCCW offers the HomePlug adapters in a “do-it-yourself” package, with instructions for that allow customers to easily connect the adapters on their own.

Just Plug It In

Powerline-based technology provides a robust home network that delivers real-time content to any desired location in the home. As a technology totally transparent to the customer, it supports a self-installation business model, thereby greatly reducing the expense of rolling a truck and the negative effects of customer technophobia. “Just plug it in” technology is what customers and service providers want, and powerline is a powerful solution.

Mark E. Hazen is a senior technical writer for Intellon Corporation. For more information on powerline networking, visit www.intellon.com or www.homeplug.org.