ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the potential use of broadband over power lines (BPL) as a mechanism for providing Internet access to both homes and offices. Because there are several methods that can be used to obtain Internet access, the chapter reviews the competition to broadband communications over power line technology. The initial series of products developed during the late 1970s and early 1980s to enable data transmission over home power lines never achieved any significant degree of success. Due to high-voltage lines and transformer coupling presenting a different environment from the home or office, a different technology emerged to solve the problem associated with moving data over power lines. As data flows over medium- and low-voltage metallic conductors, transmission distance becomes an issue. The use of BPL offers several advantages. First, because the technology enables existing power lines outside the home to function as a data transmission medium, the utility operator can use its existing infrastructure.
