Broadband Powerline Networking Gets a Jolt from IPTV

SUMMARY

Summary

Powerline networking offers a solution with some advantages over coax and twisted-pair cabling for in-home deployment, especially in regions with little existing coax or phone line jacks, such as in EMEA, China, and many Asia-Pacific countries. At this time, we do not believe that there will be one clear technology winner in the networking interface race between coax, phone line, and powerline; however, our current analysis points toward powerline as winning on a worldwide scale. In 2005, worldwide unit shipments of broadband powerline equipment surpassed 2 million, and the market has reached an inflection point this year that points only upward.

This report provides worldwide unit shipment forecasts, and forecasts by geographic region, product segment, technology, bandwidth, PHY/MAC chipset ASP, sales by channel (retail vs. service provider), and in-home networking vs. broadband access/utility.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Executive Summary

Methodology

Overview: Networking Over Powerline

• Why Powerline?
• No New Wires
  • Advantages
  • Disadvantages
• Technical Challenges and Benefits

Competing No New Wires Technologies

• Twisted Pair/Copper (Telephone Wiring)
• Coax
  • Powerline Over Coax
• Wireless

Regulatory

• Federal Communications Commission (FCC)
  • General Technical Requirements
  • FCC Opinion and Order, August 2006
• California
• New York
• Texas
• European Standardization Organizations (ESOs)
  • CENELEC
  • ETSI
• Japan

Competing Technologies Over Powerline, Alliances and Standards

• HomePlug Powerline Alliance
  • HomePlug 1.0
  • HomePlug Command and Control (HPCC)
  • HomePlug Turbo
  • HomePlug AV
  • HomePlug BPL for Access
• Universal Powerline Association (UPA)
• Consumer Electronic Powerline Communications Alliance (CEPCA)
• IEEE 1901
• United Power Line Council (UPLC)
• Open PLC European Research Alliance (OPERA)
  • Cost Expectations for PLC/BPL Access Infrastructure
• PLC Utilities Alliance (PUA)
• PowerLine Communications Forum (PLCforum)

Applications for Powerline Networking

• Broadband Access Over Powerline
  • Utility Company Use
  • Customer Services
  • BPL Business Models
  • Three Primary Infrastructure Components
  • BPL Deployment Costs
  • Costs of Broadband Access Via Powerline
  • Economic Viability for Rural Communities
• In-Home Broadband Over Powerline
  • Triple Play Services (IPTV, Data, Telephony)
  • Home Networking
  • Home Automation and Security Systems/Services

Deployments and Trials

• Arizona
• California
• Italy
• New York
• Ohio
• South Africa
• Spain
• Texas
• The Queen Mary
• Virginia

Selected Players

• Ambient
• Arkados
• Asoka USA
• Aztech Systems
• Belkin
• BellSouth
• CenterPoint Energy, IBM, and Corinex
• Comcast
• Communication Technologies (COMTek)
• Conexant Systems
• Corinex Communications
• CURRENT Communications Group
• D-Link
• develo
• Design of Systems on Silicon (DS2)
• Duke Energy
• EarthLink
• EchoStar Communications
• GE Energy
• GE Security
• Google
• Intel
• Intellon
• Linksys/Cisco Systems
• Microsoft and Intellon
• Motorola
• Netgear
• Panasonic/Matsushita
• Phonex
• Radio Shack
• Renesas Technology
• Sagem Communication
• Schneider Electric
• Sling Media
• SmartLabs
• Texas Instruments
• Yitran Communications
• ZyXel Communications
• Worldwide Market Shares

Worldwide Forecasts

Worldwide Broadband Powerline Networking Equipment: In-Home and BPL Access/Utility

• Opportunities for Broadband Powerline Equipment Geographically
• Forecast by Retail vs. Service Provider
• Forecast by Bandwidth
• Forecast by Product Segmentation
• Forecast by Technology
• Forecast for PHY/MAC Chipset ASP by Bandwidth
• Adding Other Consumer Low-Speed Powerline Communications (PLC) into the Equation
  • 2005 Low-Speed Consumer PLC Sales
  • Home Automation Powerline: A Different Animal?
  • INSTEON by SmartLabs, Inc.
  • Universal Powerline Bus (UPB) by PCS

List of Tables

• Table 1. Excluded Frequency Bands by the FCC
• Table 2. HomePlug 1.0 Maximum Throughput at Various Layers Using DQPSK 3/4 Modulation
• Table 3. Comparison of HomePlug 1.0 with Other Wireline Technologies
• Table 4. Yitran Command and Control Chip Specifications
• Table 5. Worldwide HomePlug Equipment Market Shares (Units)
• Table 6. Worldwide Non-HomePlug and Proprietary Broadband Powerline Equipment Market Shares (Units)
• Table 7. Worldwide Broadband Powerline Equipment, In-Home Networking vs. BPL Access and Utility, Annual Shipments (Units in Millions)
• Table 8. Worldwide Broadband Powerline Equipment by Region (Units in Millions)
• Table 9. Worldwide Broadband Powerline Equipment by Sales Channel (Units in Millions)
• Table 10. Worldwide Broadband Powerline Equipment by Bandwidth (Units in Millions)
• Table 11. Worldwide Broadband Powerline Equipment by Product Segment (Units in Millions)
• Table 12. Worldwide Broadband Powerline Equipment by Technology, HomePlug vs. Non-HomePlug and Proprietary (Units in Millions)
• Table 13. Worldwide Broadband Powerline PHY/MAC Chipset ASP by Bandwidth (US$)

List of Figures

• Figure 1. OPERA General Architecture of a Powerline Communications Access System
• Figure 2. BPL US Deployment Map
• Figure 3. CURRENT's BPL Solution
• Figure 4. Motorola's BPL Canopy Approach: Wireless over Low Voltage