Virgin Media deploys DOCSIS 3.0, trials 1.5-Gbps broadband via Cisco gear

Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO) says that Virgin Media of the UK is using the system house’s uBR10K Universal Broadband Router and Cable Modem Termination System (CMTS) in a roll out of DOCSIS 3.0 technology. The company adds that Virgin Media has run a trial of the technology in East London in which it hit broadband speeds of 1.5 Gbps using Cisco's (3G60) Broadband Processing Engine, a line card for the uBR10K.

Virgin Media offers broadband, TV, mobile phone, and residential phone services in the UK. The company delivers broadband services to more than half of all UK homes, with speeds of up to 100 Mbps. It is currently expanding its cable network footprint.

Using the 3G60, a single Cisco Universal Broadband Router can support up to 576 downstream and 480 upstream channels per chassis, the highest CMTS capacity and density in the industry, Cisco asserts.

"Cisco CMTS solutions are designed to support large-scale IP broadband and video services today -- as well as the migration to IP networks in the near future,” said Mark Palazzo, vice president and general manager of Cisco’s Cable Access Business Unit. “We are proud to help Virgin Media achieve such significant milestones with its network capacity and broadband connection speeds."