HomePlug® AV Technology Enables IEEE 1901 Draft Standard

PORTLAND, Ore.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The HomePlug® Powerline Alliance today applauds the IEEE P1901 Working Group approval of a Draft Standard for powerline communications that includes HomePlug AV technology as a key element. The approval took place on Friday at the P1901 Working Group meeting in Tokyo, Japan.

“The IEEE 1901 Draft Standard clears the path for finalization of a ubiquitous IEEE standard, now expected to be completed during the first part of 2010. This creates a major inflection point for accelerating the market and initiates rapid unification on a standard technology platform.”

The Working Document was confirmed as a Draft Standard by a supermajority of the group. The next step in the process is letter balloting by the P1901 Working Group as the specification is finalized.

"A pivotal milestone has been achieved for the HomePlug Powerline Alliance and the entire powerline communications industry," said Rob Ranck, president of the HomePlug Powerline Alliance. "The IEEE 1901 Draft Standard clears the path for finalization of a ubiquitous IEEE standard, now expected to be completed during the first part of 2010. This creates a major inflection point for accelerating the market and initiates rapid unification on a standard technology platform."

The Draft Standard incorporates technology requirements and contributions from a wide variety of industry stakeholders including product vendors, service providers, utility companies, and technology integrators. With the high level of support and the robustness and maturity of the Draft Standard documents, multiple vendors have already announced plans to deliver integrated circuits (ICs) based on the IEEE 1901 standard.

Since there are now multiple vendors of HomePlug AV compliant ICs, technology can seamlessly migrate to the IEEE 1901 powerline standard with backward compatibility to the installed base. This creates stability for rapid market growth and provides strong benefits to the broadband service providers and end consumers.

In addition to HomePlug technology’s success in the retail home networking and IPTV service provider markets, HomePlug AV, HomePlug GP and IEEE 1901 have been included in the Smart Grid Interoperability Standards Roadmap report published by the U.S. National Institute of Standards on June 17^th of this year. This is further evidence of the clear market leadership that the HomePlug Powerline Alliance and IEEE 1901 powerline standards have achieved.

As previously announced, the HomePlug Powerline Alliance will provide a comprehensive compliance and interoperability (C&I) certification program for products based on the IEEE 1901 standard. This program will benefit HomePlug members and consumers by ensuring reliable interoperable products will be available from multiple suppliers. The HomePlug Powerline Alliance leads the powerline communications industry in compliance and interoperability testing, having already certified more than 180 products based on HomePlug standards from over 30 companies since 2002.

For additional details on the IEEE P1901 standard, please visit http://grouper.ieee.org/groups/1901/. More information on the HomePlug Powerline Alliance can be found at http://www.homeplug.org.

About the HomePlug® Powerline Alliance

Founded in 2000, the HomePlug Powerline Alliance, Inc. is an industry-led initiative with more than 70 member companies that creates specifications and certification logo programs for using the powerlines for reliable home networking and smart grid applications. The Alliance accelerates worldwide adoption for HomePlug technology by collaborating with international standards organizations such as the IEEE and through market development and user education programs. Sponsor members include Cisco (CSCO); Comcast (CMCSK); GE Energy, an affiliate of General Electric Co. (NYSE: GE); Gigle Semiconductor; Intellon Corporation (ITLN); Intel Corporation (INTC); Motorola (MOT); NEC Electronics Corporation (TSE: 6723); and SPiDCOM Technologies. Contributor members include Arkados (OTCBB: AKDS); Corporate Systems Engineering; Renesas Technology Corp., Texas Instruments Incorporated (NYSE:TXN and Yitran Communications Ltd.