News Release

TV Cabo Boosts Broadband Services with Cisco IP NGN Infrastructure

TV Cabo prepares to deliver 100Mbps broadband service with Cisco Wideband technology
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Jul 14, 2006

LISBON, Portugal, July 14, 2006 - Cisco Systems® today announced that TV Cabo, Portugal's largest pay-TV operator, has chosen the Cisco uBR10012 Cable Modem Termination Systems (CMTS) as part of its Internet Protocol Next-Generation Network (IP NGN) platform. TV Cabo is deploying the Cisco CMTS to upgrade its national network to offer ultra-high-speed broadband, voice over IP (VoIP) and high-definition video. With this network upgrade, TV Cabo is commencing trials of the Cisco Wideband solution, based on the Cisco family of CMTS and other components offered by Scientific Atlanta®, a Cisco company, and Linksys®, a division of Cisco.

The Cisco Wideband solution, based on a pre-standard version of the EuroCableLabs' Data Over Cable Service Interface Specification (DOCSIS) 3.0 standard, allows TV Cabo to optimize its network and offer increased throughput for customers, with data rates in the hundreds of megabits and potentially gigabits per second. This is achieved through channel bonding performed on the industry-leading Cisco uBR10012 CMTS and cable modems from Scientific Atlanta and Linksys.

At a press conference today, TV Cabo demonstrated future services up to 100 Mbps for streaming high-definition video to PCs and high-speed media downloading. Zeinal Bava, chief executive officer of TV Cabo, said: "We believe the future of cable is a bright and exciting one. With the new wideband technology, we have the opportunity to show our customers new possibilities of almost limitless bandwidth accessible from their homes."

Since launching the first broadband Internet access services in Portugal in 1999, TV Cabo has over 350,000 broadband subscribers and plans to introduce broadband telephone services based on voice over IP later this year.

"Cisco has worked closely with TV Cabo to help them migrate their network to an Internet Protocol Next Generation Network designed to deliver converged services," said Carlos Brazão, general manager of Cisco Systems Portugal. "We started with a Cisco IP backbone for real-time television distribution, and implemented the Cisco CMTS platform for broadband. Today, we have achieved another milestone with the upgrade to the uBR10K platform and successful trials of Cisco Wideband technology capable of delivering the highest-quality converged entertainment and communication services to TV Cabo's customers."

About TV Cabo

TV Cabo, a subsidiary of PT Multimedia, is leader in the Portuguese pay-tv market and one of the most important operators in Europe, with approximately 1.5 million customers and a market share above 80%.

TV Cabo's television subscription service is available nationwide, with distribution over cable and digital satellite platforms.

TV Cabo pioneered broadband Internet access in Portugal in 1999, with 352,000 customers in March 2006.