The Multimedia over Coax Alliance has introduced MoCA 2.1, a new firmware feature and extension of MoCA 2.0 that supports throughputs of 500 Mbps and a 1 Gbps “bonded” offering alongside the addition of a handful of new features that set a migration path toward MoCA 2.5. 

RELATED: MoCA Feels The Need For Speed

The Alliance said MoCA 2.1 and MoCA 2.1 Bonded, which can be used with whole-home DVRs and speedy networking setups that use a home's coax as the backbone, also bakes in new features spanning network set-up, management, and enhanced privacy settings:

-MoCA protected setup (MPS):  Easy setup of new nodes with unique password sharing via push-button (similar to Wi-Fi WPS).

-Management proxy: Management of nodes that don’t have upper layer management support by supporting management queries from one node on behalf of other nodes.

-Enhanced privacy: Secure data communications with a longer password using different keys between MoCA 2.1 nodes compared to MoCA 1.1/MoCA 2.0 nodes, along with the ability to control data forwarding of legacy nodes to and from MoCA 2.1 nodes.

-Network-wide beacon power management: Improved control of peak signal power on the coax by configuring the beacon power of nodes to an absolute level (within tolerance of the hardware) and advertise that level to other nodes so that the same value is used after any handoff.

-Bridge detection: Ability to distinguish between nodes belonging to different networks and pass operator specified information between nodes before admission, as well as pass that same information to upper layers to prevent neighbors from forming a common network.

“We now offer a broad suite of specifications inclusive of various performance modes and features providing the versatility to support and compliment IOT,” MoCA president Charles Cerino said, in a statement.

In April, MoCA introduced a 2.5 version of its platform that supports a wide range of profiles, including one that delivers net data rates topping 2.5 Gbps.

The Multimedia over Coax Alliance (MoCA), the group behind a speedy in-home networking platform, is looking to expand the reach of its core technology via the development of a new specification for the access market, with a specific focus on apartment buildings and other types of multiple dwelling units.

MoCA said the spec will be on the current MoCA 2.0 standard, which supports net data throughputs of 1 Gbps. The organization also has plans to integrate the new MoCA 2.5 spec, which will support speeds up to 2.5 Gbps and is backward-interoperable with MoCA 2.0.

The MoCA Access spec is expected to be available by mid-2017, according to the organization.

Among use cases for MoCA Access, the org said it will be a viable solution for operators driving fiber deep into the network or to the building (FTTB) and want to leverage existing wiring without sacrificing performance, and for ISPs building fiber-based networks that terminate the topical signal in the basement of a facility and use existing coax to deliver service to each unit or apartment. It also sees it taking hold with commercial integrators that design and install networks in restaurants, offices and any other buildings that have coax already installed.

MoCA believes the new Access spec will gain traction first in markets such as Europe and China, but also sees commercial opportunities in the hospitality and hotels segment arising in North America as well.

InCoax Networks AB of Sweden and Luster of China are among companies that are interested in the new access platform, MoCA noted.

“Our move into access applications is driven by operators worldwide who told us they need one Gbps actual throughputs with a long-term migration path and want to use the existing coax infrastructure,” Charles Cerino, president of MoCA, said in a statement. “Our performance and reliability attributes are proving to be a great solution in broadband applications as well as the home network backbone.” 

The Multimedia over Coax Alliance (MoCA) said its board has unanimously appointed Charlie Cerino as the organization’s first full-time, paid president.

Cerino has been president of MoCA since 2007, while also representing Comcast on the MoCA board. In his revised role at MoCA, Cerino will no longer represent Comcast on the board, but will continue to sit on the board as an independent representative unaffiliated with any company, MoCA said. The organization added that there will be no material change in his duties, as he will continue to promote MoCA technology to operators worldwide, serve as a spokesman for the organization, and manage the Alliance’s day-to-day operations.

Cerino, who joined Comcast in 1978 as a system engineer, retired as vice president of Comcast Center Technology in 2013, but has continued to lead MoCA.

“The Board realized that the organization required the attention of an actively engaged president and that the best person for the job was already in place,” said William Beals, MoCA vice president, in a statement.

“I am honored by the Board’s decision and look forward to interacting with our members and operators as we continue to evolve the technology and set our sights higher and faster worldwide,” Cerino added. “We anticipate an exciting year for the Alliance. The progress on our next generation specifications will solidify MoCA’s position in home networking for years to come.”

MoCA is a high-speed, IP home networking platform that has become a key technology for whole-home DVR systems. The latest generation of MoCA, 2.0, delivers baseline net data rates of 400 Mbps and 800 Mbps (with bonding), and 1 Gbps in point-to-multipoint mode.

Last fall, MoCA announced that field tests showed that the 2.0 version of the platform achieved net data rates of 400 Mbps or more in 90% of all coaxial outlets, or paths, and net throughputs of at least 350 Mbps in 95% of paths. Last April, the organization said that all new product certifications conducted in the first quarter of 2015 were for devices based on MoCA 2.0, which was ratified by the organization in mid-2010. 

MoCA said it has certified 198 products in all, including about 40 for MoCA 2.0 from companies such as Actiontec, Arris, Alcatel-Lucent, Broadcom, Cisco Systems, Entropic (now part of MaxLinear), Hitron, MStar Semiconductor, Netgear, Pace plc (now part of Arris), Samsung, STMicroelectronics, Technicolor, TiVo, Ubee Interactive, and WNC.

MoCA is also comprised of 51 members. Its Promoter (board of director) members include Arris, Broadcom, Cisco, Cox Communications, DirecTV, EchoStar, MaxLinear, Verizon, Comcast and Intel Corp.

TiVo is using this week’s CEDIA Expo in Dallas to introduce the TiVo Bridge, billing it as the first TiVo-branded multi-room networking adapter.

The new device is equipped with MoCA 2.0, the latest generation of Multimedia over Coax Alliance technology. The Alliance announced earlier this week that recent field tests of the speedier 2.0 version of the home networking platform achieved net data rates of 400 Mbps or more in 90% of all coaxial outlets, and net throughputs of at least 350 Mbps in 95% of paths.

At the show, TiVo will show off the Bolt, its new retail-focused DVR that’s capable of delivering 4K and includes a new SkipMode feature that lets users skip past commercial breaks on a select group of channels, including the Big Four broadcasters.

The Multimedia over Coax Alliance (MoCA) said new field tests of the speedier 2.0 version of the home networking platform achieved net data rates of 400 Mbps or more in 90% of all coaxial outlets, or paths.

Those tests also showed net throughputs of at least 350 Mbps were achieved in 95% of paths, the organization said. The chart shows the percentage of paths delivering a specific data rate or higher for both raw data (PHY) and net (MAC) throughput.

MoCA said the results were based on trials conducted in 205 U.S. homes, noting that all homeowners were volunteers, and that no homes were screened or selected based on construction materials, age, condition of coaxial wiring, or the type of pay TV service being delivered to those homes .

“The completion of the MoCA 2.0 field tests confirms the speed, ease of installation and reliability of our technology,” Charles Cerino, MoCA’s president, said in a statement. “This proves that coax is the high-speed backbone of the home network.”  

MoCA, a technology used in multi-room DVRs and in bridge devices that extend the reach of home WiFi networks, is also conducting similar trials in China, Israel and South Africa.

The organization announced in April that all new product certifications conducted in the first quarter of 2015 were for devices based on MoCA 2.0, a platform that’s designed to support usable throughputs of more than 400 Mbps in “Basic” mode and 500 Mbps in a “Turbo” point-to-point setting when utilizing a single channel. MoCA 2.0 also supports an “Enhanced” mode that uses channel bonding to provide throughputs of between 800 Mbps to 1 Gbps.

More than 30 products have been certified for MoCA 2.0.

Offering a clear indication that adoption of MoCA 2.0 is accelerating, all new product certifications during the first quarter of 2015 were for devices that integrated the speedy coax-based home networking platform, according to the Multimedia Over Coax Alliance.

MoCA technology is being used in a variety of whole-home DVRs, set-tops, broadband gateways, and Ethernet-to-coax bridge devices. As an upgrade of MoCA 1.1, the 2.0 version is designed to support usable throughputs of more than 400 Mbps in “Basic” mode and 500 Mbps in a “Turbo” point-to-point setting when connected devices are operating in the baseline mode and utilizing a single channel. MoCA 2.0 also supports an “Enhanced” mode that uses channel bonding to produce throughputs of between 800 Mbps to 1 Gbps. In January, MoCA said preliminary 2.0 field trial results showed that the technology achieved net throughputs of 400 Mbps or more in 90% of coax “paths,” and greater than 350 Mbps in 95% of paths.

Of the 35 device certifications since the launch of the MoCA 2.0 certification program in Q1 2014, 28 have been for products integrating MoCA 2.0, and nine integrating MoCA 1.1, the Alliance said, noting that Comcast and Verizon were among the service providers that announced MoCA 2.0-capable gateways last year.

Arris, Alcatel-Lucent, Broadcom, Cisco Systems, Entropic Communications, Hitron, Netgear, Pace, Samsung, Technicolor, Ubee Interactive, and WNC are among the companies that have received MoCA 2.0 certifications for various products.

“This has been a prolific year for certification of devices incorporating MoCA 2.0,” said Dr. Stephen Palm, chair of the MoCA Certification Board and senior technical director at Broadcom, a maker of MoCA silicon.  “MoCA Certification and the interoperability it represents are cornerstones for continued successful adoption of any connectivity technology standard, especially when used by service providers.”

“MoCA 2.0 certifications have surpassed our expectations just one year after the launch of the certification program,” added Charlie Cerino, president of MoCA. “The number of certified MoCA 2.0 devices is a clear trend on how quickly it is being adopted by the industry.”

Verizon Communications is keeping pace with a new, faster gateways being rolled out by cable competitors with the launch of the FiOS Quantum Gateway, a device equipped with 802.11ac WiFi and a speedy coax-based home networking platform.

Verizon said the new device, also known as the FiOS-G1 100, supports dual-band 2.4 GHz/5 GHz 802.11ac with beamforming, and bakes in the 2.0 version of the Multimedia over Coax Alliance (MoCA) platform, which supports in-home wireline throughputs of 400 Mbps in basic mode and up to 800 Mbps in the enhanced, turbo mode.

Targeting customers who have multiple devices hanging off their home networks and like to stream video, Verizon said the wireless end of the device can handle speeds up to 800 Mbps and an unobstructed range up to 325 feet, though both numbers are based on lab tests.

Verizon FiOS subs can buy new gateway outright for $149 (over three monthly payments, except in New York Connecticut, New Jersey and Florida), or lease it for $6.99 per month. Verizon said customers can install the device themselves.

A spokesman noted that the gateway, offered now in all FiOS markets, was developed in partnership with Greenwave Systems, with the telco having access to Greenwave’s software and services, as well as its product development and mechanical design processes. Greenwave bills itself as an provider of managed Internet of Things services and products.

FierceCable reported in March that test documents tied to the FiOS Quantum Gateway under development would also be capable of supporting both Z-Wave and Zigbee, wireless protocols that could be used for home automation services and “smart” thermostats and light bulbs. It was not immediately clear how the new gateway might factor into a future connected home offering from Verizon. However, the spec sheet posted by Verizon on the currently available FiOS Quantum Gateway make no mention of Zigbee or Z-Wave being present. Updated: Greenwave told Light Reading that Zigbee connectivity will be offered through a home area network (HAN) expansion module.

Verizon, meanwhile, noted in a blog post that it will be adding new features to the FiOS Quantum Gateway over time, including security access controls such as “guest” passwords, and device-specific access that will enable customers to pick and choose which devices are allowed to tap into their home network.

Verizon ended the third quarter with 6.5 million FiOS Internet subs, and been touting  free upgrades that match the upstream and downstream speeds of its residential fiber-to-the-home service.

Verizon’s souped-up gateway is being launched as cable operators prepare their own next-gen broadband products. Of recent note, Comcast introduced the Xfinity Wireless Gateway, a Cisco Systems-made product that also supports 802.11ac, MoCA 2.0 and a DOCSIS 3.0 cable modem. In September, Comcast said the gateway would become available in “select markets” this fall, noting that third-party lab tests showed that it delivered 700 Mbps of actual throughput.