Cable Telephone Adapters
Cable telephone adapters are devices that convert telephone signals into another format (such as digital Internet protocol) that can be transferred on a cable television system. These adapter boxes may provide a single function such as providing digital telephone service or they may convert digital signals into several different forms such as audio, data, and video. When adapter boxes convert into multiple information forms, they may be called multimedia terminal adapters (MTAs) or integrated access devices (IADs). Cable telephone adapters must convert both the audio signals (voice) and control signals (such as touch-tone or hold requests) into forms that can be sent and received via the cable television network.