Skip to content

Mediacom Reveals HFC Network Upgrade Plan

Mediacom Communications, the fifth largest cable television operator in the United States, has revealed details of its hybrid fiber coaxial (HFC) network upgrade plan, announcing that it will provide multi gigabit symmetric broadband services to one million households (approximately one-third of existing network coverage) by the end of 2026. At present, the company has completed speed upgrades for 185000 households in major cities such as Cedar Rapids and Des Moines in Iowa, and has launched renovation projects in the Delaware, Minneapolis metropolitan area, and four city areas (covering multiple cities in Illinois and Iowa).

Three stage technological evolution route

This upgrade adopts a step-by-step implementation strategy:

  1. DOCSIS 3.1 upgrade: The currently deployed 2Gbps downlink package (including 300Mbps/1Gbps symmetric/2Gbps downlink+1Gbps uplink three levels) has been put into use
  2. Spectrum segmentation transformation: The first batch of 500000 households will upgrade to 1.2GHz spectrum and adopt a “high segmentation” scheme (uplink frequency range 5MHz-204MHz), while the rest will use 1.8GHz spectrum with “ultra-high segmentation” (uplink frequency range 5MHz-396MHz)
  3. DOCSIS 4.0 Preparation: Transitioning to Distributed Architecture (DAA) by deploying Remote PHY Devices (RPD) and Virtual CMTS (vCMTS) to pave the way for future 10Gbps network speeds

JR Walden, Chief Technology Officer of Mediacom, stated that these upgrades will create a future oriented broadband platform that smoothly transitions network speeds from the current 1-2Gbps to over 10Gbps in the future. The company has chosen Harmonic to provide vCMTS devices and will convert existing remote MACPHY devices (RMD) to RPD through software upgrades.

Differentiated technology selection

Unlike other operators, Mediacom skips the DOCSIS 3.1+solution and directly deploys modems compatible with DOCSIS 4.0. These devices support multiple OFDM channels, which can improve network speed in advance on existing networks. The technological transformation benefited from the closure of the completed QAM video system, which released 400MHz spectrum resources for DOCSIS data transmission.

Accelerating the bundling strategy

At the same time as the network upgrade, Mediacom is strengthening the bundled sales of home broadband and mobile services. The company launched mobile services a year ago through partnerships with Verizon and Reach, and is currently testing device installment payments and warranty plans. It plans to launch promotional activities during the school season and holidays. In addition, the Bolt brand’s Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) service helps cover areas where wired networks have not yet reached.

The core of our capital strategy is to match long-term customer commitments with efficient and scalable funding. This financing not only guarantees the existing development plan, but also provides flexibility and liquidity for sustained growth. “