Software modem nears ISDN speeds

Electronic News, Nov 10, 1997

Vancouver, Wash.--Diamond Multimedia has pushed analog modems and standard telephone lines to new limits with a new software-based device that delivers data transfer rates up to 112 kilobits per second (112Kps). This doubles the existing top end provided by 56K modems, by utilizing two modem chipsets and bundling two phone lines to carry a single signal, and approaches the rate of ISDN digital phone lines, 128Kps, which are available in many markets for a premium.

"This is breakthrough," said Mike Reed, Diamond's director of product marketing. "We are the first modem company to develop this."

Called Shotgun technology, Diamond has based its device on Rockwell Semiconductor Systems' K56flex modem technology. It requires users to have two phone lines, and when the call is connected with an ISP, the signal demands two ports from the head-end modem.

Mr. Reed said the device will generally be configured with voice priority to allow normal voice calls when the modem is in use. This means when another phone call comes into the house when somebody is on-line, or somebody in the house wants to make a call out, the modem will automatically disengage one of the lines. This will slow the data rate by half, but will not break the connection to the Internet. Some 25 million households in this country have two phone lines, and the number should grow to 30 million in the next three years.

Diamond sees Shotgun as a short-term solution, which solves an immediate problem. "We see this as satisfying the end-user's demand for more speed because 56K is about as fast as you can get," said Mr. Reed. "But as new technologies come along, consumers are likely to switch."

Some of these new digital technologies include ADSL phone lines and cable modems. Both of these offer data rates much higher than anything offered by analog modems, but neither is currently widely available. Existing cable networks are being upgraded and some 15 percent of North American consumers have access to two-way data communication over cable. ADSL technology is in final testing stages and has not been widely deployed by telephone companies. ISDN digital lines are available now, but also have not seen wide installation, and can reach speeds only slightly faster than Shotgun's 112K.

Mr. Reed said he did not expect to see either technology widely available until 1999.