Cable television headend in the context of Telecommunications network

Electronic programming guides (EPGs) and interactive programming guides (IPGs) are menu-based systems that provide users of television, radio, and other media applications with continuously updated menus that display scheduling information for current and upcoming broadcast programming (most commonly, TV listings). Some guides also feature backward scrolling to promote their catch up content. They are commonly known as guides or TV guides.

Non-interactive electronic programming guides (sometimes known as "navigation software") are typically available for television and radio, and consist of a digitally displayed, non-interactive menu of programming scheduling information shown by a cable or satellite television provider to its viewers on a dedicated channel. EPGs are transmitted by specialized video character generation (CG) equipment housed within each such provider's central headend facility. By tuning into an EPG channel, a menu is displayed that lists current and upcoming television shows on all available channels.

A TV gateway (also called network TV tuner) is a television headend to a network UPnP router that receives live digital video broadcast (DVB) MPEG transport streams (channels) from terrestrial aerials, satellite dishes, or cable feeds and converts them into IP streams for distribution over an IP network.

TV gateways allow users to stream broadcast live TV content to connected devices on the IP network, including tablets, smartphones, computers, gaming consoles and smart tvs. They also allow multiple users to watch and record different channels at the same time.

Cable telephony is a form of digital telephony over cable TV type networks. A telephone interface installed at the customer's premises converting analog signals from the customer's in-home wiring to a digital signal, which is then sent over the cable connection to the company's Cable television headend switching center. The signal is then sent on to the public switched telephone network (PSTN). Cable telephone provides another revenue stream for cable television system operators and gives the consumer the convenience of combing several services on a single bill - such as paid television, internet and telephone services. At times in the industry this is referred to as "triple play".