O2 Ireland Tests WiMAX with Alvarion/Siemens

O2 Alvarion successfully completed a test of Alvarion's BreezeMAX 3500, a WiMAX-ready platform, in Ireland. The system, which was supplied by Siemens, was used to provide broadband services to households and small businesses in Gleann Cholm Cille in Donegal, Ireland. The Gleann Cholm Cille valley was selected as the location due to its challenging terrain and substantial distance from the nearest high-capacity network. The trial was conducted over the span of a four month period and concluded in early 2005. BreezeMAX systems are operational in other Western European countries, including France and Spain.
http://www.alvarion.com
http://www.siemens.com

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SkyStream's Video Headends Selected by NTT for IPTV

OnDemandTV, a joint venture of NTT West and Itochu, has selected SkyStream's Mediaplex-20 video headend to support a nationwide rollout of IP-based broadcast television in Japan. Financial terms were not disclosed.


OnDemandTV will provide 23 broadcast channels as well as an extensive library of video on demand (VoD) movies using NTT East and NTT West's networks. The service is currently available to NTT West subscribers in the Osaka metropolitan area. Initially, the service is being broadcast over NTT West's fiber network using MPEG-2 compression. OnDemandTV plans to expand the service on a national scale to the remainder of NTT West and all of NTT East subscribers in the near future, delivering content over ADSL as well as over fiber.


Skystream said its headend can distribute hundreds of high-quality video channels for large-scale video delivery in multiple formats and rates to millions of subscribers at the same time. The Mediaplex-20 system is a complete video headend in a single chassis that offers 48 MPEG-2 or MPEG-4 AVC encoders. It also provides video multiplexing and demultiplexing, routing, video rate-shaping, stream replication, and ATM to IP conversion. The Mediaplex-20 video headend has over 100 field-proven deployments in 18 months.


For smaller deployments or in space-constrained environments, SkyStream also offers the iPlex ultra-compact video headend in a 1 RU form factor that provides the same integrated video headend capabilities of the Mediaplex-20 headend. It supports up to 8 MPEG-2 or MPEG-4 AVC encoders.

by Ramin Farassat SkyStream Networks

A Flexible Video Headend Is Key To An Optimal Video Delivery Architecture This article examines what telephone companies should look for when shopping for a video headend, one of the most important components in the delivery of "Telco TV."

http://www.skystream.com

• In September 2004, SkyStream Networks and Alcatel announced plans to collaborate on IPTV. SkyStream also announced that it has signed a reseller agreement with Alcatel, in which Alcatel will be offering SkyStream Networks' Mediaplex-20 video headend platform as part of its IPTV Open Media Suite of solutions to telecom operators worldwide.

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USTA Schedules TelecomNEXT Conference for March 2006

The U.S. Telecom Association (USTA) announced TelecomNEXT, a new industry conference and exhibition that aims to bring together policymakers, entrepreneurs and the CEOs of the world's leading communications service providers, suppliers, content and applications companies.


TelecomNEXT will be held at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Convention
Center in Las Vegas, Nevada, March 19-23, 2006.


The event has already published a list of high-profile, industry keynote speakers, including:

• Duane Ackerman, Chairman & CEO, BellSouth



• Harald Braun, President, Carrier Networks Division, Siemens



• Scott Ford, President & CEO, ALLTEL



• Jonathan Glickman, President, Spyglass Entertainment Group



• Paul Lacouture, President, Network Services, Verizon



• Moshe Lichtman, Corporate Vice President, Microsoft TV Division



• Kevin Martin, Chairman, Federal Communications Commission



• Walter McCormick, President & CEO, U.S. Telecom Association



• Susan Miller, President & CEO, ATIS



• Balan Nair, Chief Technology Officer, Qwest



• Glenn Post, Chairman & CEO, CenturyTel



• Mike Quigley, President, Alcatel North America



• Chris Rice, Executive VP, Network Planning & Engineering, SBC



• Michael Sabia, President & CEO, Bell Canada



• Ivan Seidenberg, Chairman & CEO, Verizon



• Stan Sigman, President & CEO, Cingular



• Bill Smith, Chief Technology Officer, BellSouth



• Norio Wada, President & CEO, Nippon Telegraph and Telephone



• Ed Whitacre, Chairman & CEO, SBC Communications

http://www.Telecom-Next.com

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Germany's TEAG Netkom Deploys Marconi's Ethernet/SDH

TEAG Netkom, the largest alternative carrier in the German province of Thuringia, is using Marconi's OMS840 multiservice edge platform to launch new Ethernet services over its existing SDH infrastructure. TEAG Netkom has rolled out new Ethernet-based data and voice services, such as Ethernet Private Line (EPL) services, to 10 customer locations and has already deployed the platform at a further 40 sites within its own network. Financial terms were not disclosed.


TEAG Netkom existing infrastructure consists of Marconi's SMA multiplexers, MSH64 optical core switch, and the OMS1664, Marconi's multiservice provisioning platform for high-capacity metro applications. The network is managed by Marconi's ServiceOn Optical network management software.
http://www.marconi.com

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QUALCOMM Samples First CDMA2000 1xEV-DO Rev A Chipset

QUALCOMM began sampling first chipset for CDMA2000 1xEV-DO Revision A. In addition to support Rev A's higher data rates and QoS enhancements, the new Mobile Station Modem MSM6800 chipset also provides increased processing capacity and optimized audio, video, camera and graphics capabilities.


CDMA2000 1xEV-DO Rev. A supports faster data rates and higher system capacity to enable operators to offer in-demand, next-generation wireless multimedia. Capabilities include:

• Optimized for packet data service. Supports peak data rates of up to 3.1 Mbps on the forward link and up to 1.8 Mbps on the reverse link.



• Supports QoS for delay-sensitive applications, including a variety of IP-based services such as VoIP and real-time conversational services such as push to talk, video telephony, low-delay gaming and "instant multimedia" (an extension of push to talk that combines immediate voice with simultaneous delivery of video and pictures).



• Supports 1xEV-DO Gold Multicast, which enables the delivery of high-quality video and audio to a large number of users simultaneously. If standards progress permits, Qualcomm's MSM6800 chipset will also support 1xEV-DO Platinum Multicast.

QUALCOMM said its new MSM6800 chipset would enable mobile next-generation wireless multimedia device incorporating features such as 4.0 megapixel cameras, video camcorders at 30 fps, graphics at 100k triangles/second. , 7M pixels/second graphics for console-quality gaming, 3D sound and MP3/AAC/aacPlus audio support, GPS location awareness, Mobile Digital Display Interface (MDDI) connectivity, and integrated Bluetooth 1.2.


QUALCOMM's 1xEV-DO Rev. A solutions also include the Cell Site Modem CSM6800 device, which sampled in December 2004. The CSM6800 device has been chosen by several leading vendors for infrastructure and test equipment.

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NetCentrex and TdSoft Announce GR-303 Solution

NetCentrex and TdSoft, a provider of VoIP gateways for carriers, announced an integrated GR-303 solution, bridging the gap between softswitched networks and legacy-based access systems. The companies said their solution allows carriers to keep their existing GR-303 access infrastructure, including legacy Digital Loop Carriers (DLCs) and POTS phones, while upgrading their core call control platform to VoIP.

http://www.netcentrex.nethttp://www.tdsoft.com

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Altera and Gennum Develop 3 Gbps Video Interface for Coax

Altera and Gennum, a silicon company based in Burlington, Ontario, announced a serial video interface that supports a 3-Gbps signal over a coax. The solution uses Altera's Stratix GX FPGAs and Gennum's cable equalizer and driver products. This enables a multi-rate link that supports Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE) protocols 259M-C (270 Mbps) and 292M (1.485 Gbps), and twice the SMPTE 292M data rate (2.970 Gbps).


"The movement in the broadcast industry toward 1080-line progressive video formats is creating demand for a 3 Gbps serial interface," said Alan Ferguson, director, video transport products at Gennum. "Copper is still the lowest cost method of transporting digital video, so the industry will be pleased to learn that 100 meters of coax is possible at 3 Gbps."


The companies will demonstrate the 3 Gbps link (two times the 292M SMPTE specification for high definition serial video) over 100 meter Belden 1694A cable at next week's National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) Conference in Las Vegas.
http://www.altera.com/http://www.gennum.com/

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Liberty Alliance Addresses EU Privacy Concerns

The Liberty Alliance Project, a global consortium for open federated identity standards and identity-based Web services, released "Circles of Trust: The Implications of EU Data Protection and Privacy Law for Establishing a Legal Framework for Identity Federation".


The document is a a guide for a federation of organisations implementing the Liberty specifications under the rigorous requirements of European privacy law.


The Circle of Trust is a concept central to the Liberty Alliance Project. A Circle of Trust is a federation of service providers and identity providers that have business relationships based on Liberty architecture and operational agreements, and with whom users can transact business in a secure and apparently seamless environment. As federated communities create interdependencies and, consequently, the need for trust between participants, the Circle of Trust is viewed by the Liberty Alliance as an essential component of establishing a system of federated identity based on Liberty specifications.


The paper discusses such issues as: how EU privacy law treats identity and the use of identifiers; how the law applies to different entities in the federated identity ecosystem; and what rules apply to the transfer of personal data beyond the boundaries of the EU.
http://www.projectliberty.org/

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Comcast Readies Digital Voice Rollout in Boston

Comcast is preparing to roll out its Digital Voice telephony service Boston and Hartford, CT. Comcast will offer unlimited local and domestic long-distance calling, enhanced voice mail features, E911 service and 12 calling features for $39.95 per month. The company will support enhanced 911 functionality with battery backup. Comcast plans to reach 20 markets and 15 million homes with this new service in 2005, and all Comcast markets, approximately 40 million homes, by year-end 2006.


Comcast currently provides circuit-switched phone service in many New England communities.



http://www.comcast.com

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Verizon Wireless Completes Purchase of Nextwave Spectrum

Verizon Wireless completed its purchase of all of NextWave's PCS spectrum licenses, in 23 markets across the U.S., for $3.0 billion.


The 10 and 20 MHz licenses, in the 1.9 GHz PCS frequency range, cover a population of 73 million people. The purchase price equates to $2.85 per MHz POP. The licenses will be used to expand Verizon Wireless' network capacity in 22 key existing markets, including New York, Boston, Washington, D.C. and Los Angeles, as well as to expand the company's footprint into Tulsa, Oklahoma.


The licenses were acquired through the purchase of NextWave Telecom. As a result of Nextwave Telecom's bankruptcy reorganization, the licenses are that entity's only assets.

http://www.verizonwireless.com/

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Marconi's ViPr Deployed in Telemedicine Trial

The Arizona Surgical Technology and Education Center (ASTEC) at the University of Arizona College of Medicine has deployed Marconi's ViPrVirtual Presence System for a telemedicine trial. The high-resolution video telephony and multimedia communications platform will be integrated in ASTEC's Medical and Surgical Simulation Laboratory for telesurgical consults, distance learning with virtual reality simulators, and other activities that support medical training. The solution is supplied by Marconi and ExhibitOne Corporation, an Arizona-based provider of telepresence and presentation technologies.



Marconi's SIP-based ViPr provides digital high-fidelity audio and DVD-quality video in an integrated video telephony platform. multiparty desktop video telephony platform, capable of supporting up to 15 simultaneous videoconferencing calls. ViPr also is the only multiparty video telephony platform that eliminates the Multi-point Control Unit (MCU).
http://www.marconi.com

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CompTel/ASCENT Fall 2005 Changes Venue

The CompTel/ASCENT Fall 2005 Convention & Expo has changed from the Fountainbleau Hilton in Miami to the Orlando World Center Marriott in Orlando. The dates of the event remain the same (October 9-12).
http://comptelascent.org

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