Like other CableLabs projects, including DOCSIS® and PacketCable™, OpenCable provides a set of specifications interfacing to divergent cable operator systems. OpenCable specifications help achieve the goal of interactive service delivery by meeting three key objectives:
- Defining the next-generation digital consumer device.
- Encouraging supplier competition.
- Creating a retail hardware and software platform.
The OpenCable specifications include both hardware and software specifications. The hardware specifications describe a baseline host device configuration for accessing interactive services and are interoperable with cable systems throughout the U.S., thus creating a retail solution for consumer electronics products for cable. The software specifications, coupled with the hardware specifications, solve the problem of proprietary operating system software, thereby creating a common platform for interactive television applications and services.
