TIA Urges Caution in Opening More Unlicensed Spectrum

The Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA) is calling upon the FCC to seek "a balance between licensed and unlicensed spectrum for broadband wireless services." While acknowledging that unlicensed wireless products and services have a great potential, the TIA said unlicensed services could not replace the ubiquitous, reliable and feature-rich solutions of licensed networks.



The FCC "should endeavor to assign wireless broadband services to bands that will facilitate the creation of economically successful business models while providing ample consideration to existing licensed services. Spectrum below 6 GHz is especially well suited for these services as its propagation characteristics enable coverage of large geographic areas while supporting high broadband data rates."



TIA's specific recommendations on this issues include the following:

• New exclusive allocations of unlicensed spectrum should be made in spectrum not assigned to licensed services.



• If spectrum already assigned to licensed services is allowed by the FCC to be used by devices on an unlicensed basis, technical studies must demonstrate that such uses will not cause interference to licensed services in near or adjacent bands. There must be clear and enforceable interference rules.



• A technical framework should be developed to maximize the utility and efficiency of the unlicensed use, consistent with interference protections.



• The government should pursue harmonized spectrum allocations for national use on an unlicensed or license-exempt basis.

http://www.tiaonline.org

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Blackstone to Acquire New Skies Satellites

The Blackstone Group, a private investment and advisory firm, agreed to acquire New Skies Satellites N.V. for $956 million in cash, equivalent to approximately $7.96 per fully diluted share.



New Skies, which is based in The Netherlands, has five satellites in orbit, ground facilities around the world and one additional spacecraft under construction. The company also has secured certain rights to make use of additional orbital positions for future growth.



New Skies said the deal a 14% premium over the price of its stock on April 28th, the day before it announced that it was considering its alternatives, and a 27% premium to the average share price during the twelve months leading up to that date.



The Blackstone Group, a private investment and advisory firm with offices in New York, Atlanta, Boston, London and Hamburg, was founded in 1985. The firm has raised a total of approximately $32 billion for alternative asset investing since its formation. Over $14 billion of that has been for private equity investing, including Blackstone Capital Partners IV, the largest institutional private equity fund ever raised at $6.45 billion, and Blackstone Communications Partners I, the largest dedicated communications and media fund at over $2.0 billion. http://www.newskies.comhttp://www.blackstone.com

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Alcatel Enhances FTTH Outside Plant Solutions

Alcatel announced several enhancements to its outside plant Fiber-To-The-Home (FTTH) solutions, including:

• the addition of a new generation of multi-purpose optical drop cables and of the Alcatel 6853 Dielectric Flat Drop and Alcatel 6854 Figure 8 Drop Cables



• a new outside plant splitter cross-connect management system



• a new craft-friendly outside plant pedestal that manages optical splicing or connectorization for subscriber taps or drops in FTTH and deep fiber networks.

Separately, Alcatel announced the successful completion of a vibratory plow installation trial of Alcatel's Optical Drop cable family. A series of tests confirmed that Alcatel's Optical Drop cables can be consistently and reliably installed in a variety of environments and operating conditions using Ditch Witch vibratory plows, which are used for trenching fiber. http://www.alcatel.com

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Court Refuses to Stay its Order Overturning UNE-p Rules

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit declined to stay its decision voiding many of the FCC's so-called "network unbundling" rules pending an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court.



Tom Tauke, executive vice president-public affairs & communications at Verizon, said "The court's decision is good news for the industry. Decisions like this ensure that all parties have an incentive to negotiate agreements to replace the overturned rules and invest in facilities."http://www.verizon.com

• In March 2004, a three-judge panel in the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals overturned the FCC's Triennial Review Order with regard to network unbundling rules. The FCC rules, which were announced in February 2003 but actually issued in August 2003, empowered state public utility commissions as the decision makers on issues regarding UNE-P unbundling and local competition. The Court of Appeals said the FCC erred by not providing unified, federal guidelines and by pushing many FCC decisions to the states. The court also upheld the Triennial Review Order's exemption provided to incumbent carriers from unbundling for certain fiber-fed loops and for line sharing.

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ADC Continues Restructuring, Selling Off Customer Care and Billing Platforms

ADC agreed to sell its customer care and billing software division to Intec Telecom Systems, a supplier of Operations Support Systems (OSS) for fixed, mobile and next-generation networks, for $74.5 million in cash. Intec will assume control of ADC's customer care and billing software offerings including approximately 600 employees, current relationships with existing software customers and related facility space. ADC's customer care and billing software platforms include Singl.eView, a complete revenue, transaction, billing and service management solution that resides at the core of the OSS and business support systems (BSS).



In ADC's fiscal first half ended April 30, 2004, Singl.eView sales were approximately $35 million with an operating loss of approximately $4 million, after direct expenses only. In ADC's fiscal year ended October 31, 2003, the Singl.eView product line generated sales of approximately $92 million and an operating loss of approximately $7 million, after direct expenses only.



ADC said the sale advances its strategy to focus on product and service offerings for the infrastructure layer of the network.



Intec Telecom Systems is a supplier of packaged interconnect billing and settlement software. It also supplies "convergent mediation" and telecom Fraud Management solutions. http://www.adc.com

• In May 2004, BigBand Networks will acquire the IP Cable Business Unit of ADC Telecommunications, including its Cuda and FastFlow product lines, for an undisclosed sum. ADC will become a minority interest holder in BigBand Networks as part of the agreement. The acquisition does not include the Homeworx cable telephony system that had also been a part of the business unit. BigBand Networks will continue sales and full service for Cuda and FastFlow customers, including operation of technology and business activities in Westborough, Massachusetts, as well as other associated U.S. and international facilities. ADC's Cuda CMTS (cable modem termination system) is a widely deployed and carrier-class platform for switching and routing of advanced IP services, and the FastFlow Broadband Provisioning Manager is a server suite that activates and configures such services.



• In March 2004, ADC agreed to acquire the KRONE Group, a global supplier of copper- and fiber-based cabling products, from GenTek Inc.. The deal was valued at approximately $350 million, of which ADC will pay cash of approximately $291 million and assume certain defined liabilities consisting principally of KRONE's pension obligation for its German workforce.



• ADC said the KRONE acquisition makes "a perfect fit" with its new strategic initiative to become the leader in global network infrastructure solutions and services. The combined company is expected to have a worldwide market leadership position in copper and fiber central office infrastructure cabling solutions, as well as a leading market share position in enterprise structured cabling systems. KRONE has more than 2,000 employees, eight factories and five research and development centers around the world.

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PMC-Sierra Boosts its Q2 2004 Business Outlook

PMC-Sierra boosted its financial outlook for the June 2004 quarter. The company's revenues in the second quarter of 2004 are expected to be at, or exceed, the high-end of its previous financial guidance. The revenue outlook provided at that time was $83 million to $85 million in revenues for the second quarter of 2004, or 5% to 8% sequential growth. Based on current business activity levels, PMC-Sierra now expects revenue to increase to approximately $85 million to $86.5 million, or 8% to 10% sequentially, in the quarter ending June 27, 2004. http://www.pmc-sierra.com

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Paradyne Unveils Broadband Access Concentrator

Paradyne unveiled its next-generation Broadband Access Concentrator designed for voice, video and high-speed data. Key features of the new platform include:

• ADSL2+, providing performance speeds up to 29 Mbps.



• POTS and VoIP, allowing service providers to support lifeline telephone service from the same platform enabling VoIP or VoATM at the edge of the network.



• T1/E1, enabling service providers to provision circuit-based lines from the same platform.



• G.SHDSL - both single pair and bonded pairs - supporting business-class voice and data applications and widely deployed for delivery of VoIP to small and medium-sized businesses.



• ReachDSL - Paradyne's patented technology for extended distance



• two models, including a high-density version for up to 2,592 ports per 7 foot rack, and a medium-density version for deployment in small central offices or remote terminals. Both units feature Gigabit Ethernet uplinks as well as a full suite of ATM uplinks.

BaneTele, which owns and operates a fiber network across Norway has selected Paradyne's Broadband Access Concentrator for IP-based broadband services, including ADSL and SHDSL, as well as traditional TDM business-class services. IBM Global Services is serving as the turnkey system integrator for Paradyne's BaneTele deployment together with Paradyne's Scandinavian distributor Elltepe Broadband Technology AB. http://www.paradyne.com

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Freescale Demonstrates UWB Peripherals

Taiwan's Micro-Star International (MSI) and Freescale Semiconductor demonstrated a wireless connection between the MSI Entertainment and Gaming Appliance (MEGA) PC and two liquid crystal display (LCD) screens using Ultra-Wideband (UWB) technology. The demonstration is believed to be the first Direct Sequence Ultra-Wideband (DS-UWB) demonstration involving a MEGA PC home entertainment platform.



The demonstration included a MEGA PC that wirelessly streamed two live simultaneous video and audio streams with a collective data rate of 40 Mbps across the room to two LCD displays. Freescale's current UWB chipset is capable of transmitting data up to 110 Mbps, enabling up to three concurrent streams of video over a single UWB connection, if desired.



Freescale is positioning its UWB chipset for products such as set-top boxes, digital displays, camcorders, DVD players, digital video recorders and digital cameras to send and receive digital streams of audio and video. http://www.freescale.com

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Alcatel's AMS Managing 10 Million DSL User Lines

Alcatel's carrier customers in North America are using its Access Management System (AMS) to manage more than 10 million DSL lines, representing approximately 80%of the North American DSL market. The AMS provides management, monitoring and provisioning of DSL, fiber-to-the-user, data and voice services. The system can manage multiple, geographically dispersed platforms from one central location, with scalability of up to 2500 network elements and 100 concurrent users. It also enables remote configuration, performance, security and fault management on these network elements. http://www.alcatel.com

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MTS Completes Allstream Acquisition, Bell Canada Sues

Manitoba Telecom Services completed its acquisition of Allstream (formerly AT&T Canada). Allstream operates a nationwide network spanning 18,000 km and is focused on the business market.



Bell Canada has commenced a legal proceeding against Allstream Inc. claiming damages of $150 million from Allstream for conspiracy and inducing MTS to breach certain obligations to Bell Canada. MTS has advised Allstream that MTS will vigorously defend all of the Bell Canada legal proceedings. http://www.mts.ca

• In March 2004, Manitoba Telecom Services (MTS) first announced plans to acquire Allstream (formerly AT&T Canada) in a transaction valued at $1.7 billion. At the time, BCE (the parent company of Bell Canada ), which is the largest shareholder in Manitoba Telecom and holds a 22% stake, issued a brief statement calling the deal "a significant change in the strategic direction of MTS," and saying it's weighing its options.

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