Guest Blog byIgor Dayen, Service Provider Product and Solutions Marketing

Powered by the Cisco cBR-8 converged broadband router, the Altice Group's new Zive subscription-based video-on-demand service will be launched in all markets. An industry leading cable offering, Zive features more than 5,000 high-definition (HD) programs, including more than four hundred 4K/ultra HD children's programs, movies and sporting events. By the end of 2016, that offering will grow to fifteen thousand high-definition (HD) shows.

The Altice Group was one of the first companies to deploy the Cisco cBR-8, the industry's first converged broadband router that enables cable operators to compete in billboard data rates. The cBR-8's multi-gigabit broadband services can provide revenue-generating Internet-of-Everything (IoE) services to subscribers at a significantly lower cost of ownership. The Altice Group is also using Cisco CDN technologies for the storage, delivery, and picture quality of the 4K video content. The Zive subscription-based service has been successfully piloted with SFR customers in France since November 2015.

Cisco's cBR-8 Converged Broadband Router is the first integrated CCAP product designed for DOCSIS 3.1.  With this platform you can transform the network and business into a more agile architecture for future cable innovation that increases subscriber value with a resilient and highly secure platform. The Altice Group was one of the first to deploy the Cisco cBR-8 converged broadband router.

For Max Blumberg, CTO of the Altice Group, a close alignment with Cisco technology was key, "We are committed to evolving our architecture to deliver the best possible customer experience for our subscribers," said Max Blumberg, CTO, Altice Group. "To do this, we were aligned closely with Cisco from the start on the approach to integrate video and mobile components, and 4K content."