VON Keynote: AT&T -- Services over IP (SoIP) Transforms the Network

The AT&T network is designed to drive innovation at a fast pace, said Hossein Eslambolchi, President of AT&T Global Networking Technology, in a keynote address at the Spring 2004 VON conference in Santa Clara, California. Eslambolchi kicked off his presentation with a "Top Ten" list of technology trends and predictions affecting his network: 1. IP is a PacMan and will eat everything in its path for the next 25 years 2. Broadband is becoming common, driving traffic onto the backbone 3. The Wireless Internet will be big -- look for 4G...

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VON Keynote: Siemens -- Moving to 2gIP

Kids take to instant messsaging by sheer intuition, teaching us that the "advanced" communications of today are merely the basics tools of tomorrow's workforce, said Bernd Kuhlin, President Enterprise Networks, Siemens ICN, in a keynote address at the Spring 2004 VON conference in Santa Clara, California. Kuhlin believes that the industry has emerged from the "Telecom Winter" to a Spring where service providers are realizing the economic value of upgrading their networks. Another hopeful sign of warmer weather, said Kuhlin, is the FCC's decision...

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IPCC Forms Working Groups

The International Packet Communications Consortium (IPCC) has formed the following working groups to further its 2004-2005 initiatives:The Service Provider Packet Interconnection Group: captures interconnection rules and procedures for public VoIP networks. This group will focus on the challenges of interconnecting VoIP islands nationally and globally.The Service Provider Application and Services Interoperability Group: liaises between service providers and other industry forums to accelerate the interoperability and conformance testing of multi-vendor...

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AT&T Launches its Consumer "CallVantage" VoIP

AT&T launched the first phase of its residential VoIP service at a price of $39.99 per month. The service, which initially is available in New Jersey, uses a telephony adapter connected to a broadband service. AT&T said consumers should be able to self install the service in under 10 minutes. AT&T is offering promotional pricing of $19.99 for the first six months of service. AT&T plans to introduce the service in the 100 top markets across the U.S. during the course of the year. AT&T CallVantage features list includes...

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MCI Trims Workforce, Cites Do-not Call Effect

MCI is reducing its workforce by approximately 4,000 employees as part of its ongoing cost reduction program. The majority of this reduction comes from closing three consumer call centers and reducing staffing in three others, in large part due to the effects of "Do Not Call" telemarketing laws. http://www.mci....

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Alcatel Bolsters IP Telephony R&D

Alcatel will reinforce its Research and Development (R&D) activities focused on IP telephony. The company announced plans to bolster its R&D teams by 100 employees in Europe - - 60 ofwhich will join the R&D teams at three French sites : Brest, Colombes and Illkirch. Alcatel will also create a software maintenance center in India. http://www.alcatel....

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Global IP Sound Releases VoIP Quality Enhancements

Global IP Sound released a new set of software modules for enhancing the audio quality of VoIP calls. The modules include functionality to add comfort noise during silence and automatically adjust audio levels. Global IP Sound's Voice Activity Detector (VAD) classifies every frame as active speech frame or non-active speech frame. Non-active frames are passed to the comfort noise encoder that encodes the parameters of the background noise. The Discontinuous Transmission (DTX) defines the packet size and packet interval for the background noise...

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Shanghai Metro Selects Lucent Optical

Shanghai Metro has selected Lucent Technologies' optical networking solutions for the second phase of its transmission network project involving Line 4 of the city public transit system. Lucent's optical solutions are already being used to link subway stations on one route of Shanghai's metropolitan subway system and to improve its multiservice network. Shanghai Posts and Telecommunications Equipment (PTIC), a Lucent Business Partner that has worked with Shanghai Metro and Lucent on the project for the transportation agency's Line 1 operation...

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BroadSoft Announces Ten New Service Provider Customers

Ten new service provider customers have chosen BroadSoft's BroadWorks network communications platform to support hosted VoIP services for the enterprise and residential broadband markets. The announced customers include: Broadvoice, Broadweave Networks, DRD Communications PLC (United Kingdom), Eureka Networks, Inflexion Communications, ISN Communications, RealConnect, Ultimate Medium Communications, XIPTEL and WorldxChange Communications (New Zealand). http://www.broadsoft....

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T-Com Selects Siemens/ADVA for Metro Optical

T-Com, the fixed network division of Deutsche Telekom, awarded Siemens Information and Communication Networks (ICN) a two-year, worldwide master contract to supply, install, and maintain optical transport equipment in metropolitan area networks. The metro optical transport project will use ADVA Optical Networking's DWD systems, including its Fiber Service Platform (FSP) 3000, along with the Siemens Telecommunications Network Management System (TNMS). Financial terms were not disclosed. http://www.siemens.com/networks/http://www.advaoptical....

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Level 3 Announces Two Residential VoIP Phone Services

Level 3 Communications introduced two wholesale, residential VoIP services for cable operators, ISPs, enhanced service providers, IXCs and others:(3)VoIP Enhanced Local Service is aimed at service providers who are seeking to offer residential voice services but prefer to operate their own switching infrastructure. It allows companies to develop voice services using Level 3 provided building blocks, including local phone numbers, interconnection with the traditional telephone network for local and long distance services, local number portability...

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Packet8 and FreeWorld Dialup Offer Unlimited Calling Between Users

8x8 and FreeWorld Dialup (FWD) have interconnected their VoIP networks and are now providing unlimited calling between the two services. The companies see the interconnection of VoIP networks as a trend that will continue. http://www.packet8....

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NEC Selects Kagoor for Global Session Border Control

NEC Corporation signed a global Value Added Reseller (VAR) agreement covering Kagoor Networks' Session Border Control solutions. Kagoor offers a scalable family of Session Border Controllers, including a high capacity, fault tolerant carrier grade model (VF-3000), a VoIP service provider or carrier edge model (VF-1000) and a CPE solution (VF-200). The VoiceFlow platforms deliver 5 essential VoIP applications: Network-hosted NAT traversal and VPN aggregation, network protection, carrier peering and enterprise border control. http://www.kagoor...

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Polycom Demos Integrated Voice/Video/Web SIP & H.323

Polycom is demonstrating integrated voice, video, and web applications across H.323 and SIP.T he technology demo uses a broad array of Polycom endpoints, software, and bridges -- recreating the enterprise challenge of connecting personal desktop and mobile systems with conference rooms and the network core. http://www.polycom....

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Legerity Integrates Line Testing in Packet Voice Interfaces

Legerity introduced its VoiceEdge architecture for integrating advanced line testing functionality into carrier-class packet voice equipment. Legerity's programmable VoicePort chips provide a functional line interface for short and medium loop applications. Key features include: high voltage switching regulator, self-test, line test capabilities, integrated ringing (up to 140-Vpk), worldwide software programmability, wide band mode, flexible signal generator with tone cadencing and integrated unbalanced ringing. Legerity's new architecture is...

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Peer1 and Pulver.com Launch VOIP Acceleration Project

Peer 1 Network and Pulver.com are launching a "VoIP Acceleration Project" that will subsidize new VOIP companies in their bandwidth and co-location needs. The companies said that would provide "provide a launching pad for VOIP entrepreneurs with the vision, but not necessarily the financial backing, to take VOIP to the masses."http://www.pulver.com/c...

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UTStarcom Announces $85.7 Million in China Netcom Contracts

UTStarcom has been awarded approximately $85.7 million with China Netcom Corporation (CNC) to expand and upgrade its IP-based PAS (Personal Access System) networks in Beijing and the Heilongjiang province. UTStarcom also announced that as a result of the strong demand for its PAS infrastructure and handsets, the company is guiding to slightly higher revenues, slight gross margin pressure, and reiterates GAAP EPS guidance for the first quarter of 2004. http://www.utstar....

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Precision I/O Raises $10 Million

Precision I/O, a start-up based in Palo Alto, California raised $10 million in venture funding to bring to market a new high-performance server I/O architecture based on Ethernet. The company said its architecture would "open up the server-to-network bottleneck that has plagued enterprises in their efforts to bring the benefits of high-speed networking to data-center and high-performance computing applications." Product introductions are expected in mid-2004. Lead investors are Advanced Technology Ventures (ATV), 3i, and Foundation Capital. ...

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Secure Video Processor Initiative Promotes Open Content Standard

NDS and STMicroelectronics announced the joint development of a content protection solution for consumer electronics that is compliant with the Secure Video Processor (SVP) initiative. The Secure Video Processor (SVP) logic could be embedded in a wide range of chips for CE devices including digital TVs, set-top boxes, digital video recorders (DVRs), portable players and other mobile devices. http://www.svp-cp.orghttp://www.nds....

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Convedia and Netrake Integrate Media Servers and Session Controllers

Convedia and Netrake announced a partnership agreement combining Convedia's carrier-class IP media processing platforms and Netrake's session controllers for VoIP interconnection. In the integrated Convedia/Netrake solution, the Netrake nCite system will seamlessly control Convedia media server products to provide adjunct transcoding of media streams with incompatible encoding, providing a scalable, carrier-class solution that encompasses both signaling and media mediation. Convedia media servers offer a range of media processing features, including...

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Priority Call Management Delivers Support for IP

Priority Call Management, a supplier of enhanced calling and messaging solutions, is extending full IP-support for its "ORYX" platform, which is widely installed in service provider networks globally to support enhanced calling and messaging applications such as call answering, IVR, unified messaging, personal one-number, and prepaid calling. The ORYX Messaging Application for VoIP extends an existing ORYX with SIP and H.323 capabilities. New services are provided by Priority Call's next generation Application Server that controls other network...

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World Wide Packets Selected in Virginia

World Wide Packets has been selected to supply its LightningEdge Ethernet access solution by the Lenowisco Planning District Commission, a central planning agency for three counties in southwestern Virginia. The municipal broadband initiative will provide business and residential services. Financial terms were not disclosed. http://www.worldwidepackets....

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California's Arrival Communications Deploys Metaswitch

Arrival Communications, a CLEC based in Bakersfield, California is deploying the MetaSwitch VP3500 Next Generation Class 5 Switch to deliver broadband voice service to business customers. The installation will complement Arrival's legacy Lucent VCDX Class 5 switching system in its existing markets, and also enable more flexible expansion into new markets. Arrival has over 12,000 subscriber lines serving small and medium-sized businesses in Tier 2 and 3 markets in California. Financial terms were not disclosed. http://www.metaswitch.comhttp:...

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MetaSwitch Expands VoIP Capabilities with SIP and IP Centrex

MetaSwitch announced a series of enhancements for its VP3500 Next Generation Class 5 Switch, including support for IP Centrex and Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) v2.0. Support for SIP extends the MetaSwitch VP3500's interoperability to a wider range of devices including SIP phones and SIP-based feature servers. MetaSwitch's SIP softswitch implementation provides back-to-back user agent (B2BUA) and registrar functionality integrated with an SS7 signaling gateway and media (trunk) gateway with ATM, IP and TDM interfaces. The MetaSwitch VP3500...

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Excel Switching and Mediaring Enter VoIP Partnership

Excel Switching Corp. announced successful interoperability lab tests between its PSTN to IP gateway and MediaRing's VoizBridge session controller. The joint solution enables carriers to expand their offerings of IP services such as VoIP wholesale (prepaid and postpaid), VoIP calling cards, enterprise VoIP and IP conferencing and fax. Both solutions seamlessly interoperate between H.323 and SIP, thereby protecting a carrier's investment in legacy equipment while allowing the carrier to expand into the burgeoning VoIP market. http://www.xl.co...

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