that creates international specifications for home powerline networking products and services and to accelerate the demand for these products and services worldwide through the sponsorship of market and user education programs." See the December 2004 Homeplug Newsletter below. 2005 is the year of powerline broadband coming of age.
"Since 2000, the HomePlug Powerline Alliance, Inc. is an industry-led consortium ...
So just what is Broadband Powerline Networking?
Powerline Communication and Broadband Powerline BPL is a global community technology. The PLC broadband powerline signal uses the common electrical grid. Power lines can now carry the Internet digital signal to your home. Homes can now use the wiring in the walls to transmit the network and Internet signals throughout the homes numerous wall plugin sockets. Simply plug-in and you are connected. New broadband powerline Internet radios and televisions are entering the world market. New personal computers(PCs) are including the power line chipset for automatic network communications. One of the larger Powerline Alliances is HomePlug.
The Quarterly Member Newsletter of the HomePlug® Powerline Alliance
December 2004
Message from the President
I am honored to represent the membership of the HomePlug® Powerline Alliance at meetings and conferences all over the world. It is with great pride that I can tell people from other organizations and companies of the great things that members of the HomePlug alliance have achieved.
The world's top newspapers and magazines are covering powerline communications daily, which is spurring the interest of analysts, the investment community, and a variety of established standards organizations. They are excited about the worldwide sales of HomePlug 1.0 products, and about how quickly the HomePlug AV and BPL specification processes are moving.
The HomePlug AV specification process has made incredible progress. Members of the board-appointed Pre-specification Working Group have taken the best parts of several proposed technologies, and molded them into the best powerline technology offering anywhere. I'd like to personally recognize the members of the PSWG (listed below) who made the advanced preliminary specification so complete. The spec is currently being examined and modified by the Specification Working Group who held their first face-to-face meeting just recently. I cordially welcome old friends and new to this group.
The alliance continues to focus on creating a unified and harmonized marketplace. There is a lot of exciting work ahead, and the participation of our members is the key to our success.
In my meetings with other organizations, I am glad to report that the HomePlug alliance is a leading organization, well respected for its world-class spec development.
It is our goal to maintain that position.
The alliance can benefit from the participation of the additional members in our marketing, specification, and technical working groups, and with membership development, liaison activities, and many other areas.
Working together we can accomplish many things. It is an exciting time and I am glad to be a part of it.
Best Regards,
Oleg Loginov
Board President
Thanks to the Pre-Specification Working Group.
Conexant: Jim Petranovich, Joe Meditz, Chan Park, Min Wang, Vlad Dorfman, Daniel Payer, Neal Riedel, George Peponides, Cenk Kose, Bill Schirmer, Chris Cooke
Earthlink: Brian Wenger
Intellon: Larry Yonge, Srinivas Katar, Ehab Tahir, Brad Lynch
Sharp Labs: Sherman Gavette, Deepak Ayyagari, Tony Chan, Song-lin Young, Dan Park
Arkados: Dave Lawrence, Brion Ebert
Technology: Broadband Powerline (BPL) Standards
If you've been attuned to the announcements from the HomePlug Powerline Alliance, you're well aware that we've started an effort to create a specification for Broadband Powerline technology. This technology allows your Utility company to use power lines to deliver Internet access to your home, whereas existing HomePlug technology has traditionally been used to create a network between devices inside your home.
Our BPL effort is following the HomePlug specification process through the Access-BPL Working Group. The first task of this group is to develop a Market Requirements Document (MRD), which will define the requirements of the technology from the point of view of the electric utility, network operator, and service providers industries.
While HomePlug v1.0 technology (and expectedly HomePlug AV to follow) has been successfully deployed in both BPL trials and commercial BPL launches in the U.S. (for example, by Cinergy and Current Networks in Cincinatti, OH -- see press release), the HomePlug BPL Specification will expand on these existing HomePlug versions. In particular, the HomePlug BPL Specification will address such issues as network and element management, service provisioning and other criteria being defined in the HomePlug BPL MRD.
The first open meeting in the development of the HomePlug BPL MRD was recently held at the annual UPLC Conference in Washington, D.C. Various electric utilities, service providers, technology integrators and chip manufacturers were in attendance. Follow up working group meetings and conference calls are being held.
Additionally, the HomePlug Board of Directors has created a new level of membership in the Alliance that is designed specifically for utility companies, called the Power Utility Membership Group (PUMG). This HomePlug alliance membership level allows utilities to participate in HomePlug Working Groups and on specific HomePlug committees.
If your company would like to participate in the HomePlug BPL MRD process, please contact the HomePlug BPL Working Group chairman, Brian Wenger (EarthLink), at or 626-351-7169.
Technology: HomePlug AV Update
The specification process for HomePlug AV continues to march forward. The advanced preliminary specification was released into the Specification Working Group (SWG) at the end of October.
The technical highlights of HomePlug AV include:
200-Mbps class networking, enough to carry multiple HDTV programs around a house.
An advanced Physical Layer that offers near-capacity throughput performance and exceptional coverage for robust communications over noisy power line channels.
A high-efficiency MAC layer that incorporates both scheduled access (TDMA) with Quality of Service (QoS) guarantees, and contention access (CSMA). Features that are a must for the demands of multi-media content delivery include guaranteed bandwidth reservation, tight control of latency and jitter, and high reliability.
Advanced Network Management functions and facilities capable of supporting plug-and-play, user and service provider set-up and configuration.
Co-existence modes enabling Broadband over Powerline (BPL) co-existence, multi-network operation, hidden node service, and backward compatibility with HomePlug 1.0 technology
If your company is a participant member of the HomePlug alliance, please contact us to participate in the development of this very exciting specification.
Marketing Working Group Update
The HomePlug alliance's Marketing Working Group has the opportunity to bring a great technology to market, and help to promote a vital and active organization!
We have an extraordinary push going on in the MWG right now. Have you noticed the new logo? The alliance's new "open house" logo represents the open organization where great technologies are created, and mirrors the simplicity of using HomePlug certified products. New certification logos will follow. Get involved now, and help us design them!
Here's just a taste of some of the other projects that are causing all our excitement:
Launch HomePlug AV
Promote the new logo for the Alliance
Appear at three major trade shows in the next few months
Promote our new members and our new levels of HomePlug membership
Develop new collateral and presentations for HomePlug members
Tell the world about our new standards effort for BPL
We're trying to squeeze all those activities in between the press and analyst interviews, speaking opportunities all over the world, our liaisons with other international organizations, and the launch of a new HomePlug website.
CES 2005 and CeBIT 2005 will be big shows for the HomePlug alliance. With the final specification of HomePlug AV just around the corner, we'll be that much closer to seeing HomePlug technology embedded inside all kinds of consumer electronic products. It will be a very exciting time, and the realization of the visionaries who started this organization over four years ago.
If you're a HomePlug member company with certified products, we want to work with you! We have constant requests from the journalists and analysts for trial products that can put your name right under the nose of some very influential folks.
We're always looking to add the talents of new people to our marketing team. If you'd like to join the excitement, please drop Jim Reeber a line at .
Organization News
Welcome our new members to the Alliance since May 2004:
Where can you find the HomePlug Powerline Alliance?
Recently, HomePlug alliance members have been representing the Alliance at a number of shows and conferences. From Shenzen, China to Alexandria, Virgina, members are helping to get our message out.
HomePlug alliance members will also be at the following upcoming 2005 shows:
2005 CES
January 6 - 9
Las Vegas, Nevada
Speakers: various HomePlug alliance speakers
Booth #26422
The uses are unlimited. With the marriage of Powerline and Wireless, the final solution to networking has been achieved. Wireless limitations has now been overcome by the power grid. By using the electrical wires, the digital data signal can be passed throughout a building. Small modules plugged into the electricity outlet then beams the wireless signal throughout the location.
What about the Utilities?
The Utility companies are now seeing the potential of entering into the telecommunications market by supplying Internet via the power lines which are already in place. This proves to have enormous potential for many countries in the world who have no solid Internet system. Now these countries will be able to use their electricity grid to make the Internet accessable.
The Powerline Advisor Newsletter is an information-packed, free Newsletter. If there is News, we let you know. The Powerline Industry is in a state of rapid advancements. We will verify your subscription. We Value Your Privacy.
So Just Who Is Plugtek.com?
Plugtek.com has become the largest information site for Broadband Powerline Communication Networking information. Started immediately after the formation of the HomePlug Alliance, Plugtek.com has worked to become the Hub for all news, articles, press releases, products and advancements in the BPL industry.
Domains Related to Power Line Communication:
Current names held by Plugtek.com:
acplug.com
broadband-over-powerline.com
broadband-over-powerlines.com
broadband-powerline.com
broadbandoverpowerline.com
broadbandoverpowerlines.com
broadbandpowerline.us
broadbandpowerlines.com
epowerline.com
hplug.com
net1005.com
onlinepowerline.com
plugtek.com
powerline-communication.com
powerline-network.com
powerlinebroadband.net
powerlinecommunication.us
powerlinecommunication.net
powerlinemodem.com
powerlinenetwork.biz
powerlinenetworking.us
powerlineonline.com
powerlinestore.com
powerlinetv.com
Contact for availability.
If you're interested in the inner workings of the Powerline Industry, we welcome you to The Research Center.
