Cable modem Hear it!

Cable modem Hacker Definition
A technology for connecting users to the Internet through the TV-cable network and has the advantage of high-speed bandwidth 10–50 times as high (up to 5 megabits per second) as dial-up modems, which have 56 kilobits per second and use the telephone networks. TV-cable providers have to upgrade their network infrastructure to offer the service, whereas the dial-up modems need just a telephone line for connectivity. An alternative to the usage of cable-modems is DSL (Digital Subscription Line). DSL makes use of existing telephony lines and achieves approximately the same transmission speeds as cable modems.

See Also: DSL Modem; Network.

cable modem (CM) Telecom Definition
A modem designed to support high speed data communications over hybrid fiber/coax (HFC) CATV networks. Cable modems are positioned at the customers' premises and in a cable modem termination system (CMTS) at the service provider's headend. The initial Data over Cable Service Interface Specification (DOCSIS), released in 1997, standardized cable modems. Continuing research and development efforts directed at cable modems and related CATV network standards are largely the responsibility of CableLabs. See also CableLabs, CATV, CMTS, DOCSIS, HFC, and modem.