Residential proxies and decentralized physical infrastructure networks (DePINs) are technologies that enable end users to participate in semi-anonymous communications similar in function to virtual private networks (VPNs) by essentially sharing their broadband connection with anonymous third-party users. These types of networks are not new, but they have become more popular, easier to set up (sometimes even inadvertently) and are advertised to subscribers to make passive income, remove geo-blocking restrictions, and increase their privacy and security.

In this blog, we’ll look at how these networks function, why subscribers are implementing them on their home networks, and finally the security and privacy risks presented by these types of networks to both subscribers and internet service providers (ISPs).

What Are Overlay Networks?

Generally speaking, overlay networks are logical networks built on top of existing physical networks. Residential proxies and DePINs are examples of overlay networks that consist of software or hardware that runs on the subscriber’s home network or mobile device.

Many of these networks include a crypto token (bitcoin, Ethereum, etc.) that allows the end user to earn a financial stake by sharing their bandwidth in the overlay network. These networks are marketed to subscribers to earn passive income, with catchphrases like, “Get paid for your unused internet” or “Turn your unused internet into cash,” and companies offering these services often have signup bonuses, specials, referral incentive programs and pyramid schemes.

Harms to the Subscriber

End users believe that they will get extra security and privacy by participating in these types of networks. However, they often face a very different reality.

To participate, users must put their trust in the proxy provider, which has strong incentives to monetize their access to end-user data and online activity by selling user information to data brokers or other third parties. For example, privacy violations can occur by leaking sensitive information, such as what sites the subscriber is visiting, to third parties for targeted ads and profiling.

By sharing their broadband connection with these proxy networks, subscribers may unwittingly participate in botnets, distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks and other illegal activities such as copyright violations or, even worse, facilitating the transfer of child sexual abuse material.

The broadband subscriber simply cannot know what undesirable or illegal traffic they are allowing to transit their broadband connection. This can harm the reputation of the subscriber’s IP address, which could result in the subscriber’s access to legitimate services being blocked. It could even result in legal actions against the subscriber as government authorities will track down the often-unwitting subscriber by their IP address.

Additional ways that a broadband subscriber may suffer harm is through the unintentional installation of malware or info-stealing software. For example, a cybercrime campaign by a group named Void Arachne uses a malicious installer for virtual private networks (VPNs) to embed deepfake and artificial intelligence (AI) software to enhance its operations. End users may believe they are installing software that will enhance their privacy and security but are actually installing malware that tracks them and feeds sensitive data to bad actors.

Harms to the Broadband Network

Residential proxies consume bandwidth and produce traffic that is not directed to or originates from the broadband subscriber. This extra bandwidth consumption could adversely affect the subscribers' perceptions of their service and may increase costs for the network operator. There can be implications to peering agreements between operators as well. A residential proxy that facilitates the transfer of certain traffic may lead to lowered reputations of the IP addresses in use and potential blocking by external services.

ISPs face a much broader risk when it comes to IP reputation. The reputation of one IP that has been damaged due to running an overlay network can affect not just one subscriber but multiple subscribers as the IP address is reassigned through Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP). If operators use network address translation (NAT), all addresses behind the NAT can be affected. This not only causes disruption in service for the subscribers but can also cause reputational harm to the ISP and its brand.

Some overlay networks require that static inbound port forwarding be set up to fully participate in the network. These ports are then easily scanned and recorded in databases such as Shodan, making participating nodes easy to discover. DePIN hardware will inevitably be deprecated and no longer receive firmware updates and security patches. This will lead to a higher risk of the devices being compromised and exploited for other purposes, such as participating in a botnet.

Improving Capabilities to Counter Threats

In summary, decentralized overlay networks such as residential proxies and DePINs pose real and significant security and privacy concerns for both subscribers and their ISPs. These technologies enable semi-anonymous communications but also increase the risk of reputational harm, disruption in service and potential malicious use.

As these networks become more widespread and are increasingly exploited by malicious actors, it is essential to improve detection capabilities and develop effective mitigation strategies to address these risks.

To effectively mitigate these risks, a multi-stakeholder approach is necessary, involving collaboration between civil society, ISPs, overlay network providers, regulatory bodies and law enforcement agencies. This can include implementing robust network monitoring and security protocols and developing guidelines for educating subscribers on safe usage practices. By taking a proactive and coordinated approach, we can minimize the risks associated with overlay networks and promote a safer and more secure online environment for all users.

If you are a CableLabs member or a vendor and are interested in collaborating with us on solutions for safer, more secure online experiences, explore our working groups and contact us using the button below.

Today is the second and final part of the recap of my SCTE TechExpo24 event, neXus: New Partner Showcase coverage. In Part 1, I highlighted some emerging and up-and-coming companies that are poised to drive growth, innovation and transformation in our industry. Today, I am sharing the final groups that I featured this fall:

• Charter shared their partnership with BugLabs to discuss the power of Low-Code/No-Code, simplifying onboarding and minimizing development for Network as a Service (NaaS) deployment.
• Vodafone Germany featured their recent collaboration with Flynex and Dimetor to develop DroNet Hub an innovative online platform designed to streamline the planning and management of commercial drone flights for businesses.

Bug Labs and Charter

Charter and Bug Labs announced their new partnership on stage at SCTE TechExpo24, which coincided with Charter’s launch of Bryte IQ. Bryte IQ is a B2B NaaS platform that exposes APIs and functionality to third-party developers to help integrate and create amazing experiences for customers. This enables seamless, consistent deployment of services across wired and wireless networks, which empowers fast, versatile application advancement and adoption.

Within the United States, there are over 33 million businesses. There are around 130 million full-time employees, with 77 percent of those employees working in businesses with fewer than 500 people. The capital prioritization faced by most companies of this size makes it challenging to have many developers on staff.

Charter and Bug Labs, with Bug Labs’ Signalpattern platform, are committed to improving user productivity and agility through software solutions that simplify access to network information.

Peter Semmelhack, founder and CEO of Bug Labs, stated, “In today’s dynamic technology landscape, Signalpattern presents a transformative alternative to traditional application development. By offering discrete, modular workflows that can be accessed independently or in combination, via any interface type — web, chat, audio — Signalpattern reimagines information flow, enabling companies to lower costs and boost operational efficiency."

Signalpattern supports all popular workflow applications, from dashboards to Slack, Teams and even SMS, making it adaptable and easy to use. Users can create personalized visualizations and interactions, seamlessly share them, and access a library of ready-to-use, interactive widgets. This approach accelerates development while ensuring solutions are customized to meet users’ unique needs.

Working together, Charter and Bug Labs are providing end users with tools to quickly and efficiently create and personalize their own solutions, supporting the emerging "composable enterprise" model, where agility and responsiveness are essential for staying competitive. They aim to remove obstacles for users, making the information they need accessible anytime, on any device.

By year end, Bug Labs will introduce a new suite of AI-driven features that enable users to input their job context, role and industry. Signalpattern will then automatically generate interactive visualizations and intuitive user interfaces tailored to their specific needs, further streamlining the creation of customized solutions. These new capabilities allow users to save time, reduce dependency on technical teams and quickly adapt insights for their unique business environments. By simplifying complex data interactions, Signalpattern empowers professionals to make informed decisions faster, boosting productivity and enabling more agile responses to business challenges.

Vodafone DE, FlyNex and Dimetor

Vodafone DE (Germany) in Düsseldorf is working to constantly innovate and find new revenue streams (Beyond Connectivity Solutions) using an open innovation approach. For Michael Reinartz, director of innovation at Vodafone DE, the key to successful innovation is curiosity and openness, on top of a lot of research, trend-watching and analyses.

While they have autonomy in Germany to do their own innovation work, a larger goal is to take the solutions to Vodafone Group in the United Kingdom to serve their other markets.

Michael leads their team of 40 people who focus on the areas of extended reality (XR), data analytics, sustainability, payment/identity/messaging, network-driven innovations, content solutions and drones. They have successfully launched products and services in many of these areas on their own as well as with specialized partners, who are often startups and scaleups. When that additional knowledge and flexibility is required, their department’s cooperation initiative called “UPLIFT” scouts for relevant startups and scaleups that can help solve the problems of their customers — both B2C and B2B.

A recent example of this co-creation is in the drone space, where the flight planning, regulatory compliance, and data analysis is quite complex for companies — and even regulators — to navigate. (It should be noted that operators, drone pilots and regulators are working on a joint regulatory and compliance base with the EASA (European Union Aviation Safety Agency).

Furthermore, BVLOS (beyond the visual line of sight) is becoming a driving force for the commercial drone market, and mobile connectivity plays a central role for the implementation and commercialization of BVLOS flights.

Imagine a railway company that needs to check their tracks after a big storm or disaster. Or a pilot that needs to check on a remote construction site or bridge, for example, to monitor the status. Or the large wind farms, electricity pylons and industrial plants that require complex inspection and maintenance. Currently, people physically go to these locations to perform this work. This is inefficient, costly, not always possible and slows down the progress that needs to be made in repairing the situation. Other use cases include emergency package delivery, first responder reconnaissance, infrastructure surveys and many more.

Vodafone DE wanted to offer their drone-interested B2B customers a user-friendly platform to plan, execute and analyze their drone flights with ease. Together with companies they pinpointed, FlyNex and Dimetor, Vodafone DE announced their drone offering to business customers, DroNet Hub, DroNet API, and DroNet Connect, earlier this year.

This cloud-based solution can be customized for B2B companies, leveraging the expertise of Vodafone DE’s two partners and their own network capabilities:

Dimetor and the DroNet API

Vodafone DE tapped into Austrian-based Dimetor for the DroNet API. Headed up by Thomas Neubauer and Thomas Wana, Dimetor brings years of experience in aviation, mobile networking and software engineering to deliver highly scalable software to streamline the flight planning and control processes for UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) operations. The DroNet API gathers connectivity prediction and population density data on the ground and sends to the DroNet Hub to allow speedy approval of drone flight schedules.

Vodafone DE and DroNet Connect

Vodafone offers a mobile connectivity plan that ensures drones stay connected for the entire flight and through Vodafone’s 5G network, density and connectivity predictions function as an enabler for the drone solutions.

FlyNex.io and the DroNet Hub

To pull it all together for the DroNet Hub, Vodafone used FlyNex out of Leipzig, Germany, which specializes in digital data collection, analysis and management. They created one platform to manage the complete drone mission process. Headed up by three drone experts and one geoscientist (Andreas Dunsch, Christian Caballero, Michael Petrosjan and Holger Dirkson), FlyNex’s technology analyzes the aerial imagery taken by the drones and monitors them using AI, enabling the quick generation of automated reports and the creation of 3D models or digital twins of monitored areas. This informs the platform in real-time if there are risks that need to be addressed, like breaks in the tracks on a railway or damage to windmill turbines, for example.

The introduction of DroNet Hub marks a pivotal moment in accelerating the use of drone technology across businesses in Germany. This partnership not only highlights the ingenuity of the FlyNex and Dimetor, but also the innovative mindset and commitment of Vodafone DE in creating Beyond Connectivity Solutions for their customers.

As we progress toward a future of context-aware connectivity and adaptive networks, what will ultimately move the needle for the industry is a collaborative ecosystem built on a shared vision of interoperability. Our Technology Vision, developed in collaboration with member operators, provides a strategic framework to accelerate the delivery of next-generation connectivity and beyond — unlocking agility, facilitating industry alignment and creating solutions at scale.

Collaboration is vital to the success of the Technology Vision. At Winter Conference 2025, we will convene industry leaders and other experts to work together to collectively discuss and solve key challenges for our organizations. Together, we can deliver network solutions that are flexible, reliable and capable of enabling new services and seamless user experiences.

Shaping the Discussion at CableLabs Winter Conference

Our keynote Zach Kass, AI futurist and former head of go-to-market at OpenAI, will kick off with his vision of a future powered by AI. He will shed light on the technologies driving its evolution and guide organizations on how to effectively leverage AI’s transformative power to accelerate innovation and streamline operations.

Each session of Winter Conference will focus on a different component of the Technology Vision framework and explore next steps for building and evolving the network of the future together. Some highlights include:

• In a two-part series, The What, Why and How of Future HFC Solutions sessions will explore how future DOCSIS®️ generations align with next-gen networks to boost capacity, reliability and security as well as 6G development by 3GPP, leveraging MSO scale and using HFC assets for mobile offload, small cells and future optionality.
• In Balancing Economic Trade-Offs in the Last Mile, we’ll examine use cases for various access technologies based on market needs, existing infrastructure and competition. Learn how operators can integrate these technologies to craft unique connectivity solutions.
• The Shaping the Security Evolution: Strategies from Industry CISOs session brings industry security executives together to discuss network protection, cyber policy, incident response and collaborating with governments to counter persistent threats. Discover how their strategies shape secure, differentiated services.
• Learn how context-aware network technologies help operators deliver tailored services in Context is King: Unlocking Differentiated Services with Smart Networks. Explore how adaptive responses to customer location, device type and network conditions can optimize performance, prioritize traffic, boost satisfaction and drive revenue.

Collaborate to Impact the Future

Join us at CableLabs Winter Conference 2025, March 10–13 in Orlando, Florida, for an action-packed two days of conference sessions followed by member-exclusive project meetings. Connect and collaborate with CableLabs members, approved vendors and industry thought leaders to strategize on the future of the industry and explore the latest technology innovations at the exhibition.

The days of measuring network performance by speed alone are long gone. Nearly six years ago, the broadband industry launched its 10G initiative, setting in motion significant achievements toward the widespread availability of a future-ready network capable of much more than multi-gigabit speeds. CableLabs has delivered on every commitment of the initiative since, and we continued that momentum in 2024.

As we move forward into the next era of seamless, context-aware connectivity and intelligent networks, users will expect more than just faster speeds — including more reliability, lower latency and enhanced security from their network connections in addition to faster speeds.

“Digital transformation demands a future-ready network that is not only fast but smart, reliable and adaptive to the user’s needs at any moment,” said CableLabs President and CEO Phil McKinney.

This year, CableLabs and its members have achieved multiple milestones on our path toward a 10G platform that supports all of these goals. These milestones include breakthroughs that will accelerate the transition from the pursuit of ultrafast speeds to an emphasis on creating adaptable networks that can meet the dynamic needs of users and devices in real time.

Among these breakthroughs are advancements in Network as a Service (NaaS); Low Latency, Low Loss, Scalable Throughput (L4S) equipment; interoperability events and the release of new security frameworks.

Building the Future of 10G

The 10G platform of the future is defined by four themes: increased reliability, lower latency, enhanced security and faster speeds. These themes align with the Technology Vision’s core pillars of seamless connectivity, network platform evolution, and pervasive intelligence, security and privacy.

Reliability: NaaS and Operational Practices

Complex application needs require dynamic network solutions. But without a standardized approach, operator capabilities are limited in potential innovation and user experience advancements.

Earlier this year, CableLabs unveiled NaaS to meet this need for a standard solution. In essence, NaaS enables third-party developers to connect directly to network services and data through a common set of APIs. It closes gaps between application needs and network capabilities, supporting faster development at industry scale.

Collaborating with experts from CableLabs and our operator and vendor communities, CableLabs subsidiary SCTE released an operational practice document specifically intended to guide the industry toward improved network reliability. The publication, released in July, serves as a guide for operators and vendors to help achieve the highest network and service reliability through measurement and management of key performance indicators while also lowering operations costs.

Latency: L4S Interoperability

Latency is the key to better user experiences with real-time communication applications. Over the course of 2024, CableLabs facilitated and hosted a series of events focused on improving interoperability between the next-generation applications that implement L4S and the networking gear (including DOCSIS® 3.1 and DOCSIS 4.0 equipment) that provides the necessary L4S congestion signaling.

At these events, application and operating system developers worked to enable future immersive experiences that require low latency at high data rates. Operators were also able to test network configurations for field trials and deployments of Low Latency DOCSIS (LLD) technology.

CableLabs also facilitated a series of L4S interoperability events this year in coordination with the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF). The goal of these events was to provide further opportunities for application developers and network equipment developers to collaborate.

In another significant milestone, CableLabs secured a Differentiated Services Code Point (DSCP) value from the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority to mark non-queue-building (NQB) traffic. After years of consensus-building at the IETF, this assignment helps reduce delays and improve the user experience for latency-critical applications such as voice calls and gaming.

Security: Advanced Cybersecurity Standards and Zero Trust Practices

Because intelligent networks have many points of access, they need a comprehensive security framework that can safeguard against threats at each of those points. This framework should emphasize credential protection, supply chain risk management, policy-based access and consistent control.

In January 2024, CableLabs released the Routing Security Profile, or RSP, an actionable and adaptable guide to enhancing internet routing security. The RSP focuses on helping organizations better identify, protect, detect, respond to and recover from cybersecurity events using the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s Cybersecurity Framework (CSF) 1.1’s core functions.

On Oct. 1, 2024, CableLabs released version 2.0 of the RSP, incorporating feedback from stakeholders.

Speed: DOCSIS 4.0 Interoperability

CableLabs also facilitated and hosted a series of events focused on multi-supplier interoperability across the DOCSIS 4.0 ecosystem this year. These events brought participants from various companies together to advance preproduction and development versions of network hardware and application software.

The April event highlighted developments in virtualization and speed, setting new records in downstream speeds — over 9 gigabits per second through a DOCSIS 4.0 modem. The August event focused on advancing upstream capabilities.

In another key milestone for the industry, CableLabs made strides toward further innovation across technology and business models and from multiple suppliers by advancing DOCSIS 4.0 technology with Full Duplex DOCSIS, or FDX, now extending operation to 1.8 gigahertz.

Also this year, SCTE worked with industry and CableLabs experts to publish operational guidelines to aid operators in their transition from DOCSIS 3.1 to DOCSIS 4.0 networks. The December release, which focuses on optimizing the network for the extended spectrum ranges for both upstream and downstream transmissions, is designed to ensure that operators are well-prepared for the upgrade.

CableLabs Members Reach 10G Milestones

Progress toward functional 10G technologies is at the forefront of innovation and development among CableLabs members. Over the past year, several of our members made key advancements:

Charter Communications and CableLabs: Bryte IQ

In September, Charter Communications collaborated with CableLabs to launch a NaaS platform called Bryte IQ. Based on Linux Foundation's open-source CAMARA project, the platform streamlines and secures access for developers on Spectrum’s wired and wireless networks. Bryte IQ will foster innovation through easy-to-use, interoperable APIs, accelerate application development and broaden service possibilities for business-to-business clients.

CableLabs, Charter, Cox Communications, GCI and Rogers Communications: Security and Infrastructure

September also saw the release of the Zero Trust and Infrastructure Security (ØTIS) Best Common Practices (BCP), which aligns CableLabs’ RSP to zero-trust implementation for core and access network infrastructure. ØTIS is a joint initiative with Charter, Cox Communications, GCI and Rogers Communications and focuses on credential protection, secure storage, secure automation and other key security controls.

Comcast and Cox: Speed and Infrastructure

This year, Comcast and Cox both made advancements that will move the industry closer to a 10G platform. Comcast introduced DOCSIS 4.0 and met their goal of reaching 10 million premises with multi-gigabit speeds. Cox committed to a multibillion-dollar annual infrastructure investment in a 10G network.

Comcast: Latency

In November, Comcast successfully completed its field trial of LLD and is now deploying the technology.

Midco: Latency

Midco presented a technical paper at SCTE TechExpo 2024 showing that high-speed data services can be delivered on HFC networks with latency levels comparable to or better than PON performance for NQB traffic.

Midco: Speed and Reliability

As part of its Fiber Forward initiative, Midco is expanding and upgrading its next-generation fiber network its entire footprint which includes Kansas, Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wisconsin. The $500 million investment is on track to deliver 10G speeds to this region by 2030. As a milestone of this next-gen fiber expansion and upgrade, Midco launched multi-gig speeds to all eligible passings and continues to see improved performance, as verified by Ookla Speedtest Intelligence for the fastest internet speeds and highest network Consistency Score.

Rogers: Speed

Also this year, Rogers started trialing DOCSIS 3.1+ cable modems in select neighborhoods in Canada to deliver speeds of 4 Gbps downstream and 1 Gbps upstream, enabled by new DOCSIS 4.0 modem technology, a global first.

Envisioning the Future

The future of context-aware connectivity and intelligent networks is closer than we think.

Heading into a new year, CableLabs continues its commitment to realizing that future through our Technology Vision for the industry. Together with our members and other industry partners, we will work to deliver network technologies that bring us closer to that vision — all made possible by the power of the 10G platform.

Industries across the world have an interest in working with startups and scaleups for a variety of reasons. Younger companies setting out to improve or revolutionize ecosystems bring fresh perspectives, innovative ideas and disruptive technologies that can help established corporations stay competitive, adapt to changing markets and drive innovation within their own organizations. Additionally, newer companies are typically more agile and flexible than larger corporations, allowing them to respond quickly to changes in the market, which can be a huge asset when partnering with our industry.

As the head of Technology Outreach at CableLabs, I am constantly on the hunt for emerging tech companies around the globe that are looking to create change in the connectivity landscape. My mission is to build meaningful bridges between our Technology Vision for the industry, our member operators and external tech communities.

Whether your interest is in partnership, investing, acquisition, trend-watching or deeper collaboration, the companies I will spotlight in this two-part blog series are sure to spark your interest.

This fall, I hosted a session called neXus: New Partner Showcase in person at SCTE TechExpo in Atlanta and virtually to my UpRamp Community. The session highlighted the intersection of new partner technology and our member operators’ offerings. The startups and scaleups I featured have the potential to drive growth, innovation and transformation in our industry.

• Mediacom joined the stage with Aispire to discuss how they are unlocking the power of customer and network data to build a foundation for AI/ML applications.
• Frontline worker AI company Anthill highlighted how they help use AI with company data through a no-code platform built for non-technical experts, elevating the work of humans for the AI era.

Aispire.ai and Mediacom

Like many operators, Mediacom has challenges with siloed tools and data. While effective individually, their tools are focused on specific aspects of the network, making it difficult to see the bigger picture.

This is where Mediacom’s partnership with Aispire.ai comes in, providing a comprehensive solution that integrates all these tools and data into a cohesive system. Aispire's Network Intelligence Suite offers network-wide visibility, from individual subscribers to the entire network, using standard protocols. The system is non-invasive and can be added to any operator network. The first goal is to gather data (flow, BGP, SNMP, DNS, operator tags) and correlate it to provide insights and perspectives. From there, Aispire can apply analytics including AI/ML workloads for deep analysis.

The key features and use cases:

• Subscriber Insights understands consumption by subscriber grouping, service and where that traffic is entering the network from a peering perspective. For example, during a recent Peacock TV live-streaming event, Aispire’s tools helped Mediacom track and analyze the data with ease and speed, providing a comprehensive view of the network's performance in near real time.
• Peering Insights pulls data from peering routers and correlates it on a per-router, per-peer basis. This helps Mediacom understand traffic patterns and consumption, and even identify issues like unusual drops and spikes on specific routers, individual peers or overall on a service-by-service basis. It also identified target equipment where engineers were able to narrow to an IOS issue. Peering Insights helps operators quickly see what is entering the network from a free or paid perspective and if free peering is taking a more costly route, reducing OpEx.
• Security Insights provides visibility into traffic entering the network and allows for ad hoc reporting on any layer 3 or layer 4 conversation, including being able to identify subscribers involved in residential proxy events.
• Video Insights helps Mediacom with their IPTV rollout by analyzing bandwidth usage and predicting future needs, ensuring that all customers have the same experience.
• Performance Insights finally answers the questions: Is it the customer's problem? The content provider’s problem? Our problem?

Overall, the partnership between Mediacom and Aispire integrates and correlates data from various sources to provide a comprehensive view of the network. This enables Mediacom to address current challenges and prepare for future AI/ML workloads, ultimately identifying performance issues before they impact customers and improving network performance.

The best part? This work paves the way for an incredibly improved customer experience, churn reduction and the customer centricity of the platform maximizes the customer lifetime value. It’s a win-win-win.

To learn more, visit www.aispire.ai or email evan.davis@aispire.ai.

Anthill.co

Anthill is an automation platform designed for the frontline workforce to simplify recruiting, onboarding, training and retention. I met the co-founder, Muriel Clauson-Closs, when I attended Singularity University last April. She gave a talk on the future of work that blew me away. For example, did you know that deskless professions make up over 80 percent of the current workforce and that it is overrepresented by workers over 55? This struck me as I know some of our operators are struggling with losing some of their best talent in the field due to retirements.

Muriel really challenged everyone there on whether we are asking the right questions about AI in the workforce.

Muriel is from Alaska and, growing up, most of the people she knew were working in frontline jobs and out in the field. During the COVID-19 pandemic, we all realized the critical role these workers play, something that Muriel had known for years due to the Ph.D. work she had been doing in this space. She identified an unmet need in the technology advances that knowledge workers get but saw that the frontline workers were being left out. And this is how Anthill was created.

Muriel pointed out a significant population shift expected by 2030, with a projected addition of 12 million new jobs in the United States — but only 1.4 million people available to fill them. This shortage is compounded by the rapid change in required skills due to advancements in AI. Anthill helps organizations manage this by scaling best practices in workforce management through automation.

Anthill's platform offers five key benefits:

• Efficient management of the frontline workforce
• Hiring and managing non-English speakers
• Increasing retention rates
• Improving safety and compliance
• Gaining insights from frontline interactions

The platform is built with responsible AI, ensuring data safety and human-in-the-loop review, making it accessible even to non-technologists.

And, as I mentioned above, very relevant to the problems we are seeing with some of our operators, Muriel also shared how Anthill supports companies with an aging field operations workforce. Many industries face this challenge, with the average age of field workers being 56. Anthill's workflow automations include exit interviews to capture valuable experience and knowledge from departing employees. This data is then used to create training content for new workers, providing them with a virtual expert to consult in real time.

Additionally, Anthill adapts to the needs of Gen Z workers, who expect more communication and answers to their questions, by implementing supportive automations.

Anthill's impact is evident in its work with call centers, where they have seen more than 10 percent improved retention rates and reduced management staffing needs by 10 times. They are now looking to partner with the broadband industry to bring these benefits to a new sector.

You can learn more at www.anthill.co and get in touch with them at partnership@anthill.co.

I will be featuring the remaining companies in another blog post this week. Come back to learn about what Vodafone Germany is doing with FlyNex and Dimetor with commercial drone flights and what Charter has cooked up with Bug Labs as part of their Network as a Service (NaaS) deployment.

If you’re an operator working with or investing in an interesting startup, scaleup or a new company from adjacent ecosystems, I would love to hear from you. Please contact me using the button below.

In a world that increasingly depends on digital connections, network as a service (NaaS) has emerged as a game-changing technology. By making network functionalities available as on-demand services across the ecosystem, NaaS empowers developers to build applications that dynamically leverage network resources without needing deep knowledge of the underlying infrastructure. However, as powerful as NaaS is, the process of onboarding developers to access these services remains complex and often inefficient.

To address these challenges, Charter Communications presented a federated approach — the Federated Developer Portal (FDP) — that CableLabs introduced at SCTE TechExpo 2024. The FDP represents a forward-thinking solution that simplifies NaaS access across multiple network operators. This federated model creates a streamlined, secure and scalable environment that allows application developers and operators to collaborate with ease.

The Current Challenges of NaaS at Scale

Although the NaaS APIs that enable developers to create innovative applications are standardized, the processes of onboarding developers and managing applications are not. Because of the current structure, developers must navigate a patchwork of requirements and systems specific to each operator:

• Per-operator onboarding. Developers are often required to individually register and gain approval with each network operator. This process is labor-intensive, repetitive and vulnerable to delay.
• Decentralized integration requirements. Integrating with APIs on a per-operator basis results in diverse, sometimes incompatible processes, creating technical overhead for developers and delaying time to market.
• Single point of failure in centralized systems. When using a centralized model for managing NaaS access, all governance and management operations flow through one system. This approach increases the risk of single points of failure, which can lead to service interruptions or more impactful security vulnerabilities.

Considering these challenges, a federated solution is ideal — one where application developers can register with a consortium of network operators that interoperate at the governance level to manage application developers, applications and their access without compromising trust within the ecosystem. A federated approach offers a resilient, scalable solution that maintains the autonomy of each network operator while giving developers a unified interface for onboarding and management.

What Is the FDP?

The FDP provides a secure, federated platform where network operators and developers interact seamlessly. With FDP, developers can access NaaS capabilities from multiple operators through a single portal, significantly reducing the complexity of onboarding and integration, as well as enabling industry-wide scale. Behind the scenes, trust is maintained through identities based on public key infrastructure (PKI) and the use of digital signatures.

Figure 1: Sample FDP service catalog, from the developer’s perspective

Here are the key features of the FDP:

• Unified interaction point. Network operators and developers have a single, user-friendly interface for application registration, service browsing and management.
• Aggregated service catalogs. Each operator publishes an up-to-date catalog of its available APIs and services, allowing developers to view and select those that suit their applications. This catalog provides essential details, such as API capabilities and supported use cases, giving developers a clear view of network options. Figure 1 provides a sample view of collected service catalogs in our implementation.
• Federated access and approval. Operators retain control over their infrastructure but can securely share service catalogs and API access within the FDP. When developers onboard and submit applications, approval workflows enable each operator to review and approve applications according to its policies, ensuring that only authenticated and authorized applications gain access to network resources.
• Maintained trust. Trust in consortium data is maintained with digital signatures backed by PKI to provide consortium-wide assurance of data integrity and authenticity.
• Modularity. The key components that perform data propagation — the federated agent and the Data Propagation Layer (DPL) — offer an abstraction that enables various propagation technologies, including event streaming, distributed ledgers and more. CableLabs’ key contribution is the definition of governance APIs, which enable flexibility in operator deployment strategy.

An Overview of the FDP Architecture

Figure 2 provides a high-level component view of our implementation.

Figure 2: Overview of the FDP architecture

In brief, each network operator deploys a traditional REST API and web interface that application developers can interact with, as well as the components that facilitate data propagation:

• Our DPL is built with Kafka, where governance operations are propagated as events sent to each network operator’s Kafka broker.
• The federated agent is the key element that exposes our governance APIs and enables modularity of the DPL. As the figure shows, the federated agent facilitates propagation by exchanging data with the Kafka layer.

An Example of the Federated Data Flow

Let’s walk through a high-level example of data propagation through the consortium. Imagine that a developer is registering an application with the consortium of network operators through the FDP, as Figure 3 illustrates.

Figure 3: Sample FDP application submission

• Application submission. The developer submits information about his or her application, including which APIs it will leverage. During this step, the developer can see the reach of that application through an informative display of the aggregated service catalogs that the developer has access to. The figure depicts the application submission form of our FDP implementation.
•  Consortium data propagation. The submitted information about the new application is propagated to the other network operators via the federated agent and DPL, ensuring that all network operators receive the updated data.
• Approval flow. All network operators have an opportunity to review and approve the new application when it’s received by their deployment.

Key Benefits of the Federated Developer Portal

By adopting the FDP model, both network operators and developers benefit in multiple ways:

• Reduced complexity for developers. Instead of handling onboarding and API integration separately with each operator, developers interact with a single federated system. This one-stop approach allows them to focus on application innovation rather than logistics management.
• Reduced complexity for operators. Operators establish and maintain relationships with a growing number of developers using a single, consistent process, unlocking the full potential of NaaS at scale.
• Increased resiliency for operators. The FDP’s distributed nature eliminates risks tied to single points of failure. Each operator can maintain autonomous operations, ensuring that system outages or vulnerabilities in one part do not affect the entire ecosystem.
• Distributed centralization. The FDP combines the best of both worlds by providing a centralized interface without compromising the decentralized nature of each operator’s control over its infrastructure.

The Future of the FDP

Although the FDP already addresses key challenges, the platform will continue to evolve. Future iterations aim to support advanced provisioning, offer enhanced metadata within service catalogs and improve governance features for seamless operator and developer collaboration.

Possible enhancements on the horizon include:

• Expanded metadata for service catalogs. Adding more detailed descriptions within catalogs will enable developers to choose services more effectively, considering factors such as network capacity, quality tiers and geographic availability.
• Standardized governance APIs. Establishing uniform governance protocols across operators will streamline approval processes, making it easier to manage applications and handle exceptions.
• Enhanced resiliency and state management. The evolution of FDP will incorporate mechanisms to maintain system stability even under complex operational conditions, ensuring continuous service and data consistency.

Join the Federated NaaS Movement

The FDP is more than just a tool; it’s the backbone for the future of network-driven innovation. With a unified platform, secure data exchanges and a distributed model, the FDP is here to empower developers, simplify operations and strengthen the NaaS ecosystem for all.

All this being said, to fully realize the FDP’s potential, we need input and collaboration from network operators, developers and other stakeholders. Your involvement could shape the future of this platform and help drive innovations that will set new standards for network-enabled applications.

If you’re interested in learning more about the FDP or want to see a live demonstration, don’t hesitate to contact our team! Together, we can build a resilient, innovative foundation that will support the next generation of network-based services.

To learn more about NaaS, register for the next CableLabs Live Webinar, “Taking NaaS APIs to Production: Best Practices and Operational Readiness,” exclusively for employees of CableLabs member companies and our NDA vendor community. The webinar on Dec. 11 will include experts from Charter and Vodafone, who will share insights on how they have been able to expose their APIs to offer differentiated services and take those services into production.

Smart networks of the future will be characterized by their ability to adapt to the ever-changing needs of businesses and consumers. Powered by advanced network telemetry and automation, these networks will be highly visible and resilient, able to withstand disruptions and attacks without compromising performance. 

Achieving the goal of pervasive intelligence, security and privacy across networks will ensure information and data security, unmatched performance and reliability in any connectivity context. Security will be built into the network from the ground up, and security policies will be defined and implemented using scalable solutions that evolve with the network.  

Watch the video below to learn how pervasive intelligence, security and privacy — a core pillar of the CableLabs Technology Vision — will ensure that users are always protected, even as the network changes. 

Networks of the future will protect users with intelligence at every point, using AI and machine learning to identify and resolve problems before they impact users. CableLabs fosters collaboration across the industry to achieve these goals, driving industry alignment and prioritizing interoperability.  

Explore our working groups and learn how you can get involved in architecting the future. 

Did you know that there is more to Wi-Fi than plugging in your router and choosing your internet service provider? To unlock faster speeds and get the best connection, it’s helpful to understand how Wi-Fi works and what you can do to improve performance in your home.

Wi-Fi operates using a complex system of radio waves. Like sound waves, these waves can experience interference from environmental factors. Signals can bounce off or be absorbed by walls, metal appliances and even water-filled items like aquariums. This interference weakens the signal leading to slower speeds and connectivity issues, especially as the distance from the router increases.

For most users, simple adjustments like moving your router to a different location in your home can improve signal strength and connection quality.

Watch our video, “How Does Wi-Fi Really Work?,” to learn more about how you can reduce interference and enjoy a better Wi-Fi experience.

At the latest DOCSIS 4.0 Interop·Labs event — which took place Nov. 4–7 at CableLabs’ headquarters in Louisville, Colorado — equipment suppliers showcased their efforts to deliver on the 10G platform through DOCSIS 4.0 technology. All four 10G pillars were on display: faster speeds, lower latency, enhanced security and increased reliability. These pillars were all designed into the DOCSIS 4.0 specifications, and we’ve reached the point at which the products simply work.

We want to thank the participants who helped make the event successful and once again helped us achieve a high level of productivity. To recap the major themes of the event:

• Speeds are rock solid. Demonstrations boasted downstream speeds faster than 9 Gbps that were limited only by the single 10 Gbps interface on the modems. Upstream speeds can exceed 2 Gbps on and go even higher.
• The new focus is interoperability. Products are maturing, and suppliers are differentiating their offerings. As operators continue to seriously develop deployment scenarios, we want to ensure that the specifications are clear enough to handle real-world deployment, including specific configurations, corner cases and race conditions. Four operators attended this interop to provide guidance on deployment scenarios. Much effort went into exercising interoperability and identifying areas for work.
• Energy efficiency is on the rise. A burgeoning trend at this interop was energy management. New features will benefit consumers by providing options to conserve energy in various scenarios.
• Reliability is a reliable theme. We continue to examine the copious data available from the modems — in particular, DOCSIS 4.0 cable modem Proactive Network Maintenance (PNM) functions that can be used to increase the reliability of service offerings.

Supplier Participation

Attendance at the interop was high, as it offered the last best opportunity to get this work in before the 2024 holiday season arrived. The aforementioned operators who joined us to observe demonstrations went out of their way to interact with suppliers and talk about their own DOCSIS 4.0 network progress.

Among the suppliers were CommScope and Harmonic, both of which brought DOCSIS 4.0 cores to the interop. There were also three 1.8 GHz remote PHY devices (RPDs) from CommScope, Harmonic and Vecima Networks. In addition, seven DOCSIS 4.0 modem suppliers — Arcadyan, Askey, Gemtek, Hitron, Sagemcom, Sercomm and Ubee Interactive — brought multiple cable modem models. Calian participated with its suite of DOCSIS technology analyzers and tools.

Remote-PHY Interoperability

The DOCSIS modem termination system (CMTS) has been virtualized, and the software portion is referred to as the core. The physical layer of the CMTS has moved to the RPD in the fiber node. In other words, the CMTS has been disaggregated, and the core and RPD can (and will) come from different suppliers. The modem can come from yet another supplier. These three pieces need to work together to provide service.

At our interop events, we like to delve into multiple real-world configurations. The core calls the shots and configures the RPD for the downstream and upstream signals, and then the core manages the DOCSIS cable modems. Flexibility is built into this scenario, however, and we’re constantly working to get everything right and interoperable. It’s for this reason that operators attend the interop events — to clarify how DOCSIS 4.0 technology can be introduced to the networks, including backward compatibility with existing services.

Energy Management

Energy management is an important function for cable modems. DOCSIS cable modems and cores support a low-power energy mode called the Energy Management (EM) mode. During idle times, when a single upstream and downstream channel can meet a user’s data-rate demand, the cable modem switches to EM mode. When the modem requires a higher data rate than the reduced set of channels can provide, the core instructs the modem to return to the larger transmit-and-receive channel set.

EM mode can also be used during a power outage — for example, when a modem goes into battery back-up but continues to provide digital phone service. In this scenario, EM mode can conserve battery power when the traffic is low, exhibiting minimum impact on normal service, to prolong access to digital voice service, especially the 911 emergency call service.

The EM feature shows how people rely on their broadband connection for all services, not just web and email. The feature also reveals how DOCSIS technology has evolved to address these needs as a broadband service of choice.

Proactive Network Maintenance

PNM is an important function that increases network reliability. We always look at the PNM data available from DOCSIS device, because it’s a sign of product maturity. This PNM data enables the most efficient operation of the coaxial cable network, keeping the data levels at their peak by using the more efficient orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing (OFDM) and OFDM access (OFDMA) signals, and allowing the diagnosis and maintenance of the network before consumers ever notice an issue.

Join Us Next Time!

We’ve gone beyond the basics of the four pillars. The focus of our DOCSIS 4.0 interops is now interoperability, interoperability and more interoperability! These products are soon headed to the field, in various configurations with multiple suppliers’ products having to work together. And this work will continue into 2025 as DOCSIS 4.0 technology comes into use.

The next DOCSIS 4.0 interop event is planned for the week of Feb. 10, 2025, at CableLabs’ headquarters in Louisville, Colorado. The event will provide an opportunity for new suppliers and new products as we kick off the new calendar year.

And don’t forget: Right around the corner in March 2025 are CableLabs Winter Conference and Smaller Market Conference.