The average U.S. home has 43 power outlets. That’s 86 connection points for a home network that runs on powerline technology. Proponents of the HomePlug AV networking standard believe that the high-speed, long-range version of powerline networking, combined with widely accessible outlets, positions the technology well for the next-generation connected home.

HomePlug AV, approved last fall by the HomePlug Powerline Alliance, boasts a data rate of 200 Mbps, more than enough to send multiple streams of HD video throughout the house. A follow-up standard to the five-year-old HomePlug 1.0 standard, HomePlug AV triples the powerline networking data rate, and has QoS features said to meet the latency and jitter requirements of all emerging AV and IP applications. In addition, HomePlug AV employs noise filtering techniques to manage powerline interference.

Beta versions of HomePlug AV hardware were available for lab testing in early 2006 and dozens of companies sampled HomePlug AV hardware at the CeBit show in Hannover, Germany, in March. Expect to see HomePlug AV Ethernet adapters, XDSL gateways and set-top boxes during 2006. Semiconductor vendors Arkados, Intellon and Spidcom will ship HomePlug AV chips this year, with HomePlug AV consumer electronics products, including TVs and DVD players, on the drawing board for CES 2007.

The HomePlug Alliance is working with the IEEE and ETSI to achieve a global interoperability and coexistence mechanism so that consumers can be sure the powerline products they use in their home are guaranteed to work together.

HomePlug sponsors represent a broad swath of the electronics industry including Intel, GE Security, Comcast, EarthLink, Linksys, Motorola, Radio Shack, Sharp, Samsung and Sony. HomePlug’s membership comprises some 55 companies from across the electronics industry.

Meanwhile, the HomePlug Alliance continues to hammer away at two more specifications: HomePlug Command & Control (HPCC) and HomePlug Broadband over Powerline (BPL). HPCC, due to be ratified in the third quarter of 2006, was designed to enable whole-house control of lighting, appliances, climate control, security and other devices over AC wiring. In the spring, the Alliance selected Israel-based Yitran Communications’ PLC (powerline carrier) technology as the baseline technology for HPCC.

HomePlug BPL is expected to be ratified in Q4 2006. The to-the-home broadband access technology is expected to be used for everything from Internet access to remote monitoring by utility companies. Products are due in the market in mid- to late 2007.