By Scot Loach, Aterlo Networks
We are in the midst of a shift in TV viewing behavior from a traditional broadcast-based experience to an on-demand experience delivered over the Internet. At the same time, video bit-rates are increasing as 4K resolution becomes mainstream. These trends are putting pressure on the economics of providing Internet access, since networks are built to peak usage and the majority of video streaming still occurs during "prime time". Caching technologies are being used to respond to this problem, but traditional caching technologies only address the transit edge of the network. Caching does not help the access network, which is often difficult and expensive to upgrade, since it is constrained by physical properties such as limited radio spectrum.
This paper presents the concept of caching within the customer premises. We discuss the opportunities and challenges associated with this approach and illustrate the architecture of such a system. We present a study that models customer premises caching on a consumer broadband network, and show the potential cache efficiency and resulting savings predicted.