Title: Cable Infrastructure
Course: 2016FA-MCO-115-401 > Section: Module 5: Communications

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Cable Infrastructure

The Oxford Dictionary defines cable television as, “a system in which television programs are transmitted to the sets of subscribers by cable rather than by broadcast signal” [15] . CATV a term now synonymous with cable television originated from community antenna television and then later was called community access television (as actual antennas played less of a role) [16]. The cable systems of today use both coaxial cable and fiber optic cable. According to the DHS, approximately 63.1 million basic cable customers are served by the US cable television industry. The industry is made up of over 7,700 cable systems. Often multiple systems are owned by well-known providers called Multiple-System Operators (MSOs). There are 10 of these in the United States [2]. Some of the biggest MSOs include Comcast, Time Warner Cable, Cablevision Systems Corporation, and Cox Communications, Inc. [17]. Cable is no longer solely a television broadcast provider. Digital telephone service and high-speed Internet access are now available from cable providers.