AT&T Increases Global WiFi and Wired Access to 10,000 Sites

AT&T increased its global WiFi and wired Ethernet remote access footprint to more than 10,000 sites in more than 35 countries. The expansion is made possible through roaming agreements with GoRemote Internet Communications, as well as through direct relationships with other hotspot providers. Certification of the additional access points is complete.
http://www.att.com

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Verizon to Open Fiber Solutions Center in Syracuse

Verizon will open a new customer support center for advanced fiber-optic services near Syracuse, New York. Employees in the new Fiber Solutions Center (FSC) will support consumers and business customers who purchase new broadband products and video services over Verizon's FTTP network. The new center will take calls from customers across several states served by Verizon. The facility will create up to 50 new jobs this year.


Verizon has already opened similar customer service centers in Dallas, Hampton (Virginia), Providence (R.I.), and Thousand Oaks (California).


http://www.verizon.com

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Belgacom Chooses Italtel and Cisco for IMS

Belgacom has selected Italtel and Cisco Systems for the development of its IP-based Multimedia Services. The contract is for the supply and end-to-end integration of a new IP-based NGN consolidated infrastructure on which VoIP and other new multimedia Real-Time-Communication services could be delivered to the residential and business segments. Financial terms were not disclosed.


The IP-based NGN Real-Time-Communication Platform is based on the Italtel NGN-IMS Architecture, with ISSW (Italtel iMSS based Softswitch solution) and i-UDB (Italtel Universal Data Base) platforms developed by Italtel at the network core, and integrates Cisco VoIP gateways and Cisco IP carrier routers as well as value-added application platforms.

http://www.cisco.com

• In December 2004, Italtel, a leading supplier of voice/data/video solutions, and Cisco Systems announced a strengthening of their four year technological and commercial strategic alliance to focus on next generation IP networks. The companies will work together to expand the EMEA market, through joint solutions based on Italtel iMSS (Italtel Multi-Service Solutions) and on Cisco IP Communications platforms. The Italtel Multi-Service Solution, based around the Italtel Softswitch, can deliver IP voice services for the business market, and the migration of service providers' traditional TDM networks to next generation networks with IP technology.



• Cable & Wireless has recently chosen Italtel and Cisco's Next Generation Communications solutions.

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AudioCodes and Vail Systems Offer Microsoft Speech Server Solution

AudioCodes and Vail Systems, a provider of SIP-based IP telephony platform technology, speech application solutions and hosting services, announced the availability of a set of SIP-based product bundles to enable development and deployments for Microsoft Speech Server 2004.


The new product bundles consist of the newly certified version of the Vail SIP Telephony Interface Manager for Microsoft Speech Server 2004 and either an AudioCodes TP260/SIP or an AudioCodes Mediant 2000 Voice over IP Media Gateway.


The companies said their product bundles offer Microsoft Speech Server developers and integrators a combination of software and hardware products that are ready-to-deploy, leveraging SIP to enable high performance, distributed and scalable speech applications.


The AudioCodes Gateway/Vail SIP TIM bundles are available from Alliance Systems.
http://www.audiocodes.com
http://www.alliancesystems.com

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Software Defined Radio Forum Creates New Working Group

The Software Defined Radio (SDR) Forum has created a Design Process and Tools Working Group to help improve productivity and quality in the continued development of SDR technology. The Working Group will leverage the expertise of Forum and industry leaders to develop best practices for the design flows and tools used in creating systems, software, waveforms, and components.


The Working Group's initial efforts will involve design flow processes that target specific development scenarios in the commercial, civil and defense sectors. It will also focus on the identification of classes of tools necessary to support the development stages associated with these design flows and the features required in these development tools, including the required interoperability between tools.


The Design Process and Tools Working Group is open to participants from a wide variety of technical and market disciplines, such as: waveform developers, component developers, platform vendors, and design tool vendors. The current list of participants includes representatives from Spectrum Signal Processing, Harris Corporation, AccelChip, The MathWorks, Synplicity, Zeligsoft, and Xilinx.
http://www.sdrforum.org

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PointOne Exec Elected President of VON Coalition

Staci L. Pies, PointOne vice president, Governmental and Regulatory Affairs, was recently elected president of the VON Coalition for a one year term.


The VON Coalition is an industry group advocating a hands-off regulatory approach to Internet and Internet based services like VoIP. The VON Coalition has consistently advocated that federal and state regulators maintain current policies of refraining from extending legacy regulations to Internet services, including VoIP.

http://www.pointone.com/http://www.von.org

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PMC-Sierra Unveils Solution for Next Gen IP DSLAMs

PMC-Sierra introduced a low cost ATM-to-Ethernet interworking chip for IP DSLAMs supporting Triple Play services. The new S/UNI DUPLEX GE device can be used for line cards in IP DSLAMs that interface to the ATM-based CPE on one side and the Ethernet access network on the other. The device implements ATM to Ethernet conversion in dedicated hardware, a function deployed to date in expensive network processors or FPGAs. PMC-Sierra said this significantly reduces line card cost which is a major portion of the IP DSLAM bill of materials. The hardware-based S/UNI DUPLEX GE also eliminates the need for proprietary software for network processors and reduces the overall development cost of the IP DSLAM.


By terminating ATM traffic from CPE on the line-card, PMC-Sierra's S/UNI DUPLEX GE also enables the use of off-the-shelf Ethernet switches in DSLAMs. The device can simultaneously aggregate up to 144 ADSL2+ modems. It could also support the coming VDSL2 standard. The device has Utopia Level 2 interface for connection to DSL/ADSL2/ADSL2+ modems and an optional POS PHY Level 2 interface for connection to VDSL modems. The device features full Gigabit Ethernet line rate throughput, eight classes of service, and non-blocking multicast. Configurable data encapsulation schemes are also supported to ensure the reusability of the IP DSLAM line-cards across various geographic locations.


The S/UNI DUPLEX GE also offers a migration path for ATM DSLAMs that are based on the PMC-Sierra VORTEX chip set by providing the option for Gigabit Ethernet uplinks.


Integrated dual Gigabit Ethernet SERDES interfaces provide redundancy and backplane driving capabilities in modular central office DSLAMs. When used in fixed remote DSLAMs or Next-Gen DLCs, the SERDES interfaces provide direct connection to SFP optics.


ZTE Corporation is using PMC-Sierra's S/UNI DUPLEX GE for line cards in IP DSLAMs with various form-factors.
http://www.pmc-sierra.com/networking

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Freescale Introduces Power Efficient EDGE Subsystem

Freescale Semiconductor introduced a quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE RF subsystem that increases talk time for handsets by up to 20% versus previous generations of GPRS handsets. The new subsystem consists of a transceiver and a power amplifier front end module. Combined, these two components provide an antenna-to-bits radio in a board space of less than 250 mm2 -- approximately the area of a postage stamp.

Freescale said the solution represents the world's first DigRF compliant radio, allowing for maximum flexibility in pairing the RF subsystem with any semiconductor company's baseband. DigRF is a global standard of an efficient physical interconnection between baseband and RF integrated circuits for digital cellular terminals. http://www.freescale.com

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Cingular Positions GSM EDGE for Wireless Back-Up

Cingular Wireless introduced a Wireless WAN Connectivity Service powered by its GSM EDGE network. The service uses a GSM wireless gateway from Minneapolis-based Digi International to provide a diverse and secure high-speed back-up to corporate wireline data connections should those be disabled by cable cuts, weather or local access outages. Customers can configure their local area networks so that the Wireless WAN Connectivity Service automatically activates should the wireline connection be interrupted. The Wireless WAN Connectivity Service also can be used as a primary data connection for companies with remote or temporary operations where there is no readily available wireline access.


SBC and BellSouth will offer the service to their enterprise customers.
http://www.cingular.com

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Thunder Bay Deploys ADC's Next Gen SONET

TBayTel, Thunder Bay Telephone, is using ADC's LoopStar 800 next-generation SONET access system to provide Ethernet services and DSL transport to its business customers in rural areas of Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada. TBayTel, the first North American service provider to deploy the LoopStar system, is serving business customers within the TBayTel serving area with low-cost Ethernet services using an OC-3 point-to-point configuration. The company also plans to use the LoopStar 800 to extend the reach of DSL services and provide greater bandwidth to existing customers. Financial terms were not disclosed.
http://www.adc.com
http://www.tbaytel.net

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Picture Archiving and Sharing Standard (PASS) v1.0 Completed

Fuji Photo Film Co, Eastman Kodak, and Konica Minolta Photo Imaging announced the completion of a set of standards for the consumer imaging and electronics industries, setting a path to help ensure compatibility of digital photos and motion images on CDs, DVDs or other media with a broad range of consumer products.


In much the same way that today's consumer can get nearly any brand of film processed at any location, the PASS group wants to ensure that digital images can be retrieved from any digital device or storage medium.


The PASS version 1.0 specification suite includes:

• PASS Logical Disc Specification. This specification describes the logical components or data structures that are found on a PASS disc.



• PASS Originating/Authoring System Requirements Specification. This
  specification describes the capabilities needed by a system that creates PASS discs.



• PASS Receiving/Playback System Requirements Specification. This specification describes the capabilities needed.

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Samsung to Introduce Five Mega Pixel Camera Phone

Samsung is planning to introduce camera phones with two mega pixel, 3.5 mega pixel and five mega pixel capabilities during 2005.

Samsung asserts that camera phones have now become the fastest growing consumer electronics product in history, as this year they will represent more than 75 percent of digital cameras sold worldwide. Samsung expects more than half of its wireless phones for the U.S. will have digital camera capabilities in 2005.



http://www.samsung.com/wireless

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Verizon Selects TVN Entertainment for Video on Demand

Verizon announced a long-term agreement with TVN Entertainment for video-on-demand programming and services on its upcoming FiOS TV service. Financial terms were not disclosed.


TVN will provide Verizon with a wide range of VOD programming including new studio releases, a library of previous releases, independent movies, family and kids programming, and a broad array of free on-demand and specialty VOD networks. Verizon will also use TVN's advanced services, including TVN's exclusive TVNow rapid-turnaround service that enables subscribers to order news and events, such as the presidential inauguration, within hours of their occurrence.


TVN Entertainment Corporation is one of the largest privately held digital content aggregation, management, distribution, and service companies in the U.S. The company currently packages and distributes more than 2000 hours of VOD programming every month. This includes TVN-licensed movie titles, children's and Spanish language content, and genre-themed on demand channels as well as delivering Subscription-Video-On-Demand (SVOD) and network programming for many of the major cable networks.


In addition to video on demand, FiOS TV will deliver hundreds of digital channels, high-definition programming, an interactive programming guide and other features via the company's fiber-to-the- premises broadband network, now under construction in parts of 12 states.


Verizon said customers will be able to buy FiOS TV as a stand-alone service or packaged with voice and FiOS high-speed data services. FiOS TV is expected to be launched later this year.

http://www.verizon.com
http://www.tvn.com

• TVN's ADONISS open-standard platform service solution for VOD asset management and distribution, has been in market for more than three years. ADONISS is currently deployed by five of the top cable MSOs and integrated with Motorola, Scientific Atlanta, TV Guide, TV Gateway, SARA, nCube, SeaChange, and Concurrent.



• In January 2005, Verizon announced plans to use the Microsoft TV platform for the commercial rollout of its FiOS TV service. Verizon has also said that FiOS TV will use the Motorola set-top hardware platform.

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