Abstract: A premises gateway is provided with respect to a subscriber's premises and a plurality of different transmission media for connecting to network devices and host systems on a network. The premises gateway has interchangeable network interface cards and cards for communicating with different nodes on a subscriber's premises using different transmission media and protocols. The nodes are provided with premises network interfaces which operate in conjunction with the premises gateway to allow, for example, devices connected to the same telephone line, but to different telephone wall jacks, to be addressed separately. The premises gateway can communicate analog signals and broadband signals on a twisted pair to the same node. The premises gateway can also be provided at a central office to operate as an Internet protocol gateway.