FCC Publishes 3G Rules Opening 90 MHz of Spectrum

The FCC officially adopted and published service rules for Advanced Wireless Services (AWS) in the 1710-1755 and 2110-2155 MHz bands, including provisions for application, licensing, operating and technical rules, and for competitive bidding. Licensees in these bands will have the flexibility to provide any fixed or mobile service that is consistent with the allocations for this spectrum.The new rules were announced on 16-Oct-2003. http://www.fcc....

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Alcatel Supplies SDH to Burkina Faso

Alcatel will supply its SDH optical multi-service transmission equipment to ONATEL (National Office of Telecommunications), the first national operator in Burkina Faso, to modernize the transmission network and interconnect Burkina Faso with the neighboring countries (Ivory Coast, Mali, Togo and Ghana) as well as getting access to the high capacity submarine cable SAT3. Alcatel will also supply the cable optical fiber in the eastern side of the country. The new transport infrastructure, which will be supervised by Alcatel's network management...

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Bandwidth Challenge Teams Push Networking Performance Envelope

Teams of scientists from research organizations around the world competed recently in Phoenix to see who could move the most scientific data across networks in the fourth annual High-Performance Bandwidth Challenge, held in conjunction with SC2003, the international conference on high-performance computing and networking. SC2003 is sponsored by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Computer Society and by the Association for Computing Machinery's Special Interest Group on Computer Architecture. This year's winners included the following:Sustained...

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ICG Names Interim CEO

ICG Communications, a facilities-based nationwide communications provider, named Jeffrey R. Pearl, executive vice president of sales and marketing as interim CEO. An external search for a permanent CEO will continue. Randall E. Curran, ICG's current CEO since September 2000 steps down November 30 after successfully seeing the company through its financial restructuring. http://www.icgcom....

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NTL Home Standardizes on Motive for Broadband Service Management

NTL Home, the leading provider of cable modem service in the UK, has expanded its use of Motive's e-care capabilities. For two years, Motive has provided the technology behind NTL Home's Broadband Installer/Checker service, which automatically guides new subscribers through the entire broadband activation process. The new capabilities will help address customer issues such as incorrect email account setup and ongoing customer support. The new e-care service will also provide the option for subscribers to send technical data electronically to...

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CWA Cites Comcast for Repeated Violations of FCC Rule

The Communications Workers of America issued a public complaint to the FCC concerning Comcast Communications and its alleged violation of the FCC's rules on maintaining public records that are complete and accessible. The CWA noted that FCC's public file rules require the operator of any cable system with more than 1,000 subscribers to maintain specific documents -- including all requests for broadcast time over the past two years by or on behalf of a candidate and other information -- and to make this file available during regular business hours....

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Zhone Reaches Agreement with Former Tellium Executives

Zhone Technologies reached an agreement with three former Tellium executives regarding their separation from the company. Zhone forgave the outstanding restricted stock loans of approximately $21.6 million held by the former executives, and will make a payment of approximately $15.5 million to the appropriate taxing authorities on their behalf to satisfy the tax liability associated with the forgiveness. The individuals involved are former Chairman and CEO Harry Carr, former Chief Financial Officer, Secretary and Treasurer Michael J. Losch, and...

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SingTel Extends IP VPN Services to Vietnam

Singapore Telecommunications (SingTel) together with Vietnam Datacommunications Company (VDC), the data services arm of Vietnam Posts and Telecommunications (VNPT), began offering IP VPN services to corporate customers with operations in Vietnam. SingTel is the first foreign carrier to offer such a service, which allows customers to be connected to VDC's domestic nation-wide IP network. The service provides seamless, MPLS-based IP connections from Singapore and all major cities in the world into, across and out of Vietnam. http://www.singtel.comIn...

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Metalink Customers Corecess and Tellion Selected by KT Corp. for VDSL

Corecess Inc. and Tellion have been selected by KT to supply QAM 50 Mbps VDSL equipment for mass deployment in Korea. Metalink said it is providing its QAM VDSL silicon to both of these systems companies. Earlier this month, Metalink announced that shipments of the company's standard compliant QAM VDSL products to South Korea exceeded the 200,000-port milestone. http://www.metalinkBB....

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SIP Forum Announces SIMPLE Interop Event

The SIP Forum is hosting a major interoperability event for the SIMPLE (SIP for Instant Messaging and Presence Leveraging Extensions) specification this week in Banff, Alberta, Canada. SIMPLE focuses on the application of SIP to instant messaging and presence, and its goal is to create an interoperable standard for these services across all IP networks. http://www.sipforum.o...

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Big Bear Raises $18 M for 10/40 Gbps Photonic Signal Processing

Big Bear Networks, a start-up based in Sunnyvale, California raised $18 million in a third round of private venture funding for its next-generation 10 and 40 Gbps optical system products. Big Bear said its electronic dispersion compensation technology automatically corrects for the fiber impairments (e.g., modal dispersion, chromatic dispersion, polarization mode dispersion) that become more severe as systems move toward greater speeds and transmission distances. Its Photonic Signal Processor (PSP) could be used in electrical-optical interfaces...

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Deutsche Telekom's T-Online Launches Broadband VOD

Deutsche Telekom's T-Online division launched a broadband video-on-demand service enabling DSL subscribers to order downloadable movies. The movies cost 1.90 EURs to 4 EURs for a 24-hour period and can be paid for via the regular T-Online bill, with MicroMoney or the T-Pay charge card. The movies can be viewed with the Windows Media player. T-Online has signed distribution deals with major Hollywood Studios MGM, Universal and Dreamworks as well as with Germany's Constantin Film, giving the company access to thousands of movies. http://www.t-...

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German Regulator Lowers Interconnection Charges by 9.5%

Germany's Regulatory Authority for Telecommunications and Post (RegTP) approved new interconnection charges, lowering the last approved prices by an average of 9.5%. The last change for interconnection charges occurred in October 2001 and led to an average reduction of 14%. http://www.regtp...

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Alcatel and Micromuse Team on DSL Service Assurance

Alcatel and Micromuse are working together to provide a unique DSL service assurance solution. The joint solution distributes real-time information about network performance and service impacting problems throughout the service provider organization. It proactively provides service reports to end-customers and ISPs, improving their visibility into service status and helping avoid call center congestion. The Alcatel DSL assurance solution is based on Micromuse's Netcool software suite. Alcatel will sell the solution as part of its DSL OSS portfolio....

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Alcatel and NTT Communications Announce Partnership

Alcatel and NTT Communications agreed to integrate and jointly market Alcatel's OmniSwitch user authenticated VLAN technology with NTT-Communications' "Safety Pass" IC (integrated circuit) Card technology to enterprises in Japan. Alcatel's Authenticated VLANs offer enterprises the ability to dynamically assign users to a particular VLAN based upon their authentication status or role within the enterprise. NTT Com's Safety Pass Business is a highly secure authentication access service which uses IC cards and IPSec-based Internet VPNs. http://www.alcatel.com...

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