MERA's Softswitch Supports Voice Peering Fabric's ENUM Registry Lookup

MERA Systems' next generation MVTS II (MERA VoIP Transit Softswitch II) will support various options for a carrier to send requests to ENUM registries, analyze the responses and use information received to take optimal routing decisions for each particular call.



In particular, MERA Systems is working with Stealth Communications' Voice Peering Fabric to deliver an effective routing solution with integrated ENUM lookup capabilities.



Voice Peering Fabric (VPF) functions as an exchange or meet-point and is designed as a private voice Internet, allowing its members to establish peer-to-peer connections and exchange VoIP traffic and telephony related services in a secure, quality-of-service environment. VPF ENUM Registry will make it possible for participating carriers to route VoIP calls end-to-end through IP networks, thus avoiding PSTN charges.



Located in 9 U.S. cities and London, the Voice Peering Fabric has become the preferred peering platform and marketplace for Service Providers, Enterprises, and Government Agencies. In 2005, traffic on the VPF reached over 18 billion minutes and is expected to exceed 80 billion minutes in 2006. http://www.mera-voip.com

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Alcatel to Build 320 Gbps Cable Linking France and Morocco

Maroc Telecom, the leading telecommunication operator in Morocco, selected Alcatel to build a submarine cable network linking Morocco and France. The project, named Atlas Offshore and valued at EUR 26 million, will span more than 1,600 km between Marseille in France and Asilah in Morocco. Once completed in early 2007, it will enable Maroc Telecom to handle the increasing number of DSL subscribers by leveraging enhanced connectivity and broadband access capabilities.



Furthermore, it will create a new traffic route offering an alternative path to the existing 3,200 km Eurafrica submarine system linking France, Morocco and Portugal. The 320 Gbps capacity offered by the Marseille-Asilah connection will be 570 times higher than the one delivered by the Eurafrica submarine network.

http://www.alcatel.com

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Mexico's Multimedios Redes Selects Siemens VoCable

Multimedios Redes, a leading cable TV operator in Mexico, has commissioned Siemens Communications to supply its voice-over-cable (VoCable) solution. Multimedios Redes intends to deploy the solution in the Monterrey metropolitan area, where it will provide its customers with the new applications -- video calling, online gaming and video monitoring. Financial terms were not disclosed.



The Siemens "Voice-over-Cable" solution runs on the Surpass HiQ 8000 and Surpass HiQ 4200 platforms.

http://www.siemens.comhttp://www.multimedios.net

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Redback Receives Subpoena on Option Grants

Redback Networks received a subpoena from the United States Attorney for the Northern District of California requesting documents related to the Company's historical stock option practices. Redback intends to cooperate fully with the U.S. Attorney's Office in connection with this subpoena.



The company also confirmed that it received an informal request from the Securities and Exchange Commission for information on historical stock option grant practices.

http://www.redback.com

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Italy's Fastweb Selects Alcatel Optical Gear

Alcatel was awarded a multi million EUR contract by Italy's Fastweb to supply its convergent Optical Multi-Service Node (OMSN) systems and 1678 Metro Core Connect (MCC). The new equipment will be managed by the existing Alcatel 1350 management suite, a portfolio of applications to manage packet, TDM and wavelength connectivity services.



Fastweb was selected by Consip as provider for fixed voice services and IP connectivity for the Italian public administration. Alcatel's solution will enable Fastweb to dramatically enhance its network capacity and support the increased traffic loads driven by this new project for central and local public administration.

http://www.alcatel.com

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Space Systems/Loral Selected to Build New Satellite for EchoStar

EchoStar Communications selected Space Systems/Loral to build a 1300-series satellite. This new order from EchoStar is one of four satellite contracts awarded to Space Systems/Loral to date in 2006.

EchoStar currently serves more than 12.2 million satellite TV customers through its DISH Network.
http://www.ssloral.com

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Alcatel and SaskTel Form R&D Alliance

SaskTel, the incumbent operator in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) will Alcatel to conduct joint research and development. Once finalized, the agreement will lead to the creation of approximately twenty new R&D positions to be based in Saskatchewan and jointly funded by Alcatel and SaskTel.



R&D activity resulting from the MOU will focus on the development of advanced software applications to address global market needs. Products and services resulting from the collaboration will be distributed worldwide utilizing the extensive market reach of Alcatel's global sales presence in conjunction with SaskTel Internatihttp://www.alcatel.com

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EarthLink Launches Anaheim Municipal Wireless Network

EarthLink officially launched its first municipal Wi-Fi broadband network in the City of Anaheim. EarthLink has deployed Tropos Networks' MetroMesh Wi-Fi routers on light poles throughout the city. The full city-wide deployment is expected by the end of the year.



The network operates under an 'open access' business model, so that multiple, competing providers can offer their services to consumers and businesses along with EarthLink's products and services. Several paid tiers of service are available. For Anaheim-based small businesses, EarthLink's wireless network promises speeds comparable to existing T-1 solutions.



In conjunction with its commitment to open access, EarthLink today announced its first national wholesale partners that will offer service to their customers on EarthLink's municipal Wi-Fi network. These partners are PeoplePC (EarthLink's wholly-owned subsidiary) and DirecTV. In addition, EarthLink has reached a non-binding agreement with AOL and is discussing ways to offer its AOL.com content and Web assets on EarthLink's municipal network.

http://www.earthlink.net/muni

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NTT Com Expands its Ethernet "Global Super Link" Service

NTT Communications is expanding its Global Super Link Ethernet service to England, France, Germany, the Netherlands, and Hong Kong in addition to the U.S. and Japan. The expanded reach will be available in July.



NTT Com is also introducing a more flexible fee structure. Currently, users can choose between two transmission speeds of 45Mbps, for a flat rate, or 100Mbps with a fee depending on data traffic. Under the new flexible fee, users can choose transmission speeds in increments of 10Mbps from 10Mbps to 100Mbps for a flat rate, although 100Mbps subscribers can also opt for a variable rate.



The Global Super Link Ethernet service runs over NTT Com's Global IP/MPLS backbone. Enterprise users can create a global LAN environment using their existing equipment, which saves the cost of having to purchase special devices. http://www.ntt.com

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Canada's Rogers Communications Selects Amdocs CRM

Rogers Communications will implement Amdocs CRM across its cable, wireless and telecom lines of business. This implementation is part of Rogers' integrated customer management (ICM) strategy rollout which is designed to provide a consistent customer experience to its more than 10 million subscribers. Financial terms were not disclosed.



Customers receive a variety of communications services from Rogers, including cable TV, high-speed Internet, wireline and wireless. Rogers strives to ensure a consistent customer experience across all those services. Providing a single view of the customer is part of an ICM strategy, which helps achieve that. ICM provides a framework to organize a company's infrastructure and resources around customer needs and the customer experience.



Rogers is also using Amdocs billing software to support its various lines of business.

http://www.amdocs.comhttp://www.rogers.com/

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Vonage Offers Softphone on a USB Drive

Vonage introduced its V-Phone, a portable and multifunctional 256 MB USB device with a pre-loaded softphone.





The V-phone comes with a standard 2.5 mm stereo earpiece microphone, which is compatible with many cell phone headsets.



Vonage said its phone offers added convenience because phone call history and contacts travel with the V-Phone if customers insert it into different PCs.



Vonage worked with Ubistar and SJ Labs to collaboratively develop its new product. The device is not compatible with Macs nor with Linux.

http://www.vonage.com

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Overture Receives Patent on Ethernet Status Indicator

Overture Networks was awarded its seventh patent, No 7,069,512 on "Command Line Interface with Indication of Network Element Status", which enables operators of Overture Networks' ISG family of products to quickly ascertain the operational status of nodes in their networks. Other patents held by Overture Networks are in the pseudo- wire and protected switching ring fields.



Overture said its patented Command Line Interface (CLI) status indicator provides a simple, unobtrusive visual indication of an issue requiring attention. Operators can determine at a glance the severity of the issue based on Overture Networks' unique fault classification identifications, making problem isolation and resolution faster and simpler.

http://www.overturenetworks.com

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UTStarcom to Supply 300,000 QBOX Terminals to China Telecom

UTStarcom has signed a contract with China Telecom Group to supply 300,000 QBOX terminals. China Telecom will sell the QBOX for use with its Homebox fixed-line/PAS convergence service, which is available in 24 cities in China.



The Homebox service is designed to allow iPAS users to seamlessly roam between the public PAS network and their private iPAS connections at home, which are provided by the QBOX terminal. The QBOX thus enables fixed-mobile convergence (FMC) by allowing subscribers to use their iPAS devices as digital cordless phones. In addition, existing fixed-line users can use the UTStarcom terminal to enjoy the value-added services that PAS provides. The QBOX can also be configured to integrate ADSL CPE and WiFi access point functions, enabling China Telecom to offer wireless data access in the home computing environment.



China Telecom is the largest PAS and fixed-line operator in China, with approximately 60 million PAS subscribers. The operator first launched the Homebox service in six cities in the second half of 2005. To date, about 300,000 users have signed up, and the service will ultimately extend to 24 cities.
http://www.utstar.com

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MTV Networks' TV Programming Added to iTunes

MTV Networks' new television programming from Spike TV, Nick at Nite, TV Land, Logo, MTV and The N is now available on the iTunes Music Store.



The iTunes Music Store features a selection of over 9,000 music videos, Pixar and Disney short films, a variety of hit TV shows, and more than three million songs from the major music companies and over 1,000 independent labels.

http://www.apple.comhttp://www.viacom.com

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Axiom and TierOne OSS Technologies Announce Partnership

Axiom Systems, which supplies Service Fulfillment software for communications service providers, announced a strategic partnership with TierOne OSS Technologies, a leading North American Operations Support System (OSS) consultancy and systems integrator.



The integration of Axiom's AXIOSS with TierOne's enSEMBLE results in an integrated Service Fulfillment solution that addresses the provisioning and activation requirements across Layer 1 (Optical, Photonic), Layer 2 (Carrier Ethernet, DSL, Broadband) and Layer 3 (VoIP, IPTV) networks.



AXIOSS is a unique component-based platform that enables Service Provider's to design, create and deliver next generation services such as IPTV and VoIP over agnostic broadband and IP networks.



TierOne enSEMBLE is an integrated solution suite for comprehensive transport network management supporting last-gen, this-gen and next-generation services. The TierOne enSEMBLE solution includes a suite of software component applications designed and developed to address specific network operations requirements. One component, TierOne enVISION, provides Fortune 500 companies with a robust customer service management application that enables them to view and manage their own 'virtual' network and services.
http://www.axiomsystems.com

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Strato Medien Deploys Cisco CRS-1 for Web Hosting

that European Web hosting provider Strato Medien AG has deployed the Cisco Carrier Routing System (CRS-1) to handle its increasing traffic load. From its data centers in Berlin and Karlsruhe, Strato Medien currently hosts more than 2 million domains and 1 million customer contracts. The company recently announced the introduction of its Web hosting services in France, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Italy and Spain.

http://www.cisco.com

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Force10 Networks Names CFO

Force10 Networks named Karen Blasing as chief financial officer. Blasing joins Force10 from Salesforce.com, where she had responsibility for worldwide accounting, finance, tax and treasury functions as well as real estate, facilities and procurement. Prior to Salesforce.com, she served as chief financial officer at Nuance Communications, where she was instrumental in negotiating the 2005 merger with ScanSoft, Inc. Ms. Blasing also served as chief financial officer for Counterpane Internet Security and has held senior finance positions with Informix, Oracle and Syntex Corporation.

http://www.force10networks.com

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Acme Packet Deployed in The Voice Peering Fabric

Acme Packet's Net-Net session border controllers (SBCs) have been certified for Stealth Communications' Voice Peering Fabric (VPF). The Net-Net SBC is RFC3263 compliant and supports the ENUM and SRV DNS look-up architecture to discover the next hop for call routing. Stealth Communications has certified that the Net-Net SBCs can be used with the VPF ENUM and SRV Registry.



The VPF ENUM Registry resolves E.164 numbers to URIs and the VPF SRV Registry resolves domain names to specific IP addresses for call routing. VoIP calls terminated using the VPF ENUM Registry or the VPF SRV Registry remain on IP networks end-to-end, bypassing the PSTN and can be completed at no cost to VPF members. Acme Packet's Net-Net SBCs can be configured to query for ENUM and SRV records as part of their routing policy to discover the next hop to complete a VoIP call.



"Today VPF operates the largest and most active ENUM registry in the world. It holds over 15 million phone numbers and completes on average one-half million calls daily. Now with the recent launch of the VPF SRV Registry, VPF members can populate a database to indicate specific servers that will handle calls for a particular domain name, enabling calls to initiate using email like identifiers," said Shrihari Pandit, president and CEO of Stealth Communications. "Session border control is critical at service providers' peering borders, not only for intelligent routing using ENUM and SRV capabilities, but also to deliver security, interworking, mediation, admission control and many other features including revenue protection."



"VoIP peering requires a secure, trusted IP border and the ability to mediate the different IP address spaces, codecs and signaling, transport and encryption protocols used within each network," said Seamus Hourihan, Acme Packet's vice president of marketing and product management. "Acme Packet's Net-Net SBCs, whether used in bilateral or multilateral interconnect arrangements, play a key role in determining the best routing for a VoIP call and satisfy critical service reach, security, service assurance and regulatory requirements."http://www.acmepacket.comhttp://www.thevpf.com

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Ikanos Supplies VDSL2 chipset for Calix

Ikanos Communications is supplying its VDSL2 chipset for use in the Calix E-series IP Service Edge Node (SEN), an IP-based, Fiber-to-the-Node (FTTN) platform.



Ikanos said the multi-mode operation of its chipsets offer interoperability with deployed VDSL2, VDSL1, ADSL2+ and ADSL CPE on a per port basis, with auto-detect capability. Line cards based on such multi-mode chipsets can enable carriers to smoothly transition nodes, remote terminals and central offices to VDSL2 technology, while minimizing upgrade costs. http://www.ikanos.com

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Turk Telekom Expands DSL Rollout with Alcatel

Turk Telekom, Turkey's incumbent fixed operator, selected Alcatel to supply 472,500 Digital Subscriber Lines (DSL). The deployment, which started in April, will be completed in the second half of 2006.



Alcatel has been a longstanding partner of Turk Telekom, having already deployed two million DSL ports in 82 cities in the country.
http://www.alcatel.com

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Verizon to Offer 100 Mbps Broadband Home Router by Actiontec

Verizon will supply a new broadband home router manufactured by Actiontec Electronics to new customers of its FiOS broadband and video services.



Verizon said the new router -- designed and built to Verizon's specifications -- forms the basis of its digital home architecture. The router is capable of providing connectivity to the FiOS network at speeds of up to 100 Mbps, leverages existing in-home wiring (Multimedia over Coax Alliance - MoCA), and uses the DSL Forum's TR-069 specification for remote management.



The optical network terminal (ONT) where Verizon's fiber terminates at the customer's home will soon be upgraded with technology similar to the Broadband Home Router.



"The Broadband Home Router will be the centerpiece of our customer's home network. It delivers the clear advantages of fiber-optic technology directly to our customer's home devices, offering a superior customer experience for our voice, data and video services," stated Verizon Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer Mark Wegleitner.



Features of the box include:

• 802.11 b/g Wi-Fi


• 4-port 10/100 switch


• 2 MoCA channels for separate WAN and LAN connections


• UPnP support


• QoS support (End to end Layer 2 / 3), Diffserv, 802.1p/q Prioritization, Configurable Upstream/Downstream Traffic Shaping, Random Early Detection


• DHCP Server Option


• Fully customizable firewall with Stateful Packet Inspection


• Parental Controls

http://www.verizon.comhttp://www.actiontec.com

• Actiontec is headquartered in Sunnyvale, CA, and maintains branch offices in Atlanta, GA; Colorado Springs, CO; Denver, CO; Basingstoke, United Kingdom; Shanghai, China; and Taipei, Taiwan.

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Fujitsu Adds Airspan WiMAX to Broadband Wireless Portfolio

Fujitsu Network Communications added AirSpan Networks' WiMAX solution to its portfolio for North American service providers.



Under the terms of a new agreement with Airspan Networks, Fujitsu has obtained the rights to resell their entire portfolio of WiMAX AS.MAX broadband access products in North America. Fujitsu will offer large- and small-scale base station solutions as well as indoor, outdoor and Wi-Fi enabled Customer Premises Equipment (CPE).



The Fujitsu-offered AS.MAX solution also incorporate advanced network features that make it possible to deliver carrier-class quality VoIP services, including integrated Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) gateway messaging to enable call control and capacity reservation for voice traffic. Voice capacity is not reserved until requested, and can be dynamically adjusted while maintaining QoS, thus enabling the optimal use of radio link capacity while offering an ideal consumer experience.



Airspan was the first supplier to offer both base stations and CPE in the 3.5 GHz FDD profile certified by the WiMAX Forum, and their 4.9 GHz WiMAX products recently received FCC certification for deployment in North America. With the addition of 5.8 GHz products in the third quarter of 2006, Fujitsu will have access to the widest range of frequencies in North America.

Fujitsu said its Network Life Cycle Services will be an integral part of the network solution. These services are available to help carriers create and extend their WiMAX footprint by utilizing planning services such as RF engineering, site acquisition and site preparation. When carriers are ready to build their network, Fujitsu offers a full line of deployment services, which include installation and test/turn-up services, as well as backhaul and back-office connectivity provisioning. Fujitsu will manage even the most detailed logistics of deployment, including all local permits, inspections, and contracts needed to deploy the network. Carriers can also opt to have Fujitsu monitor and maintain their wireless network with Network Operations Center (NOC) services and provide full network statistics so carriers maintain full visibility to the inner workings of their network. Full maintenance and support is also available 24x7, with rapid deployment of on-site technical assistance personnel and spares management as needed.

Airspan Networks claims deployments with more than 350 operators in more than 100 countries.

Airspan is headquartered in Boca Raton, Florida with its main operations center in Uxbridge, United Kingdom.
http://us.fujitsu.com/telecomhttp://www.airspan.com

• Earlier this month, Fujitsu announced plans to resell BelAir Networks' entire portfolio of carrier-class Wi-Fi products to North American telecom carriers, cable/MSO operators, utilities and municipalities. The portfolio includes environmentally hardened outdoor Wi-Fi devices, with single-, dual- and multi-radio products that provide uniform, high-density, and high-bandwidth broadband wireless capabilities. The multi-radio product solution supports a true wireless mesh capable of providing scalable and deterministic WAN services. Within the same wireless network, carriers can offer applications such as VPNs, VoIP, T1 access and mobility, with multiple service levels that range from casual subscription to commercial grade.
  
  
  
  The IEEE 802.11a point-to-point backhaul radios within the products operate within the 5.0 to 5.8 GHz unlicensed band, providing dedicated and isolated wireless backhaul links. The products support IEEE 802.11b/g access at maximum power output and optimized sensitivities. The product solution can be wall-, rooftop-, tower-, pole- or strand-mounted. They support a variety of line interfaces, including Ethernet (10/100Base-T and 100Base-FX), T1 and DOCSIS.<.li>

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ECI Telecom Plans GPON for Q4

ECI Telecom announced a series of Gigabit Passive Optical Network (GPON) offerings for its broadband access platforms, which are deployed in numerous networks worldwide.



The single-shelf solution eliminates the need to add or replace equipment. The interchangeable GPON-based cards can be implemented in ECI's broadband offerings including its IP-based Hi-FOCuS 5 MSAG and Outside Plant ONU products such as the G-PoweRAM and MiniShelf, as well as a wide range of ONTs which are designed for customer premises and serve residential and business users.



ECI is the only vendor to offer integrated GPON, xDSL, Gigabit Ethernet and ATM aggregation, Cellular UMTS backhauling and voice, all on a unified management platform.



"We believe our new GPON offering provides operators with unparalleled value for optical networks," said Danny Eisner, Executive Vice President and General Manager of ECI Telecom's Broadband Access Division. "By easily adding to currently installed boxes, operators can offer flexible optical solutions today while keeping costs down and maintaining future expenses."



ECI's GPON offerings will be available in Q4 2006.

http://www.ecitele.com

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New Foundry Switches Target Acceleration and Security of IP, Web and Triple Play

Foundry Networks introduced a new family of ultra-high-performance ServerIron application switches to meet the growing demand for secure and optimized delivery of Web and Triple Play services.



The new family of ServerIron switches features Foundry's new generation application processor and ASIC technology to deliver scalable performance up to 350,000 connections per second and 12 Gbps of application level throughput. The switches are available in three modular chassis models, starting with a compact Two-Rack Unit (2RU) high 3-slot chassis to a highly scalable 8-slot chassis that supports up to 112 Gigabit Ethernet ports for large density server farms.



The network-centric ServerIron 350, 450 and 850 PLUS series switches feature redundant power, hot swappable modules and fully interchangeable modules for investment protection and future expandability. A choice of 10/100, Gigabit copper and fiber, and 10 Gigabit interface modules provide connectivity options for the network and server farm.



Foundry's new version of TrafficWorks OS includes enhanced security features to protect Web applications from attacks that target sensitive data. Using a positive security enforcement model, these features provide protection for Web applications against key threats like buffer overflow attacks that can cripple servers, cookie poisoning and tampering that hijack sessions and user identity, forceful browsing attacks that allow illegal access to sensitive Web content, and SQL injection and cross-site scripting attacks that provide unauthorized access to sensitive data. http://www.foundrynetworks.com

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Verizon Business Offers Managed WLAN Service

Verizon Business will begin offering a new managed WLAN service to enable large corporate and government customers to extend the reach of their networks within office buildings, factories and other locations. The Verizon Business Managed Wireless LAN (WLAN) Service addresses all aspects of a WLAN deployment and provides a platform for the introduction of future applications, such as voice-over-WLAN.



The Verizon Business Managed Wireless LAN Service uses hardware developed by Aruba Networks. Built-in security features, such as centralized network and policy management and intrusion detection and prevention, help ensure that only authorized employees and devices gain access to enterprise systems, applications and data.



Verizon Business said it will use a multi-step approach to the deployment and management of WLANs. It first gathers extensive data at the customer location, including anticipated usage and building layout. Then it creates and validates a WLAN network schematic to ensure appropriate placement of necessary hardware to meet customer coverage and performance requirements. In addition, Verizon Business performs a thorough review of security and authentication policies.



Verizon Business procures, installs and tests WLAN-related equipment. Once the service is up and running, Verizon Business proactively manages the performance and usage of the WLAN; monitors to help prevent unauthorized access or the attachment of rogue devices; and provides reporting capabilities to highlight key performance metrics.



Verizon Business also offers two optional professional assessment services. The Wireless Site Assessment Service provides customers with a comprehensive network-readiness study, including a detailed analysis of physical site characteristics and potential internal and external sources of interference. The Wireless Security Assessment Service entails an in-depth review of wireless authentication, access and usage policies. In addition, Verizon Business will conduct a post-implementation WLAN review to determine if further remediation is required.



The Verizon Business Managed Wireless LAN Service will be available in mid-July in the United States as a stand-alone service or in conjunction with Verizon Business' managed local- or wide-area networking services. The service was previously available only on a custom basis.

http://www.verizonbusiness.com

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CacheLogic Appoints New CEO

CacheLogic, a supplier of P2P traffic management, announced the appointment of Pat Chapman-Pincher as CEO. Pat was previously the President of UUNET International, with executive management responsibilities for all operations in Europe, Asia and Latin America. She was also a Senior Vice President at WorldCom and Director of Commercial Operations at MFS International.

http://www.cachelogic.com

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Verizon / DIRECTV Bundle Reaches 415,000 Customers

Verizon has signed up more than 415,000 customers to bundle DIRECTV all-digital entertainment with their Verizon calling and DSL services. During Q1, there were 66,000 Verizon customers signing up for the bundle.



Verizon and DIRECTV signed a marketing agreement two years ago.



Verizon said the DIRECTV choice is aimed at markets where its new all-fiber network is not yet available.
http://www.verizon.nethttp://www.directv.com

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Senate Commerce Committee Drops Net Neutrality from Communications Bill

The Senate Commerce Committee voted not to include Net Neutrality provisions in the proposed "Communications, Consumer's Choice, and Broadband Deployment Act of 2006" (SB 2686), which is now making its way to the Senate floor. The vote was evenly split (11-11), which meant the provision could not be included in the bill.



The proposed bill, which was sponsored by Sens. Ted Stevens (R-Alaska) and Daniel Inouye (D-Hawaii), seeks to reform the cable franchise process by establishing a national franchise, enabling telcos to enter the television market more quickly. The U.S. House passed a similar video choice bill on June 8.



"Congress is close to producing a tangible victory for consumers -- lower cable TV bills and greater video choice. The full Senate should vote soon because every year reform is delayed costs consumers $8.2 billion in higher cable bills. This bipartisan committee vote -- and the huge House victory -- prove video choice is within consumers' grasp this year. The momentum is there if the full Senate acts soon to give consumers the competition and choice they deserve, stated Peter Davidson, Verizon senior vice president for federal government relations.

http://commerce.senate.gov/public/

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ClearMesh Combines Wireless Optical + Mesh for Metro Nets

ClearMesh Networks, a start-up based in Pasadena, California, unveiled a wireless optical mesh networking solution capable of delivering business-class services at 5-100 Mbps without requiring licensed spectrum.



The ClearMesh Metro Grid technology aims to extend the reach of metro Ethernet networks, where lateral expansion of fiber would require significant up-front investment and months for deployment. The company is also positioning its technology as a complement to metro Wi-FI or WiMAX deployments.





ClearMesh Networks cites two major advancements since the early days of free-space optical (FSO) enthusiasm:

• The use of LED technology rather than lasers for the wireless optical transmitters. LEDs are significantly lower cost than lasers and provide the added advantage of a greater target. This enables the link to tolerate vibration, and thus the LED transmitters can be pole mounted or roof-mounted. The LEDs have a specified range of 250m and are eye safe.



• The use of mesh networking algorithms -- this provides a high level of resiliency compared to line-of-sight, point-to-point FSO links, especially in inclement weather.

The ClearMesh technology is able to distribute from 300 Mbps to 2Gbps of toll-quality service capacity throughout the mesh. Each of the nodes includes three optical transceivers and an integrated Ethernet switch.



ClearMesh said its wireless optical technology also provides inherent security, including signal scrambling between nodes and optional use of encryption.





http://www.clearmesh.com

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Fujitsu Introduces Its Mobile WiMAX System-on-Chip

Fujitsu Microelectronics America announced its Mobile WiMAX System-on-Chip (SoC) based on its 90nm process technology.



The Fujitsu mobile WiMAX SoC, which is especially well-suited for PC cards and mobile devices, is fully compliant with the IEEE 802.16e-2005 Mobile WiMAX standard. The company's first generation mobile WiMAX SoC includes the following features:

• Highly integrated, scalable1024 Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) OFDMA PHY and full MAC processors


• Adaptive modulation schemes including 64QAM, 16QAM, QPSK, and BPSK


• Interface for MIMO RF modules


• 90nm with low-leakage process technology


• Small-footprint FBGA package

While Fujitsu supports a range of applications in the 802.16-2004 market, the company believes that fixed solutions will be complemented, not displaced, by emerging WiMAX mobility solutions. Applications such as wireless VPN, disaster recovery, wireless backhaul and broadcast-quality streaming media will continue to be best served by fixed WiMAX. High-speed vehicular data sharing, consumer-in-motion and mobile appliance connectivity will require mobile WiMAX.



Fujitsu's mobile WiMAX SoC will be designed into subscriber systems that will be deployed along with 802.16e-2005 compliant base stations in supporting end to end mobile wireless networks.



Engineering samples will be available in 1Q 2007. Systems using the Fujitsu mobile WiMAX SoC will be submitted to the WiMAX Forum for certification in 3Q 2007.

http://www.fma.fujitsu.com

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Broadcom Ships 100 Millionth 54g Wi-Fi Chipset

Broadcom has shipped its 100 millionth 54g chipset.



"802.11g is currently the most prevalent Wi-Fi technology because it offers the best price/performance ratio for consumers," said Michael Hurlston, Vice President and General Manager of Broadcom's Wireless LAN Business Unithttp://www.broadcom.com

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TeliaSonera Selects Siemens for DWDM Backbone

TeliaSonera selected the Siemens Communications Group to build a new DWDM backbone to serve as the foundation for the delivery of all TeliaSonera services. The first Siemens deployment in the TeliaSonera transport network was successfully completed in spring 2006. Financial terms were not disclosed.



Siemens' Surpass Transparent Optical Networks solution consists of the DWDM platforms Surpass hiT 7300, Surpass hiT 7500 and the management system TNMS.



Siemens said its solution yields lower costs due to its full-channel optical add/drop multiplexer capabilities and photonic cross-connects, enabling remote configuration of a path without the need to access the network while staying all-optical through multiple add/drop nodes. Another highlight of the solution is the simplification of installation, provisioning and maintenance operations compared to current systems. The Siemens system also features transponders that are tunable over the full wavelength band, resulting in quicker wavelength provisioning for customers as there is no need to custom order "colors" of lighthttp://www.siemens.com/communications

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Nortel Announces Job and Pension Cuts

Nortel announced significant changes to its North American pension programs as well as a net reduction of approximately 1,100 positions globally. Nortel also announced a series of new initiatives to create a world-class Operations organization.



The announcement is the latest in a series of actions Nortel is taking to achieve a targeted operating-margin expansion in excess of US$1.5 billion in 2008.



Changes to the pension program are expected to result in an estimated annual reduction of US$100 million in pension expense starting in 2008 and savings of more than US$400 million in cash by the year 2012. Specifically, Nortel employees currently in defined benefit pension plans will be moved to defined contribution retirement programs.
The defined contribution programs will have a new formula which is comprised of an automatic employer contribution equal to two percent of employees' eligible earnings. In addition, Nortel will provide a 50 percent match on employee contributions of up to six percent of eligible earnings, for a total maximum five percent employer contribution.



Current post-retirement healthcare benefits will be eliminated for employees who are not age 50 with five years of service on July 1, 2006. All future retirees who do not meet this age and service criteria will continue to have access to healthcare coverage at their own cost through Nortel's preferred provider, given they meet eligibility requirements when they retire.
http://www.nortel.com

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Verizon Wireless Selects Lucent for CDMA2000 1xEV-DO Rev A

Verizon Wireless has selected Lucent to deploy CDMA2000 1xEV-DO Revision A (Rev. A) technology into its nationwide network. Lucent's Rev. A solution, which consists of incremental hardware and software upgrades to Verizon Wireless' existing Lucent-supplied base stations, will enable Verizon wireless to introduce a range of new services such as enhanced push-to-talk, messaging, and VoIP. Financial terms were not disclosed.



EV-DO Rev. A enables users to receive data (forward link) at speeds up to 3.1 Megabits per second (Mbps) and send data (reverse link) at speeds of up to 1.8 Mbps.
http://www.lucent.com

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Marvell to Acquire Intel's Handheld Processor Business for $600 Million

Marvell Technology Group agreed to acquire Intel's communications and application processor business for $600 million in cash plus the assumption by certain liabilities. Intel has the option to take up to $100 million of the $600 million purchase price in Marvell common stock.



Intel's communications and application processor business develops and sells processors for handheld devices including smart phones and personal digital assistants. The business' processors, based on Intel XScale technology, include the Intel PXA9xx communications processor, codenamed "Hermon," which powers Research in Motion's (RIM) Blackberry 8700 device. The Intel PXA27x applications processor, codenamed "Bulverde," is used in the Palm Treo smart phone, the Motorola Q and other devices. The business is run by approximately 1,400 employees. It is expected that the vast majority of these employees will become employees of Marvell.



Marvell said the deal gives it a strong presence in the growing market segment for processors used in smart handheld devices.



Intel said the sale enable it to focus its investments on its core businesses, including high-performance, low-power Intel Architecture-based processors and emerging technologies for mobile computing, including Wi-Fi and WiMAX.



After the close of the transaction, Intel intends to continue manufacturing products currently sold by this business for handheld devices and embedded applications, and to manufacture products that are being designed into upcoming devices. This arrangement is expected to continue while Marvell arranges other manufacturing resources. Intel and Marvell do not anticipate disruptions in the supply of these products due to this planned sale.

http://www.marvell.com

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SafeNet Announces Client-Server IPSec and IKEv2 Security Toolkits for OEMs

SafeNet announced a major upgrade of its QuickSec IPSec VPN product for manufacturers of enterprise security gateways and client devices. The toolkit enables developers to add IKEv2 to enterprise security gateways, enterprise-class PBX systems, desktop VPN clients, and mobile VPN platforms.



This major release of QuickSec 4.0 Client and Server Toolkits is the first simultaneous release by SafeNet of compatible client-side and server-side development tools implementing the most current IPSec security features like IKEv2, stateful firewall, IPv6/IPv4 support, 64-bit platform support, and pre-integration with high-speed security processors for hardware acceleration.

http://www.safenet-inc.com

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Juniper Supplies Edge Routers to Sweden's Telge Energi

Juniper Networks announced that Telge Energi, a utility-based, government-owned communications provider in Sweden, has deployed its E320 Broadband Services Router and the SDX-300 Service Deployment System to create its new broadband access network for the delivery of Triple Play services. The network is secured by the Juniper Networks ISG-1000 with integrated intrusion detection and prevention (IDP) system, and was deployed by Juniper's local partner, Imtech Telecom.



Telge Energi maintains a broadband access network that provides its customers with access to multiple ISPs offering a range of advanced IP-based services including Internet/email, television (IPTV), video on demand, VoIP and online gaming; and Telge also provides its own broadcast TV content. Telge will use the E320 and SDX-300 combination to enable end-use customers to conveniently select and self provision services from a wide range of ISPs and network-based applications.
http://www.juniper.net

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Redback Supplies Edge Routers in Chile, Kazakhstan

Telefonica del Sur (Telsur), the incumbent carrier in Chile's southern region, has chosen Redback's SmartEdge Multi-Service Edge Router to expand its next generation network and power its business and residential services. Already a Redback customer for five years, Telsur plans to leverage the combination of edge routing, Ethernet aggregation and subscriber management to simplify their network, to expand capacity, and to decrease the time to market for new services.



Kazakhtelecom, the incumbent fixed-line operator in Kazakhstan, has deployed Redback's SmartEdge Multi-Service Edge Routers. Financial terms were not disclosed.

http://www.redback.com

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BellSouth to Lab Test Alcatel's WiMAX

BellSouth plans to conduct a lab test of Alcatel's Evolium WiMAX solution. The agreement comes four months after Alcatel conducted a live demonstration of the newly ratified WiMAX IEEE 802.16e-2005 standard.

http://www.alcatel.com

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Cranite Systems Raises $11.5 Million for Network Security

Cranite Systems, a start-up based in Los Gatos, California, raised $11.5 million in venture funding for its network security products.



Cranite Systems has developed a product that delivers secure enterprise connectivity from hotspots, homes and other public spaces.
The technology encrypts all transmitted information -- including network addresses, applications, ports, and the data itself.



The new funding round led was by Warburg Pincus. Also participating in the round are existing institutional investors of Cranite: JK&B Capital, Diamondhead Ventures, BV Capital, Selby Ventures, Industry Ventures, and Pacifica Fund. Cranite plans to use the new funding to build out its existing product line and to expand its presence in the financial services, government and healthcare sectors.

http://www.cranite.com

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VeriSign Receives Stock Option Subpoena

VeriSign received a grand jury subpoena from the U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of California requesting documents relating to VeriSign's stock option grants and practices. VeriSign also received an informal inquiry from the Securities and Exchange Commission requesting documents related to VeriSign's stock option grants and practices. http://www.verisign.com

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AMCC Receives Subpoena on Stock Option Grants

Applied Micro Circuits Corporation (AMCC) today received a subpoena from the U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of California requesting documents relating to the company's historical stock option practices. The company also announced that it has been contacted by the Office of the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of California, which has opened its own investigation into AMCC's historical stock option practices.

http://www.amcc.com

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Foundry Networks Receives Subpoena on Stock Option Grants

Foundry Networks received a grand jury subpoena issued by the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California requesting documents related to the company's granting of stock options from 1995 through the present. The company has also received an information inquiry letter from the Securities and Exchange Commission requesting documents related to the same subject matter. Foundry said it intends to cooperate fully with both requests.

http://www.foundrynetworks.com

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Amdocs Seeks to Build Digital Content Marketplace

Amdocs, a leading provider of telco billing and customer management solutions, launched OpenMarket Exchange, a web-based business system that enables media companies to build lucrative, high-growth "direct-to-consumer" (D2C) mobile content businesses.



OpenMarket Exchange is a system for digital content transactions designed to improve the profitability of digital content initiatives of both media companies and mobile service providers, as well as minimize the costs and complexity associated with such initiatives.



The new exchange will enable "off-network" transactions, in which consumers purchase mobile content directly from media companies using the billing and service relationship with their mobile service provider.



"When you look at the amount of money tier one media companies spend on the mobile channel relative to the others - TV, radio, print, and online media -- mobile is receiving just a tiny fraction of its potential investment," said Steve Shivers, senior vice president and general manager of OpenMarket at Qpass, Amdocs Digital Commerce Division, which developed the service. "The OpenMarket Exchange addresses the complexity and costs that make it difficult for media companies to enter the D2C mobile commerce space. With the scalable, financial-grade infrastructure provided by OpenMarket, they can invest and profit from the mobile channel on par with the other major media channels, and can do so in a way that greatly increases revenues and profits for mobile operators."



OpenMarket provides the critical functionality of offer management, SMS short-code management, SAS 70 compliant transaction processing, real time reporting, settlement, and customer care integration.

http://www.openmarket.comhttp://www.amdocs.com

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LG-Nortel to Develop IP Phones for Microsoft's Unified Communications

LG-Nortel, a joint venture of LG Electronics and Nortel, will develop and market with Microsoft an IP desktop phone that will work with Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007 to provide presence-awareness, IP call management features and enhanced instant messaging capabilities. The initial target market for the LG-Nortel business enabled IP desktop phone is small to medium sized companies and government departments in selective markets across North America, Europe and Asia, including Korea, from 2007. Both Microsoft and LG-Nortel will market the new IP desktop phone to Microsoft customers worldwide as well as through LG-Nortel's global distribution network of operators and channel partners.



LG-Nortel previously announced a strategic relationship with Microsoft in May 2006 when the two companies signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for broad range collaboration in VoIP, including the joint development and marketing of Windows CE-based IP terminals and the new Windows CE 6 videophone.

http://www.LG-NORTEL.com

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Lucent Lands Prime Contract for U.S. Army's Modernization Project

Lucent Technologies was one of ten prime contractors selected by the U.S. Army for its new Infrastructure Modernization (IMOD) contract, which has a total ceiling of $4 billion dollars.



Under the scope of the indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity (IDIQ) contract, Lucent will work to engineer, furnish, install, secure and test a next-generation multi-vendor communications infrastructure at selected Army installations around the world. The contract has a base five-year award term and one additional five-year award term potential option period.

http://www.lucent.com

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Corrigent Releases TDM-to-Ethernet Interworking for its Packet Transport Solution

Corrigent Systems released a TDM-to-Ethernet suite of interfaces for its CM-100 packet transport platform. Using the CM-100, service providers can now offer Ethernet services over existing TDM access networks and aggregate these services efficiently on 10 Gbps packet rings. The following new interfaces are now available on the CM-100:

• 24-port DS3/E3 clear-channel user interface module with Ethernet-over-PDH termination, as well as PPP to Ethernet Layer-2 interworking



• PPP/MLPPP to Ethernet Layer-2 interworking on 6-port DS3/E3 channelized user interface module

Each of the modules also supports transport of native TDM channels, and the TDM-to-Ethernet interworking capability is configurable on a per-channel basis.



The Layer-2 interworking function on both DS3 interface types is designed to terminate PPP and/or bundled MLPPP sessions and map each individual connection to a standard Ethernet VLAN.

http://www.corrigent.com

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Freescale Supplies ASICs for Hughes' Next-Gen Satellite Modems

Freescale Semiconductor is supplying an advanced satellite broadband ASIC to Hughes Network Systems for its HN family of high-performance satellite broadband terminals. The HN terminals, used in the provision of HughesNet services, deliver high-speed data, voice and video services over satellite to enterprises, government agencies, small businesses and consumers around the world.



Based on Freescale's standard-cell ASIC methodology and 90-nanometer CMOS technology, the satellite broadband ASIC solution combines wireless and analog technology from Hughes and Freescale. The ASIC device supports DVB-S and DVB-S2 standards, ACM and CCM modes. The device is designed to perform QPSK, 8PSK, H8PSK and 16APSK demodulation and decode (LDPC / BCH) functions. Key functional blocks include: DVB-S2 demodulator, DVB-S2 FEC, synchronization processor, legacy mode (DVBS) demod and FEC, stream/adapter output interface and I2C interface.
http://www.freescale.comhttp://www.hughes.com

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Cisco-sponsored Survey Finds Slow Government Take-up of IPV6

A survey commissioned by Cisco Systems of U.S. federal decision makers indicates that, despite federal government mandates for rapid implementation of IPv6, less than 4 percent have completed IPv6 implementation and less than 8 percent have completed agency transition plans. Budget constraints are cited as the biggest impediment, and most agency decision makers are choosing to conduct planning in-house, without outside vendor or consultant support.



Although 14 percent of the respondents indicate that agency implementation is already under way, the largest number of respondents indicate that they will complete their implementation by the end of FY 2007. However, 26 percent state that they have not yet targeted a final date. Almost 38 percent will complete planning by FY 2007.



The survey was conducted last month by Market Connections, a federal IT market research firm. The research effort was conducted by phone and targeted IT and business decision makers in both civilian and military agencies.



"This survey indicates that agencies must focus more on how IPv6 implementation will support the fulfillment of their mission, underlining productivity and long-term cost management benefits," said Bruce Klein, Cisco federal segment vice president. "Focusing on the 'big picture' benefits means that IPv6 should be driven from the top down, versus from the bottom up. As every asset -- whether a person or an object -- becomes connected, agency heads are beginning to understand and appreciate the vast opportunities for mission efficiencies, as we move from wired to wireless, from multiple, siloed networks (voice, video, data, emergency response, etc.) to converged, media-rich messaging, and from phone and mail transactions to mobile applications and interactions."http://www.cisco.com

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Azimuth Develops Power Consumption Tester for Mobile Wi-Fi Devices

Azimuth Systems announced a test solution that enables semiconductor manufacturers, cellular phone vendors, service providers, consumer electronics vendors and PC manufacturers to measure the power consumption of mobile devices.



Azimuth's Wi-Fi Power Consumption Benchmark Suite allows design engineers to measure the power consumption during various Wi-Fi usage modes and to run profiles that can determine the impact of Wi-Fi connectivity on a device's battery life.



Wi-Fi is being embedded into many battery-operated products, imposing additional power demands on their already strained batteries. Because battery life significantly impacts user satisfaction with these products, manufacturers must identify the factors that lead to battery drain.



Azimuth said that although measuring power consumption is a relatively simple process, correlating its affect on battery life for Wi-Fi-enabled devices presents a challenge for most manufacturers. The reason is that mobile devices - especially those that include Wi-Fi capabilities - operate in a variety of states with variable power requirements. http://www.azimuthsystems.com

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Verimatrix Supplies IPTV Content Protection in Russia

Norilsk-Telecom has selected for the Verimatrix IPTV content protection system for its interactive television service for the Siberian region of Russia. Norilsk-Telecom, the telecommunications leader for this region, will offer local and popular international channels, films and interactive services. Russian systems integrator and software development company, CTI, is charged with the integration of the Norcom deployment.



Verimatrix's VCAS is a software-based solution designed to address the increasing security requirements imposed on video-over-IP systems. It is built on the principles of Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) and X.509 digital certificates.
http://www.verimatrix.com

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Westell Names Engineering Director for IPTV

Westell Technologies named Joseph G. DeCarolis as Engineering Director for its UltraLine II video gateway product line. DeCarolis formerly served as the Director of Systems and Architecture/Optical Business Unit at Centillium Communications.

http://www.westell.com

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Boeing Ponders Future of its In-Flight "Connexion" Business Amid Tepid Acceptance

Boeing is evaluating its options for the future of its Connexion by Boeing high-speed broadband communications business. The company said it has pursued the business vigorously, developing technology that has worked well and evolved into a useful product. However, the market for the service has not developed satisfactorily. Therefore, the company will be working in conjunction with customers to thoroughly evaluate the Connexion marketplace and business model to determine next steps.



Meetings are being scheduled with customers across all Connexion business channels -- including airline, defense, maritime, corporate aircraft and general aviation -- to assess the current state of the market and develop plans that address market conditions. In the meantime, Boeing will limit further commercial expansion of the service.



The full extent of possible changes to the business model associated with this evaluation process -- including a sale, partnering arrangement or termination of service -- won't be decided until meetings with customers have taken place. http://www.boeing.com

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Microsoft Expands Unified Communications with Siemens, Motorola, HP

Microsoft made a series of key partnership announcements in conjunction with its Unified Communications initiative:



Siemens -- Siemens Communications and Microsoft will expand their global collaborative efforts focused on the convergence of telephony, audio, video and web conferencing, instant messaging, and e-mail into a single unified communications platform.



The new agreement expands on ongoing efforts by the two companies to integrate technologies around Microsoft Exchange Server and Microsoft Office Live Communications Server.



Anchoring the initiative will be new products and Siemens systems integration and support services to integrate Siemens HiPath 8000 softswitch real-time telephony with Microsoft Exchange Server and Microsoft Office Live Communications Server utilizing the OpenScape communications broker capability. The joint solution will provide enterprise customers with the ability to transition from conventional PBX and voice-mail communications systems to Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007 and Exchange Server 2007.



Motorola -- Microsoft and Motorola have entered into a multiyear joint marketing and development alliance to deliver unified communications solutions using Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007 across Motorola mobile devices and network hardware. The collaboration is intended to enable enterprise customers to seamlessly connect and share information in real time regardless of location, network or device.



The initial planned offering will start with the Motorola HC700 series rugged mobile computing devices and the Motorola Q smart phone. The offering will combine the presence awareness and instant messaging (IM) capabilities of Communications Server 2007 with Motorola's Windows Mobile 5.0-based devices through the integration of Microsoft Office Communicator Mobile with Motorola's MOTOPRO Mobility Suite and Wireless Services Manager (WSM) products, enabling users to seamlessly communicate and collaborate across heterogeneous access networks.



HP -- HP will provide enterprise servers and systems integration services for new and enhanced products within Microsoft's unified communications platform, including Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007, Microsoft Office Communicator 2007, Microsoft Office Live Meeting, Microsoft Office RoundTable, Communicator phone experience and Microsoft Exchange Server 2007.

http://www.microsoft.com

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Microsoft Unveils Unified Communications Product Road Map

Microsoft unveiled its Unified Communications product road map and announced new technologies that will be part of the forthcoming Microsoft Office system 2007.



Microsoft plans to bring together the corporate e-mail offerings of Microsoft Exchange Server, which includes new unified messaging capabilities, Microsoft Office Outlook, and Microsoft Speech Server, with updated versions of its real-time collaboration technologies and a set of new communications devices to form a cohesive unified communications solution.



"Unified communications will reduce complexity by putting people at the center of the communications experience. Our goal is to integrate all of the ways we contact each other in a single environment, using a single identity that spans phones, PCs and other devices. Our vision is to make it easy for people to reach each other using the mode of communication that is the most productive, on the device that is most convenient, while at the same time providing individuals with the highest levels of control over when and how they can be reached, and by whom," stated Microsoft's Bill Gates.



Microsoft introduced the following capabilities of its new and updated servers, services and devices:

• Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007, a flexible, Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) standards-based real-time communication platform that enables presence-based VoIP call management; audio-, video- and web conferencing; and instant messaging communication within and across existing software applications, services and devices.



• Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 unified messaging goes beyond e-mail and today's stand-alone voice-mail systems to deliver a unified inbox experience that includes e-mail, voice mail and faxing functionality, as well as new capabilities such as speech-based auto attendant allowing users to access their communications from any phone.



• Microsoft Office Communicator 2007, a unified communications client that works in tandem with Office Communications Server 2007 to deliver a presence-based, enterprise VoIP "softphone"; secure, enterprise-grade instant messaging that allows for intercompany federation and connectivity to public instant messaging networks such as MSN, AOL and Yahoo!; one-to-one and multiparty video- and audioconferencing; and webconferencing. As with the previous versions, Office Communicator 2007 will be available in desktop, browser-based and Windows Mobile-based versions.



• Microsoft Office Live Meeting, a rich conferencing service designed to help users more effectively collaborate, conduct training and deliver presentations using just a PC and an Internet connection. Improvements to Office Live Meeting include support for e-learning, enhanced audio and video capabilities including VoIP, a streamlined user interface, seamless integration with the Microsoft Office system and simpler deployment.




• Microsoft Office RoundTable, an audio-video collaboration device with a unique 360-degree camera. When combined with Office Communications Server 2007, RoundTable delivers an immersive conferencing experience that extends the meeting environment across multiple locations. Meeting participants on site and in remote locations gain a panoramic view of everyone in the conference room as well as close-up views of individual participants as they take turns speaking.



• Microsoft Office Communicator phone experience, Communicator-based software designed to run an innovative set of new voice and video devices -- including business-enabled IP desktop phones -- from Polycom Inc., LG-Nortel Co. Ltd. and Thomson Telecom. This is a new ecosystem designed to run on dedicated communications devices in tandem with Office Communications Server 2007 to extend and enhance the Microsoft unified communications experience.



• PC peripheral devices, such as USB handsets, wireless USB headsets, USB webcams and PC monitors with built-in audio and video components. Devices from industry partners GN Netcom Inc., Logitech, Motorola, Plantronics Inc., Samsung and Tatung Co. will work with Microsoft Office Communicator 2007 to deliver a compelling communication experience on the PC.

Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 is scheduled to be released in late 2006 or early 2007. Microsoft Speech Server 2007 will be available in late 2006. Communications Server 2007, Communicator 2007, Communicator phone experience, Live Meeting, RoundTable and the IP-enabled business desktop phones featuring Communicator phone experience will complete Microsoft's unified communications solutions and are scheduled to be available in the second quarter of 2007http://www.microsoft.com

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SK Telecom Deploys 10 Gbps Caspian Backbone for Flow-State QoS

South Korea's SK Telecom is deploying a 10 Gbps MPLS mesh backbone designed exclusively with Caspian's Media Controllers, core routers that perform both basic routing and Caspian's unique Flow-State QoS traffic management. Caspian also announced the availability of its Flow-State QoS technology on 10 Gbps Ethernet interfaces and (10) x 1-port GE interfaces. Caspian already offers OC192c/STM64 line cards and (4) x OC48c/STM16c cards.




Caspian said its Media Controllers' flow-state traffic management capabilities enable SK Telecom to deliver exceptional quality of service to its subscribers at broadband data rates without the cost and complexity involved in over-engineering the network. The Flow-State QoS technology identifies all unique IP traffic flows, without requiring invasive deep packet inspection. It then applies the fair use policies that dynamically deliver the QoS, bandwidth and priority required by each traffic flow. Caspian's custom-designed ASICs enable each 10-Gbps interface to process and retain state information for up to six million separate flows and thousands of policies simultaneously. Congestion is also mitigated proactively using Call Admission Control for VoIP and video traffic.



SK Telecom will use the network to provision e-Gov services, including high-quality VoIP, videoconferencing and other real-time multimedia applications, along with mission-critical virtual private networks and Internet access for government agencies and citizens alike.



Caspian said its Media Controllers deployed in the aggregation, backbone or peering points of existing IP or MPLS networks are able to provide deterministic QoS, zero-packet loss and a 2-3 times improvement in overall bandwidth utilization.

http://www.caspian.com

• In June 2006, Caspian announced the second phase of its joint technology development partnership with Korea's Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI) to deliver new IPv6 services. Caspian and ETRI announced Phase I of their joint technology agreement in February 2005 to develop multimedia quality of service (QoS) solutions for South Korea's Broadband convergence Network (BcN) initiative. Phase II of the joint development agreement between Caspian and ETRI will focus on new IPv6 services that are part of a comprehensive IPv4-to-IPv6 migration strategy. Through its Phase I collaboration with ETRI, Caspian has successfully deployed its Media Controllers in South Korean's Electronic Government (e-Gov) network with Korea Telecom and SK Telecom. The e-Gov networks are one of many BcN initiatives that represent an ambitious countrywide network infrastructure to deliver dedicated bandwidth in support of integrated multimedia services including VoIP, streaming audio and video, and real-time health and welfare response services to 20 million Korean subscribers.

Fair Use Networking: Leveraging Quality To Create Profitability

What is “fair use�? of a service provider's network? Ideally, service providers should be able to allocate capacity and be paid according to what they carry over the network. While Internet access providers are able to raise prices for customers who require more bandwidth, long-haul backbone service providers pay the freight for growing volumes of traffic from which they generate no revenue, and worse, rob capacity at the expense of premium services Today there seem to be two approaches to the problem of balancing network traffic and revenue considerations. The first approach is to simply let any customer transport any kind of traffic—and as much as they want—over the long-haul backbone network. The second approach available to service providers for managing bandwidth is to filter out certain types of traffic or lock out traffic from certain content providers.

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Sensory Networks Builds Security Appliance Ecosystem

Sensory Networks, a start-up based in Palo Alto, California with R&D in Sydney, Australia, unveiled an ecosystem of security applications designed to run on its "NodalCore" acceleration platform.



The NodalCore Security Processing Unit (SPU) is a 64-bit dedicated processor designed for high-speed scanning, analysis and classification across a wide range of security applications including anti-virus, anti-spyware, anti-spam, intrusion detection/prevention and content filtering. Combined with Sensory Networks' suite of accelerated software libraries, commercial security applications and development tools, products built with NodalCore can be rapidly brought to market.





The first commercial vendors offering applications in Sensory Networks' Application Ecosystem include: AhnLab, Endeavor Security, Eneo Technologia, Exinda Networks, Kaspersky Lab, Intoto, Mail Filters, Mailshell, McAfee, Message Labs, PC Tools, Sunbelt Software and Threat Metrix. Additionally, open source applications include: Snort, Clam AV, DSPAM, and Apache Spam Assassin. These application partners join Sensory Networks' core technology and appliance partners, including Xilinx, Intel, Nexcom, Lanner and Advantech.








Sensory Networks said it no longer makes sense for appliance designers to develop and integrate all of these applications in-house and that general purpose architectures simply cannot provide the necessary processing power while meeting the price/performance benchmarks sought by the market. Sensory's NodalCore acceleration technology off-loads application vendors from speed constraints and allows them to focus on their core competencies and features.

http://www.sensorynetworks.com

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Akimbo Raises $15.5 million, Adds Cisco and AT&T as Investors

Akimbo Systems raised $15.5 million in Series C funding for its Internet video-on-demand appliance and service. New investors Cisco Systems AT&T and venture capital firm, Blueprint Ventures, join existing Akimbo investors Draper Fisher Jurvetson, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, Sprout Group and Zone Ventures.



The Akimbo Service currently offers more than 10,000 videos and movies provided by a global network of approximately 200 mainstream and specialty content partners. Akimbo's video collection spans 100 categories, including genres like independent film, foreign language, anime, sports, children's entertainment, travelogues, lifestyle shows, music programming and video blogs.



Akimbo is accessible through the Online Spotlight area of Microsoft Media Center Edition 2005 PCs and through the company's own Akimbo Player set-top box.



This fall Akimbo and Thomson Corp. will launch the RCA Akimbo Player, a new Internet video-on-demand set-top box for television. The RCA Akimbo Player features the complete Akimbo Service with new release movies from Movielink. Akimbo will also soon be available to subscribers of AT&T's Homezone service, scheduled to launch later this summer. AT&T Homezone subscribers will use their integrated set-top boxes and AT&T Yahoo! High Speed Internet connection to access thousands of video programs and movies, in addition to television programming over satellite from AT&T/DISH Network.



A monthly subscription to the Akimbo Service for Media Center or for the Akimbo Player is $9.99 a month. Sign up for a free trial through the Online Spotlight area of Microsoft Media Center. http://www.akimbo.com

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Hong Kong's PCCW Receives Bids from Macquarie, TPG Newbridge

PCCW Limited , the incumbent operator in Hong Kong, confirmed that it had received a non binding expression of interest on 16 June 2006 from an independent third party, in relation to a possible acquisition of substantially all the telecommunications and media related assets of the Company. The independent third party referred to in that announcement is Macquarie Bank Limited.



PCCW also confirmed a second non binding expression of interest on 20 June 2006, from TPG Newbridge, also in relation to a possible acquisition of substantially all of its telecommunications and media related assets.

http://www.pccw.com

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Narad Integrates RAD Pseudo-Wire Technology into HFC Solutions

Narad Networks, a supplier of last-mile Ethernet access systems for HFC networks, has integrated RAD Data Communications' pseudo-wire circuit emulation technology into the NARAD Broadband Interface Unit (BIU) to provide cable MSOs with a single-box solution delivering T1/E1 plus Ethernet over HFC.



Narad has physically integrated RAD's pseudo-wire, ASIC-based CES technology into their BIUs to deliver a family of broadband Ethernet CPE devices that include single T1/E1, quad T1/E1 and high precision clock recovery options (better than 16ppb). Furthermore, Narad's Service Delivery Platform (NSDP) has been enhanced to support the combined solution providing enhanced configuration, management and service assurance.



Narad will market these integrated devices under its own name.



RAD has been shipping its TDMoIP-based IPmux and Gmux solutions for over five years with more than 40,000 ports installed worldwide.

http://www.naradnetworks.comhttp://www.rad.com

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BT Infonet Builds Global IP MPLS Network for ViewSonic

BT Infonet is providing ViewSonic with a global MPLS IP VPN to support the company's integrated voice, video and data service needs. ViewSonic is migrating to MPLS from its current Frame Relay network. The company has 10 offices located in the U.S., Asia-Pacific and Europe. A videoconferencing system also was deployed to facilitate meetings from ViewSonic hubs in Taiwan, the U.K. and Walnut, California With the network provisioned for VoIP, ViewSonic is considering rolling out this functionality to select sites in the near future.

http://www.bt.infonet.com

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Novatel Wireless Introduces 3.6 Mbps HSDPA ExpressCards

Novatel Wireless has begun initial pre-commercial shipments of its Merlin XU870 ExpressCard that is designed for both North American and European HSDPA networks. The Merlin XU870 ExpressCard is a tri-band HSDPA/UMTS and quad-band EDGE/GPRS product that allows for worldwide roaming between HSDPA networks in North America and Europe. The Merlin XU870 ExpressCard will initially be configured for 3.6 Mbps data speeds and when mobile operators start providing 7.2 Mbps service, a software utility will be used to upgrade the card and boost its speed to 7.2 Mbps. Commercial shipments of the Merlin XU870 ExpressCard are currently expected to begin in the third quarter of 2006.

http://www.novatelwireless.com

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Ericsson Licenses France Telecom's Turbo Codes for 3G

France Telecom has granted Ericsson a worldwide license to its Turbo Codes patents for use in Ericsson's 3G products encompassing WCDMA to HSDPA. Turbo Codes are a form of forward error correction (FEC).



Invented by Claude Berrou and Alain Glavieux of Ecole Nationale Surperieure des Telecommunications (ENST) in Brittany, France, Turbo Codes have been adopted by the leading 3G standards, 3GPP (UMTS/W-CDMA) and 3GPP2 (CDMA2000), in order to provide previously unavailable error correction performance at commercially viable costs.

http://www.francetelecom.com/en/groupe/rd

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BT to Offer "Ojo" Personal Video Phones

BT will purchase of WorldGate's "Ojo" Shadow personal video phones for resale to customers around the world. The agreement provides for BT to begin selling Ojo immediately in conjunction with the launch of BT's Club Complete platform.

http://www.wgate.com

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Telekom Austria Expands Order for Amino IPTV STBs

Telekom Austria, the country's leading telecommunications operator, has ordered additional supplies of Amino's AmiNET110 to meet customer demand for its aonDigital TV service. The IPTV package was rolled out to subscribers in March 2006.



"We are pleased with the level of subscriber interest in our aonDigital TV service which has exceeded our expectations after only a few months of full deployment," commented Stefan Tweraser, VP Marketing, Telekom Austria.

http://www.aminocom.comhttp://www.telekom.at

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DSL Surges Past 150 Million Worldwide Subscribers

Worldwide DSL subscriptions surged past the 150 million mark in the twelve months to 31 March 2006, according to the latest data produced for the international DSL Forum by industry analyst Point Topic.



The number or new DSL users was 43 million, representing a growth of 39% in the year. There were 11.5 million new subscribers signing up to DSL in the first quarter of 2006.



"This amazing sustained growth of DSL around the world reflects how broadband DSL is becoming essential to the average family, student and business," said Michael Brusca, chairman and president of the DSL Forum.



Highlights include:

• At the end of the first quarter of 2006, there were 22 countries with more than one million DSL subscribers -- seven nations reached the figure in the twelve months to 31-March-2006.



• China added almost ten million new subscribers in the 12 months to March 2006 -- three million in the first quarter of 2006 alone -- and is now close to the 30 million DSL subscriber mark.



• Both Germany (up 3.8 million) and France (up three million) now have more than 10 million DSL subscribers.



• Of the established nations, with more than one million DSL subscribers as at 31 March 2006, India topped the percentage growth ranking, increasing its subscriber base by more than 700% in twelve months.



• Significant subscriber increases were also made in Turkey (190% increase), Mexico (99%) and Australia (84.6%). Pakistan growth (484%) led the way in countries with less than one million DSL subscribers, with Morocco, Greece and Bulgaria all experiencing DSL growth of more than 200%.



• Regionally, the European Union reinforced its position as the world's leading DSL region. The EU added more than 17 million new DSL subscribers in the period to reach 52.8 million -- at a growth of 48% -- extending its global share of the DSL subscriber market to almost 35%.



• Of the emerging DSL regions, a significant subscriber increase was seen in the Middle East and Africa, which more than doubled its subscriber base to reach 3.45 million -- led by Turkey (up 1.84 million) and Israel (up 830,000). Latin America reached a total of seven million DSL subscribers by 31 March 2006, and now makes up 5% of global DSL subscriptions. Brazil and Mexico accounted for 74% of the region's total growth, adding 1.2 million and 909,000 new DSL subscribers respectively.



• In North America, the USA added 5.6 million new DSL subscribers, at a growth of almost 34% -- far outstripping the growth of cable modem access in the same period (up 21.9%). DSL also extended its market share in Canada, now accounting for 49% of the country's broadband connectivity.



• Fourteen established DSL nations have now achieved a market penetration of more than 20% of telephone lines delivering DSL broadband services to homes and businesses -- the DSL Forum's first stage target for a global broadband DSL mass market.

http://www.dslforum.org

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Blue Coat to Acquire NetCache Business From Network Appliance

Blue Coat Systems, a supplier of secure content and application delivery, agreed to acquire Network Appliance's NetCache business.



Blue Coat said the acquisition would further its vision of using proxy technology as the foundational element of the emerging application delivery infrastructure to enable secure and accelerated delivery of applications and content to users.



Separately, Blue Coat announced an investment by Francisco Partners and Sequoia Capital. Francisco Partners and Sequoia Capital purchased shares of Blue Coat Series A Preferred Stock, which are convertible into 2,400,000 shares of Blue Coat common stock at $17.525 per share for a total value of approximately $42 million.



Blue Coat is using a portion of the proceeds from this private equity investment. http://www.bluecoat.com

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QUALCOMM Shrugs Off Nokia's CDMA Decision

QUALCOMM does not expect Nokia's announced plan to ramp down its CDMA2000 R&D and manufacturing to impede the growth of CDMA2000 or to impact QUALCOMM adversely.



QUALCOMM argues that Nokia has had very little success in competition against many of QUALCOMM's other licensees and chipset customers over the past several years, preferring to focus instead on GSM where Nokia controls a dominant share of the handset market in many countries. QUALCOMM also said that it does not believe that CDMA licensing terms resulted in the failure of Nokia to complete its previously announced joint venture with Sanyo.



"In view of Nokia's existing small presence in CDMA2000, we do not believe that Nokia's decision to ramp down will have any impact on the continued growth of CDMA2000 or any adverse effect on QUALCOMM," said Steve Altman, president of QUALCOMM. "QUALCOMM, of course, will continue to allocate substantial resources in expanding the CDMA2000 market and we will continue to work in close partnership with our many other licensees."http://www.qualcomm.com

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OpVista Raises $28 Million for ROADMs

OpVista, a start-up based in Milpitas, California, secured $28 million in funding for intelligent optical networking equipment featuring cost-effective reconfigurability, capacity and 10G upgrades capabilities.

The company said the new funding, anticipated to be the company's final round, will be used to expand its product development activities, accelerate international expansion, and broaden marketing and sales support for OpVista2000, which is deployed with Time Warner Cable, Cox Communications and other networks throughout North America.

The funding round was led by DCM (Doll Capital Management). Existing investors Sevin Rosen Funds, Incubic and US Trust's Excelsior Venture Partners also participated in the round.

http://www.opvista.com

• Earlier this month, OpVista announced a new the ROADM Interface Card (RIC) for its OpVista2000 DWDM platform, which scales to 800 Gbps. The RIC extends OpVista's single wavelength reconfigurability to existing DWDM systems.



• The OpVista2000 delivers an any-to-any architecture by making all wavelengths available at all sites. Coupled with OpVista's scalable, reconfigurable optical add/drop multiplexing (S-ROADM) capability, operators can provision any wavelength anywhere, down to single wavelength granularity.

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Telco Systems to Acquire Metrobility Optical Systems

Telco Systems agreed to acquire Metrobility Optical Systems, an early developer of optical Ethernet demarcation solutions for the deployment of carrier Ethernet services. The acquisition will integrate Metrobility's intelligent Ethernet service demarcation devices with Telco Systems' metro Ethernet access solutions to offer service providers a wider range of carrier Ethernet demarcation options, as well as augment Telco Systems' cable provider customer base. Financial terms were not disclosed.



Metrobility is a privately held company based in Merrimack, New Hampshire, with distribution in more than 40 countries. With more than 15 years of experience in Ethernet, Metrobility has more than 70 service providers (CLECs, MSOs and PTTs) and thousands of large enterprises utilizing its products worldwide.

http://www.telco.com

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Executives Named for Nokia Siemens Networks

Nokia and Siemens named the top executives for their recently announced 50-50 joint venture that combines the Networks Business Group of Nokia and the carrier-related operations of Siemens. The team consists of:

• Mika Vehviläinen, who will serve as Chief Operating Officer. Vehviläinen is currently Senior Vice President & General Manager, Core Networks, Nokia. As Chief Operating Officer, Vehviläinen will have overall responsibility for the following business units: Radio Access, Operation Support Systems, Service Core and Applications, IP Networking and Transport, as well as Broadband Access. In addition, he will oversee Operations (sourcing, manufacturing and logistics) and the Technology Platforms and Quality organization.



• Karl-Christoph Caselitz, who will serve as Chief Market Operations Officer. Caselitz is currently President of Mobile Networks, Siemens Communications. As Chief Market Operations Officer, Caselitz will have responsibility for regional operations, management of global accounts, and marketing and sales management. He will also oversee the Services business unit of Nokia Siemens Networks.



• Peter Schönhofer, who as previously announced will become Chief Financial Officer. Schönhofer is currently a member of the executive board of Siemens AG Austria. Schönhofer will be responsible for all financial activities of Nokia Siemens Networks, as well as information technology and intellectual property rights.

http://www.nokia.comhttp://www.siemens.com

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Nokia Scaps CDMA Plans

Nokia and SANYO have scrapped plans for their jointly owned CDMA mobile device company. The companies decided that it is more beneficial to pursue other options individually for their CDMA handset business.



Nokia said that it intends to selectively participate in key CDMA markets, with special focus on North America. Nokia plans to ramp down its own CDMA R&D and manufacturing by April 2007. Nokia is evaluating opportunities to leverage its existing CDMA product development infrastructure and assets in profitable parts of the business.



The company anticipates a restructuring charge of EUR 150 million in the third quarter 2006.

http://www.nokia.com

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Enterasys Appoints CTO

Enterasys Networks promoted Leon Woo to executive vice president and chief technology officer (CTO). Woo had been executive vice president of engineering since 2003. He joined Enterasys in 2003 when it acquired Tenor Networks, a developer of IP/MPLS-based solutions. Before starting Tenor, Woo was a member of the operating committee and the vice president of research and development at 3Com's Switching Division. He also was a co-founder of Synernetics, a pioneer in the Ethernet switching marketplace.



Enterasys also announced the appointment of Chris Crowell as executive vice president of research and development. Crowell spent several years with Aprisma Management Technologies, where he was head of R&D. He joined Cabletron in 1992 and held a variety of increasingly senior R&D positions in the SPECTRUM business unit at both Cabletron and Enterasys.

http://www.enterasys.com

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BellSouth Chooses Tektronix for Real-Time VoIP Service Monitoring

BellSouth will deploy Tektronix's GeoProbe VoIP monitoring solution throughout its IP network to provide end-to-end performance monitoring. Financial terms were not disclosed.



Tektronix' GeoProbe monitoring solution collects all signaling information related to VoIP traffic and provides the ability to trace a call across multiple protocols and networks. The proactive nature of the solution facilitates early detection of network problems and enables BellSouth to quickly isolate and correct problems for greater levels of service quality.

http://www.tektronix.comhttp://www.bellsouth.com

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Verimatrix Raises $8 Million for Watermarking Digital Content Protection

Verimatrix, a start-up based in San Diego, raised $8 million for its digital content protection system. Verimatrix develops Pay TV content protection and access control systems, which include a user-specific forensic watermarking technology called "VideoMark". The Verimatrix Content Authority System (VCAS) is a software-based content security solution that enables digital video content on devices and systems within media delivery networks to be encrypted and authenticated in order to identify security breaches and unauthorized network users. The solution is currently deployed by leading IPTV operators around the globe.

The new investment round was led by Crescendo Ventures and included Mission Ventures and strategic investor Siemens Venture Capital GmbH.

http://www.verimatrix.com

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Alvarion Test Mobile WiMAX Interoperability

Alvarion has completed initial interoperability tests between its 4Motion BreezeMAX base stations and various end user devices from third party manufacturers that are expected to be generally available in the near future.



Focused around the IEEE 802.16e-2005 specification for mobile WiMAX, the tests were performed by Alvarion at multiple locations using its BreezeMAX base stations and other vendors' end user devices, many of which use the mobile WiMAX chipset from Beceem Communications.

http://www.alvarion.com

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Pulver Announces "Video on the Net" Event for September

Jeff Pulver announced a new event: Video on the Net, which will be taking place September 12-14 in Boston at the Boston Convention Center.



Industry perspectives planned for the event include:

• Ted Leonsis, Vice Chairman, AOL LLC, President, AOL Audience


• Bram Cohen, CEO and Co-founder, BitTorrent


• Jeremy Allaire, Chairman and CEO, Brightcove


• Jeff Jarvis, Consultant and Blogger, Buzz Machine


• Warren Schlictling, Vice President, New Business Strategies, Comcast


• Jeff Pulver, Chairman & Founder, pulvermedia


• Andrew Baron, CEO, Rocket Boom


• Jason Krikorian, CFO & VP, Business Development, Sling Media
  
• Dmitry Shapiro, CEO, Veoh


• Caroline Little, CEO and Publisher, Washingtonpost.Newsweek Interactive

Sessions include:

• Digital Rights Management


• Film Incorporates the Internet


• Is Video Peer to Peer a Money Making Option?


• You Got Video! Who's Watching, Where?


• Viewing TV from Afar: Time and Place Shifting


• User Created Content


• Innovative Video for the Internet


• Video over the Net: TV's New Reality


• Advertising Models for Video on the Net


• Business Models for the Future


• Does it Play Everywhere? Quality, Access and Codecs

http://www.videoonthenet.com

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Asia Netcom Activates Lucent LambdaUnite Switch on Pan-Asian Cable System

Asia Netcom completed the deployment of Lucent's LambdaUnite Multi-Service Switch (MSS) in its pan-Asian submarine cable network, EAC. The upgrade project, carried out over a period of six months, will enhances Asia Netcom's ability to deliver next-generation bandwidth services with a variety of advanced transport and connectivity solutions in the Asia Pacific region.



With the LambdaUnite MSS platform and its support for ASON (Automatically Switched Optical Networks)/GMPLS (Generalized Multi-Protocol Label Switching) technology, Asia Netcom will be able to adopt a meshed, network architecture on the optical layer, and offer a wide variety of "Class-of-Service" options as part of its optical transport services. At the same time, the LambdaUnite MSS platform's enhanced management system gives Asia Netcom full control of all network elements, resulting in seamless service provisioning and network management of EAC.

"This was one of the most complicated and challenging engineering projects in the history of Asia Netcom," noted Bill Barney, Asia Netcom's President and CEO. "We crossed the finish line ahead of schedule and with minimal impact to customers."http://www.asianetcom.comhttp://www.lucent.com

• In June 2006, China Netcom agreed to sell all of its Asia Netcom assets to an investor group led by Ashmore Emerging Markets Liquid Investment Portfolio and also including Spinnaker Global Opportunity Fund Limited and Clearwater Capital Partners, for approximately US$402 million. Completion of the deal is conditioned on regulatory approvals.



• In March 2006, Asia Netcom completed a major network upgrade that will bring a 50% increase in lit capacity to its pan-Asia submarine cable systems, EAC. As part of the upgrade, 10 Gbps was lit up on each of EAC's four fiber pairs, effectively adding 40 Gbps of new bandwidth to EAC's existing 80 Gbps.



• Asia Netcom's EAC spans 19,500 kilometers and connects Japan, Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Philippines, and Singapore. EAC will soon extend into China through a new cable extension to the northern Chinese city of Qingdao.

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Nortel Appoints Ex-Broadcom Exec as CTO

Nortel has appointed John J. Roese as its new Chief Technology Officer (CTO). He will report directly to the President and CEO and will be based in Nortel's R&D headquarters in Ottawa.





Roese joins Nortel from Broadcom, where he was vice president and CTO for networking technologies with a focus on unified communications. Previously, as executive vice president and CTO at Enterasys Networks, he was the principal architect of Enterasys' User Personalized Networking and Secure Networking, and oversaw both long-term and tactical technology strategy. In addition, Roese holds 16 granted and pending patents in the area of policy management, location based networking and other areas of communications.

http://www.nortel.com

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Verizon Markets DSL at Wal-Mart

Verizon will begin marketing its DSL service at 549 Wal-Mart stores across 24 states. Specially trained Wal-Mart Connection Center associates will help shoppers use an automated ordering system that checks eligibility for Verizon DSL service and then lets them quickly place their order. A three-step, do-it-yourself installation kit will be shipped directly to the customer once the order is completed. Nearly 50 of the Wal-Mart stores will have Spanish-language sales materials.

http://www.verizon.com

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Next High-Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI) Spec Doubles Bandwidth

The seven HDMI Founder companies (Hitachi, Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. (Panasonic), Royal Philips Electronics, Silicon Image, Sony, Thomson, and Toshiba) released a major enhancement of the High-Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI) specification for consumer electronics.



Specifically, the HDMI 1.3 specification more than doubles HDMI's bandwidth and adds support for Deep Color technology, a broader color space, new digital audio formats, automatic audio/video synching capability ("lip sync"), and an optional smaller connector for use with personal photo and video devices.



HDMI 1.3 capabilities include:

• Higher speed: HDMI 1.3 increases its single-link bandwidth from 165MHz (4.95 Gbps) to 340 MHz (10.2 Gbps) to support the demands of future high definition display devices, such as higher resolutions, Deep Color and high frame rates. In addition, built into the HDMI 1.3 specification is the technical foundation that will let future versions of HDMI reach significantly higher speeds.



• Deep Color: HDMI 1.3 supports 30-bit, 36-bit and 48-bit (RGB or YCbCr) color depths, up from the 24-bit depths in previous versions of the HDMI specification; lets HDTVs and other displays go from millions of colors to billions of colors; eliminates on-screen color banding, for smooth tonal transitions and subtle gradations between colors; eEnables increased contrast ratio; and can represent many times more shades of gray between black and white. At 30-bit pixel depth, four times more shades of gray would be the minimum, and the typical improvement would be eight times or more



• Broader color space: HDMI 1.3 removes virtually all limits on color selection. Next-generation "xvYCC" color space supports 1.8 times as many colors as existing HDTV signals; lets HDTVs display colors more accurately; and enables displays with more natural and vivid colors



• New mini connector: With small portable devices such as HD camcorders and still cameras demanding seamless connectivity to HDTVs, HDMI 1.3offers a new, smaller form factor connector option.



• Lip Sync: Because consumer electronics devices are using increasingly complex digital signal processing to enhance the clarity and detail of the content, synchronization of video and audio in user devices has become a greater challenge and could potentially require complex end-user adjustments. HDMI 1.3 incorporates an automatic audio/video synching capability that allows devices to perform this synchronization automatically with accuracy.



• New lossless audio formats: In addition to HDMI's current ability to support high-bandwidth uncompressed digital audio and currently-available compressed formats (such as Dolby Digital and DTS), HDMI 1.3 adds additional support for new, lossless compressed digital audio formats Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio.

Products implementing the new HDMI specification will continue to be backward compatible with earlier HDMI products.



More than 400 makers of consumer electronics and PC products worldwide have adopted HDMI, according to HDMI Licensing LLC, the industry group responsible for licensing the technology. In-Stat expects 60 million devices featuring HDMI to ship in 2006.

http://www.hdmi.org

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