Adoption Trends of Over-The-Top Video from a Cable Network Perspective

The adoption of broadband service with Data Over Cable Service Interface Specification (DOCSIS) over the past ten years ignited a market for the delivery of video content using these same broadband networks. The wide spread adoption of broadband service, the ever increasing speeds of service, and the growing ubiquity of Wi-Fi enabled devices capable of receiving and playing video, has created a tidal wave of demand for content from subscribers.

For this paper, a study was performed to look at trends in over-the-top video and its impacts on North American wire-line broadband networks. The study included an examination of the trends in broadband connectivity speeds in North America, and of data collected over the last four years by Sandvine as part of its Global Internet Phenomena report in order to identify the effects of the changes in broadband connectivity speeds. Finally, the research also included a case study as an example of the type of on-line viewing events that have been enabled with the advances in technology.