TI Unveils Blueprint for Next-Gen Residential Gateways

Texas Instruments unveiled its UR8 architecture -- its eighth generation of DSL silicon and the foundation for a full family of next residential gateway designed for Triple Play. Key features include an open platform, integrated voice capabilities and advanced multimedia processing over all DSL standards.The UR8 architecture comprises an advanced multimedia processor, a programmable DSL PHY, a high-performance DSP-based voice sub-system and a rich set of standard interfaces. Delivering on TI's Uni-DSL vision, the common platform could be used...

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Comcast Selects Cisco CRS-1 and Nortel DWDM

Comcast has selected the Cisco CRS-1 Carrier Routing System for the core of its nationwide backbone. The selection follows an intensive and successful trial of the platform's advanced features and functions, with a particular emphasis on continuous systems operation, IP service flexibility, overall scalability, multicast support for digital broadcast video and optical integration. The CRS-1 will serve in a backbone network where the highest levels of availability are required for advanced routing, multicast, IPv6, policy and quality of service...

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Thomson and Thales Partnership Targets Video Content Management

Thomson and Thales announced a strategic partnership as well as the potential acquisition by Thomson of Thales Broadcast & Multimedia (TBM), which provides platforms for IPTV services, video-on-demand, Mobile TV, and Digital TV and radio broadcasting systems and equipment. The companies said they will target high-value video content management and distribution solutions for in-flight entertainment, security, and defense applications, leveraging their respective skills and expertise in these domains. The financial terms of the acquisition are...

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Renesys Provides Real-time Monitoring/Analysis of Global Internet Traffic

Renesys Corporation introduced a Web-based service that gives service providers and government agencies a new level of operational and competitive intelligence as it relates to the Global Internet. The Renesys service enables customers to uniquely view Internet routes in real-time from multiple vantage points, including real time data on which Internet routes have been activated or deactivated by competitors. Renesys generates its data by monitoring routing tables across the Internet and tracking changes as they occur in real-time. The company...

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China Telecom Deploys Alcatel 7750 in Anhui Province

Anhui Telecom, a provincial subsidiary of China Telecom, will deploy the Alcatel 7750 Service Router to support Triple Play services in seven major cities of the province including Bengbu, Anqing, Suzhou, Fuyang, Huangshan, Huaibei and Tongling. The installation will be completed in early 2006. The contract, which marks the 23rd province in China to utilize the Alcatel IP solution, was won through Alcatel Shanghai Bell. http://www.alcatel....

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iPass to Acquire GoRemote for $76.5 Million

iPass agreed to acquire GoRemote in an all-cash transaction valued at approximately $76.5 million.iPass primarily serves roaming business users by providing aggregated Wi-Fi access venues. GoRemote is a leader in the major market segments of remote workers that iPass does not already serve directly -- teleworkers and employees in home offices, branch offices and retail locations to which GoRemote primarily provides managed broadband services.The management teams are developing an integration plan that will be designed to take advantage of the companies'...

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AT&T Reaches New Labor Contracts with CWA, IBEW

AT&T reached new labor contracts with the Communications Workers of America (CWA) and International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) on a new three year, four month agreements covering 11,000 pre-merger AT&T employees. The contracts remain in effect through April 4, 2009.Following are highlights of the tentative agreements:Wages: The agreements provide for four annual base wage increases at 11.2 percent, compounded, over the life of the contracts.Pension: Pension benefits were increased by six percent in 2006 and by an additional...

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MCI Carries Native 40 Gbps Wavelengths in Metro Network

MCI conducted a technology trial in October and November in which it carried 74 channels of 10 Gbps traffic and 2 channels of 40 Gbps traffic over 38 individual 80 km spans of standard single mode fiber around the Dallas metro area. The trial used the Xtera all-Raman DWDM system, Mintera advanced modulation format long reach OC768 transponders, and Juniper Networks T640 IP routers with OC768 short reach interfaces.http://www.mci.comIn May 2004, MCI first demonstrated high-capacity Internet technology by successfully transmitting the world's first...

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SpectraLink to Acquire Denmark's KIRK Telecom

SpectraLink, which supplies enterprise wireless telephony solutions, agreed to acquire KIRK telecom (KIRK), a leading global provider of on-site, wireless communications products, based in Denmark. SpectraLink will pay a total of DKr 388 million (approximately $61.3 million) in cash to purchase all the stock of KIRK from its stockholders. SpectraLink said the deal provides its with solutions for DECT, a widely adopted technology in both Europe and Asia-Pacific. Last year in Europe alone, more than one million DECT handsets were sold into the enterprise....

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Actel Ships World's First Mixed-Signal FPGA

Actel began shipping the world's first mixed-signal FPGA (field programmable gate array). The company said that by integrating mixed-signal analog, flash memory and FPGA fabric in a single programmable device, it will be able to accelerate the time to bring a completed system design to market. http://www.actel.c...

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iPass Roaming Exceeds 35,000 Live Wi-Fi Venues

The iPass Global Broadband Roaming network has exceeded 35,000 live Wi-Fi venues, surpassing the company's own commitment for 2005 by more than 5,000 venues. The iPass virtual network delivers Wi-Fi access in 57 countries, focusing on access for business travellers.To grow the iPass Global Broadband Roaming Wi-Fi footprint beyond 35,000 venues, iPass has integrated more than 70 disparate Wi-Fi hotspot providers -- including recognized leaders such as T-Mobile Hotspot in the United States, BT OpenZone in the UK and China Telecom -- into a single...

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Aruba Networks Advances its VoWLAN Strategy

Aruba Networks, a supplier of enterprise WLAN infrastructure, announced three key industry alliances. Specifically, Aruba is announcing certification with SpectraLink, a supplier of Wi-Fi telephony solutions; interoperability validation with Vocera Communications, also a supplier in enterprise wireless voice solutions; and Innovator membership in the Avaya DeveloperConnection program."VoWLAN is the logical next step for enterprise communications," stated Peter Thornycroft, product manager for Aruba's VoWLAN solutions. "The flexibility and cost...

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Ruckus Wireless Offers Wi-Fi interoperability Program

Ruckus Wireless, a supplier of broadband wireless home gateways, launched a Wi-Fi interoperability and open testing program aimed at networking popular home media appliances for multimedia content distribution in the digital home.The Ruckus Interoperability and Open Testing (RIOT) program was developed to ensure the flawless operation of IP-enabled media appliances, such as set- top boxes (STBs), personal video recorders (PVRs), mobile video players, home entertainment systems and conditional access systems over its standards-based, multimedia-purposed...

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Mobilic Debuts Multimedia Processor for Mobile Video

Mobilic Technology Corporation, a start-up based in Taipei, Taiwan and San Jose, California, introduced its new SoC multimedia processor for the mobile video market. Mobilic processors feature the 200 MHz ARM926 CPU, which offers a software upgrade path for users. The new processors also integrate a video codec supporting MPEG4 and H.263 standards, an MP3 decoder, a 2D graphics acceleration engine, and interfaces for high-resolution LCD, TV, Ethernet and USB. In addition, the multimedia processors support high-performance video recording/playback...

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Comcast Launches VoIP in Maryland and Northern Virginia

Comcast launched its IP-based Digital Voice throughout Maryland and Northern Virginia. The service was also recently launched in Richmond, VA. Comcast's new IP- enabled voice service offers customers digital-quality phone service with unlimited direct-dial local and domestic long-distance calling, Web access to voicemail, E911 service, and 12 calling features.Comcast is now offering voice service in more than 20 markets, and has 1.2 million circuit-switched phone customers. http://www.comcast....

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JDSU Supplies Handheld Testers for U.S. ADSL2/2+ and IPTV Rollout

JDSU has shipped more than 500 HST-3000 handheld service testers as part of a multi-million dollar follow-on order from one of the largest U.S. telecommunications service providers, making it the carrier's preferred solution for ADSL2/2+ and IP video testing. The JDSU HST-3000 IP video test suite, coupled with the ADSL2/2+ and copper test features, is already used by the customer for its rollout.The modular, handheld HST-3000 supports physical layer analysis through packet metrics, signaling analysis and voice quality determination and also allows...

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Comcast, Cisco and Nortel Form Open Transport Initiative

Comcast will form an Open Transport Initiative (OTI) to improve the interoperability between Optical and IP network layers and compatibility among multiple vendors' equipment within its network. Comcast plans to work with Nortel and Cisco Systems as the first vendors in this initiative.Comcast said the initial phase of the Open Transport Initiative will focus on providing greater network and bandwidth agility. The OTI plans to first identify and define a set of common interfaces, which will be used to integrate and manage Nortel DWDM and Cisco...

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Sprint Uses Mspot for Mobile Streaming Movie Service

Sprint Nextel is partnering with MSpot, a pioneer in mobile multimedia entertainment, to offer a mobile entertainment service that streams full-length feature films to mobile phones. MSpot Movies gives subscribers on-demand access to seven movie genres, including a wide range of titles that MSpot makes available in "chapters," short segments optimized for a mobile audience. In addition, MSpot Movies includes TV shows, music concerts and stand-up comedy specials.MSpot, a start-up based in Palo Alto, California, aggregates premium entertainment from...

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Cable Operators to Offer Family-Friending Content Bundling

Major U.S. cable operators, including Comcast and Time Warner, agreed to offer family-friendly content bundles rather than face possible regulatory action from the FCC or Congress.In testimony before the U.S. Senate's Commerce Committee, National Cable & Telecommunications Association President Kyle McSlarrow said the new content bundling should be available next year. http://www.senate.govIn November, FCC Chairman Kevin Martin called on the cable industry and direct satellite broadcasters to offer better tools and packages to filter between...

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Verizon Expands FiOS TV in Dallas Suburbs

Verizon launched its FiOS TV in six more North Texas communities, which join Keller as Dallas/Fort Worth suburbs with the fiber-based service. Verizon's local telephone customers in portions of northern Carrollton, eastern Coppell, central Flower Mound, northern Fort Worth nearest Keller, northern Irving and central Lewisville are now able to get the service. In addition, Verizon plans to introduce FiOS TV in 2006 to its local telephone customers in Allen, Colleyville, Denton, Double Oak, Garland, Grapevine, Hebron, Highland Village, Lucas,...

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Quintum Signs European Distributor

The Westcon Group will distribute Quintum products throughout its European territory. Quintum is a provider of VoIP switching and gateway solutions worldwide to both enterprise and service provider customers. In addition to the Quintum Tenor MultiPath Switch product line, Westcon will carry the Tenor Call Relay Session Border Controllers, the new GateKeeper+ and Call Routing Servers. With Quintum's certification as a Nortel Developer Partner, Westcon's business partners will be able to sell Nortel IP PBX solutions utilizing Quintum's products...

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ECI Adds R&D Center in India

ECI Telecom announced the opening of a new Research and Development center in India. The new site joins ECI's existing R&D facilities in the U.S., Israel, and China. The R&D site will focus on ECI's broadband access solutions to develop its next generation product line and management solutions, and to expedite the penetration of new products to the region. Additionally, the center will focus on ECI's optical networking solutions, for complex testing and integration of the XDM. http://www.ecitele....

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