Established in January 2004, MoCA is an open industry standards consortium. MoCA technology is in use by all of the cable, satellite and telco/IPTV operators in the US. MoCA enabled products are available from customer installers and retail outlets.

MoCA technology provides the bandwidth reliability for in-home backbones and multi-room content sharing. Every house with coax becomes a connected home and the foundation for a better wireless experience.

What is the problem?

Moving content around the home and from device to device becomes more challenging, as files grow larger and more people in the home access the network. Until recently, people mostly just connected computers, but now they want to connect everything to everything and access and view content when and where they want — and on their schedule. People connect game consoles, tablets, smart phones, and TVs — of which many include an Ethernet connection for accessing the Internet. 

To help with this brave new world of iEverywhere, people choose wireless technology because it offers mobility and roaming for a true “anytime, anywhere” environment. Unfortunately, wireless often suffers from interference with other devices and networks hampering reliability of content reception and spoiling the experience.

Coax cabling was built for video and already exists in 90 percent of all US homes. Though coax outlets are not in every room, they are generally located where there is likely to be a TV. MoCA technology allows for connecting TVs, Blu Ray discs and game consoles, for instance, while wireless networks enables connecting everything else.
 

What other technology standards are available in the home and how does MoCA compare?

There are primarily three mediums available in the home for networking purposes—wireless, powerline and coax. The standards groups governing these mediums are the Wi-Fi Alliance, the HomePlug Powerline Alliance, and the Multimedia over Coax Alliance (MoCA), respectively. Many well-known CE vendors offer products using all of these technology standards and they are widely available through retail channels.

The underlying value proposition of wireless-based networking is portability or mobility. The benefits of powerline-based networking products are ease of use and ubiquity of power outlets. There are often more than two in every room of a typical house. However, due to the physical nature of both mediums, both are prone to interference with other technologies and devices already in use. This can adversely affect reach, performance and reliability. While voice and data applications may not be noticeably affected, video applications are time sensitive and latency in delivery of packets will affect quality of the viewing experience. Glitches and artifacts in a video stream are unacceptable for the consumer.

As reliability is the key ingredient for video, it is highly recommended that the consumer consider a product that uses the in-home coax. It is an inherently shielded medium meaning it is immune to the interference issues that plague wireless and powerline. Coax is also a high bandwidth medium. Most consumers are aware that the coax in their home is a prime delivery vehicle for video.
 

Does MoCA work on any type of coax?

Yes. The simple rule is that if a TV signal can be received from any given outlet, it can support MoCA.

MoCA field-tested the technology in all types of coax environments. With no remediation, MoCA obtained better than 110 Mbps net throughput in 97 percent of all outlets. With minor filter remediation, MoCA obtained this performance level in 100 percent of all outlets with no degradation of signal.

It is important to note that field tests are an essential measuring tool for evaluating the efficacy and validity of any technology. It is strongly advised that before making a purchase, search for publicly available field tests. If none are available, then buyer beware.
 

What does certification mean and why is it important to consumers?

Certification means that a product or device is completely and fully compliant with the specification. Consider it insurance that the device will work as advertised.

Always look for a certification logo when comparing and testing products using any technology standard. All Alliances will stand behind their certification logo. If there is no certification logo, chances are the product will not correspond to the standard.