Today, MSOs are looking for innovative ways to gain the competitive edge to deliver voice, video and data to their customers to compete successfully with carriers offering higher-bandwidth services. At the same time, they are concerned with leveraging their investment in their current network architectures. This paper discusses Gigabit Passive Optical Network (GPON) as a legitimate option for MSOs and new RF return path alternatives that offer MSOs the opportunity to rethink network design while providing them with investment protection.