Forum Discussion

vgear's avatar
vgear
Follower
May 16, 2020
Solved

Do Cable Modems really need to be "Certified" by the provider to work?

Do Cable Modems really need to be "certified" by your cable provider? My provider has a very short list with only a couple of models per a half dozen or so makers so I was wondering if it is a marketing ploy to steer people to buy or rent their equipment.

I know with Baby Bells if you have a DSL modem with the right specs but isn't on their list they might not do troubleshooting support and might refer you to the manufacturer for help, but they will let you use it.

Shouldn't the same thing really be the case for cable modems that have a certain DOCSIS specification?

  • plemans's avatar
    plemans
    May 17, 2020

    yes they do have to be "certified" (at least minimally) because that's how they set your speeds/firmware for that device. They control the provisioning. 

    otherwise people could modify their firmware so they only pay for 100mbps service but get faster speeds.