March 1997
DOCSIS 1.0 cable modem standard released
Cable operators and vendors finalized DOCSIS 1.0 in March 1997 — a common RF interface so cable modems and head-end gear from different vendors interoperate.
What it was for
DOCSIS (Data Over Cable Service Interface Specification) let Comcast, Time Warner, and others deploy millions of compatible cable modems instead of proprietary pairs. It is why you can buy a Surfboard or Netgear modem and expect it to work on many cable ISPs — and why developers could count on tens of megabits downstream to homes.
Why it's here
DOCSIS standardized the cable modem layer that @Home and regional cable ISPs scaled globally.
Why it mattered
Interoperable modems turned cable plant into a competitive broadband access market.
What it solved
Early cable internet used incompatible modem/CMTS pairs that blocked mass deployment.
Related
- @Home launches residential cable internetSeptember 1996