CommScope Inc. (NYSE:CTV- message board) has emerged as the early leader in supplying cable operators with fiber-to-the-premises (FTTP) solutions targeted at greenfields and low-density regions. (See SA Pitches Cable PON and Moto Intros Cable PON.)

    CommScope says it has deployed BrightPath, its FTTP solution, with three major cable operators, and has installations pending with another three MSOs. (See CommScope Posts Record Q2.)

    The Bright Path system is billed for low-density areas or greenfields and new master communities, where developers may insist on FTTP because there's a perceived premium value assigned to homes attached to a strand of glass.

    "So, in these cases, it is more about answering the call for FTTH from developers, and not about bandwidth," says CommScope's director of business development, David Morrocco.

    The Bright Path system is designed to allow an operator to leverage its existing hybrid fiber/coax (HFC) plant. The platform consists of a special fiber node, supplied by Aurora Networks Inc. , and a home-side network interface unit (NIU) that converts signals from optical to electrical. Each subscriber is served by a single fiber drop, which transports 1550 nm down and 1310 nm in the reverse path. Up to 32 subscribers can be served on a single distribution fiber.

    CommScope's manager of application engineering, Mark Vogel, calls BrightPath a "cyber version of an HFC plant."

    The system is also made to be compatible with an operator's existing headends, cable modem termination systems, billing systems, cable modems, and digital set-tops.

    "Operational systems and practices are unchanged, so headend and support personnel do not have to be retrained," Morrocco explains.