Hayes Corporation, the company that invented modem communications over the PC, is about to make even faster data transmission possible over cable. It plans to do so with an upcoming external USB (Universal Serial Bus) modem. The company announced that it had issued a letter of intent with Intel to incorporate USB technology into DOCSIS (Data Over Cable Service Interface Specifications) standards-based modems.
By using a USB port for data transfer to a PC, installation of the cable modems should alleviate many of the headaches that consumers have with setting up the current generation of cable modems. When the modems are released, they'll be compatible with systems that support plug-and-play and are USB-enabled.