ENTERTAINMENT NETWORKING

The ongoing convergence of the Internet and telecommunications and entertainment networks continues to provide new and exciting opportunities for end users, application developers, content providers, and network operators. Traditional entertainment networks developed separately from networks used for communication and commerce. For example, until recently, cable TV networks were one-way broadcast infra structures aimed solely at distributing analog TV signals. Today, much of this cable infrastructure has been upgraded to two-way all-digital facilities, providing one avenue for broadband access to the Internet. Among the many applications making use of broadband connections are telephony and streaming applications, some carrying content similar in concept, if not yet in quality, to the traditional telephone and TV networks.