Nokia wins Broadband Access Deal from China Telecom

Nokia will supply DSL equipment to four of China Telecom's subsidiaries in Fujian, Guangdong, Hunan and Jiangsu provinces. The frame agreements cover the year 2003, and call for the supply of more than 100,000 DSL lines. Nokia will supply D50 and the D500 next-generation multiservice access platform and related services. Delivery and implementation have already started. Financial terms were not disclosed.
http://www.nokia.com

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Verizon Wireless and Vodafone to Offer Laptop Datacard Service

Verizon Wireless and Vodafone will develop a dual branded ‘Verizon Vodafone' laptop data card service for business customers working and traveling between the US and Europe. The service will be based on the existing Vodafone Mobile Connect Card, which lets business customers access their e-mail, Internet and corporate applications on their laptops within Vodafone's territories. Verizon Wireless and Vodafone intend to cooperate on data card hardware, service inter-connectivity, roaming and inter-operator billing.
http://www.verizonwireless.com

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Marconi Signs Access Contract with BT, Revises Optical Agreement

BT signed a three year frame contract with Marconi for the provision of its Multi Service Access Node platform in the BT Next Generation Network project. Financial terms were not disclosed. The companies also reached agreement on revised terms of an existing optical equipment supply contract. Throughout the remainder of the contract period, Marconi will supply a minimum of 70% of BT's optical network equipment requirements.
http://www.marconi.com

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Deutsche Telekom Launches T-Com Brand for Fixed Networks Division

Deutsche Telekom's fixed network division began operating under its own "T-Com" brand name effective 01-August-2003. Services for the fixed telecommunications network, for example T-ISDN and T-DSL, will be made available under the new brand name. In taking this step, the Deutsche Telekom Group is pursuing its strategy of focusing on four market segments: Fixed network, mobile communications, Internet and systems operations. T-Com will now join the T-Mobile, T-Online and T-Systems brands. T-Com has launched a new website.
http://www.t-com.de

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NEC Reorganizes its R&D Efforts

NEC is reorganizing its research and technology development efforts into three domains:

• 1) IT network integration solutions


• 2) Semiconductor solutions


• 3) Fundamental research (such as nanotechnology and environmental material technology).

NEC plans to consolidate the eight R&D facilities it currently operates across Japan into five sites. The R&D focused on IT and network technology that was to date conducted at NEC's Central Research Laboratories, Fuchu Plant, Tamagawa Plant and its head offices will be consolidated to its Tamagawa Plant by the end of this fiscal year. Simultaneously, LSI design research currently carried out at the Central Research Laboratories will be moved to the Tamagawa Plant.
http://www.nec.co.jp

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Siemens and Pirelli Build Optical Network in Indonesia

The Indonesian telecommunications company Indosat has commissioned Pirelli and Siemens to deliver an optical backbone for the nationwide transport of both fixed network and mobile telephony data. The three subnetworks in East Java, Jakarta-Bandung and Sumatra cover a total of more than 1376 km. The contract was valued at EUR 20 million. The companies noted that Indonesia has a population of around 220 million but a fixed-line penetration coefficient of only 3%.
http://www.siemens.com

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Verizon to Launch SHDSL

Verizon plans to begin offering symmetric high bit-rate DSL (SHDSL) featuring variable bit rate, non -real time (VBRnrt) quality of service (QoS). The service will support symmetric rates up to 1.5 Mbps. Verizon's VBRnrt arrangement supports bursty data traffic with average and peak traffic parameters and allows SHDSL traffic to take precedence over unspecified bit rate (UBR) traffic in the network. Regular DSL traffic in the Verizon network is UBR. Verizon has already conducted successful SHDSL trials in Maryland and Florida. Verizon plans to offer SHDSL nationwide within the serving areas of its current footprint. SHDSL will be marketed to small and medium sized businesses, branch offices of large enterprise businesses, and as a wholesale service for other ISPs.
http://www.verizon.com

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Tellabs Outsources North American Manufacturing

Tellabs announced plans to outsource manufacturing of its North American products to Sanmina-SCI, resulting in the layoff of 325 employees. The company will close its manufacturing facility in Bolingbrook, Illinois. Tellabs said it is making the change to benefit from lower manufacturing costs and to free capital now tied up in equipment, inventory and facilities. Beginning in Q3, Tellabs will record an estimated $90 million to $110 million in charges connected with the outsourcing move.
http://www.tellabs.com

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Juniper Networks Partners with ARRIS on Cable Solutions

Juniper Networks entered into a strategic partnership with ARRIS targeting solutions for Multi-Service Operators (MSOs). The co-marketing initiative combines Juniper's IP platforms with the ARRIS cable modem termination system (CMTS). As part of this partnering strategy, Juniper Networks also announced its intention to voluntarily discontinue its G-series CMTS product line. Consequently, Junipers plans to take a one-time charge of approximately $10-15 million comprised primarily of costs associated with workforce reduction, vacating facilities, contract termination, non-inventory asset impairment charges and other related costs.
http://www.juniper.nethttp://www.arrisi.com

• In November 2001, Juniper Networks agreed to acquire Pacific Broadband Communications, a start-up developing a next generation cable modem termination system (CMTS), for approximately $200 million in stock (Nov 2001 prices). Pacific Broadband, which was based in San Jose, California, developed a carrier class CMTS supporting 32 downstream channels and 128 upstream channels, enabling cable operators to support more cable modem traffic with less bandwidth. To achieve this, Pacific Broadband had designed custom ASICs capable of using 16 QAM transmissions within 3.2 MHz segments, effectively doubling or quadrupling the upstream data throughput. Prior to the acquisition, Pacific Broadband had secured a distribution agreement in North America with Scientific Atlanta.



• In July 2003, ARRIS agreed to acquire certain cable modem termination systems (CMTS) related assets of COM 21, including the stock of its Irish subsidiary, for a purchase price of approximately $2.8 million. COM 21 had earlier filed for Chapter 11.



• ARRIS' broadband division (Arris Interactive) was created from ANTEC's joint venture with Nortel Networks. In August 2001, Arris Interactive and ANTEC merged to form the new ARRIS. The company has 900 employees and is based in Duluth, Georgia.

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