Nokia Siemens Networks Completes Acquisition of Atrica

Nokia Siemens Networks completed its previously announced acquisition of Atrica, a supplier of Carrier Ethernet solutions. The deal was first announced in October 2007.Atrica's product suite consists of its A-8100 Carrier Ethernet Core Switch, its A-4100 Carrier Ethernet Aggregation Switch and its A-2100 Carrier Ethernet Edge Switch, as well as the Atrica Service Platform for Ethernet Networks (ASPEN), an integrated service provisioning and management...

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BT Vision to Support Microsoft's Xbox 360

The BT Vision service will support Microsoft's Xbox 360 games and entertainment system. All BT broadband customers will have the opportunity to receive the HD gaming, television and movies through an Xbox 360 console or through their set-top box.BT Vision, which is powered by the Microsoft Mediaroom Internet Protocol TV (IPTV) platform, plans to make this first-of-its-kind device and service offering available to customers in the middle of 2008. The service will be available to existing and future Xbox 360 console owners.http://www.bt.com/btv...

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Zain Awards $1 Billion Contract to Nokia Siemens Networks for Mobile Rollout in Saudi Arabia

Nokia Siemens Networks announced a contract valued at approximately US$1 billion to roll out a state-of--the-art greenfield mobile network in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on behalf of Zain. Formerly known as the MTC Group, Zain is the leading telecommunications mobile provider in 22 countries across the Middle East and Africa and was recently awarded the third mobile telecommunications license for Saudi Arabia.Under the terms of the contract, Nokia...

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Belkin Offers $99 Desktop Skype Phone

Belkin introduced its new Desktop Internet Phone for Skype, which allows you to make free Skype Internet calls without having to turn on your computer. The phone is priced at US$99.99 and plugs in via an Ethernet port. Some features include:Speaker, speed dial, call hold/release, call pickup/park, mute, redial, hold, call-timer display, and contact list Contact list supports over 500 sets of Skype and SkypeOut contacts Automatically logs into...

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Verizon Offers SMB Symmetrical FiOS at 20, 50 Mbps

Verizon has begun offering small- and medium-sized businesses symmetrical FiOS Internet connections at 20 Mbps. For those who want even faster download speeds, Verizon offers up to 50 Mbps download (with 20 Mbps upload). In some states (Connecticut, Florida, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York and Rhode Island) small- and medium-sized business customers can subscribe to 20M/20M service with a dynamic IP address for $99.99 per month; or with a static IP address, the 20M/20M service is $139.99 per month -- both with a two-year term agreement....

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Verizon Expands FiOS TV Availability in California

Verizon has expanded the availability of its all-fiber- optic FiOS TV service in California, where it is now available to more than 500,000 households across the state. The company plans to expand the service to 1 million homes by the end of this year.Verizon recently launched FiOS TV in additional Southern California cities -- including Downey, Santa Fe Springs, La Mirada and Norwalk -- and won approval from the Public Utilities Commission to offer the service in 34 more California communities as construction of the fiber-optic network proceeds....

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CopperGate's HomePNA 3.1 Chipset Promises 240 Gbps over In-home Wiring

CopperGate Communications introduced its "CopperStream" CG3210 chipset for home networking over existing coax and telephone wires. CopperGate said the new silicon supports a PHY data rates of up to 320 Mbps and up to 240 Mbps in user throughput. The chipset incorporates a complete ITU G.9954 compatible HomePNA 3.1 MAC and PHY as well as an Ethernet MAC and a RISC processor capable of running the entire HomePNA 3.1 protocol stack, providing remote...

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Microsoft Enhances Mediaroom IPTV with "DVR Anywhere"

Microsoft has added a "DVR Anywhere" capability to its Mediaroom IPTV and multimedia platform, giving digital video recording (DVR) consumers the flexibility to watch their recorded TV programs on any TV in their home. Microsoft Mediaroom's DVR Anywhere is software-based, so no TV tuners are needed. It also requires that only one set-top box in the home have a hard drive, thus lowering the expense for service providers and consumers. In addition,...

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Major Korean Telco Selects Ikanos

Ikanos Communications' Fusiv Vx155 processor will be used in a major Korean telecommunication service provider's first trial deployment of residential gateways. Ikanos' Fusiv Vx155 powers Mercury Corporation's PHY-agnostic residential gateway, which is designed to be used with VDSL2-, PON- and AON-based access networks for distributing triple play services in the home. Mercury Corporation is the only gateway vendor to successfully pass the Korean...

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SIP Forum Elects New Chairman and Appoints Managing Director

The SIP Forum announced today the recent election of Eric Burger, Deputy CTO of BEA Systems, as Chairman of the SIP Forum Board of Directors, and the selection of Marc Robins as the Forum's new Managing Director. Dr. Burger is known for his numerous contributions on protocols to the IETF (including SIP, SIPPING, SIMPLE, LEMONADE, SPEECHSC, VPIM) and markup to the W3C (VoiceXML, CCXML, and MSCML.) He is the inventor of the Applications and Services...

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Pacific Crossing Appoints Former Asia Netcom Exec as CEO

Pacific Crossing, which provides undersea capacity between the United States and Japan,is pleased to announce the appointment of Mark Simpson as its new CEO. Simpson was recently chief operating officer of Asia Netcom, a position he had held since September 2006. He previously served as chief technology officer (CTO), chief information officer (CIO) and senior vice president with a focus on restructuring efforts at Asia Netcom and its predecessor...

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BT Selects Motorola as lead supplier for IPTV Set-top Boxes

BT has selected Motorola as the lead supplier of next-generation set-top boxes for its BT Vision digital TV service. Financial terms were not disclosed. Motorola will supply BT with second-generation V-Boxes boasting a new look, the potential for substantially improved energy efficiency and enhanced capabilities for deployment in 2009.The HD-capable V-Box digital TV recorder will provide access to up to 40 Freeview TV channels and 30 radio channels, the ability to record an average of 80 hours of content, on-demand access to a huge library of...

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Siemens Leverages Jungo Middleware for Residential Gateways

Siemens Home and Office Communication Devices (SHC), which supplies broadband routers as well as DECT and IP phones, will use Jungo's OpenRG software for its advanced Gigaset gateways. The companies said their strategic cooperation would speed time-to-market for new gateways and help service providers to introduce new services with substantially lower operating costs because of reduced complexity and maintenance costs. Siemens Gateways based on OpenRG will be available starting Spring 2008.http://www.siemens.com/gigaset/providerhttp://www.ju...

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JDSU Acquires Westover Scientific for Fiber Inspection Tech.

JDSU has acquired the fiber division of Westover Scientific Inc., a provider of fiber optic inspection and cleaning solutions, for $50 million in cash. JDSU also intends to acquire Westover Scientific's affiliated manufacturing company in Fuzhou, China, which remains subject to certain regulatory approvals. JDSU expects to complete this second acquisition in the second half of the 2008 fiscal year.Westover Scientific, based near Seattle, Washington, designs and manufactures specialized field and lab microscopes necessary to detect dirt and other...

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ViaSat Plans 100 Gbps Satellite System for Broadband Services

ViaSat has selected Space Systems/Loral to provide what is described as the highest capacity broadband satellite to date. The new spacecraft is scheduled to launch in 2011 and will be based on SS/L's 1300 platform and high-capacity Ka-band spot beam technology. Total throughput is designed to be over 100 Gigabits per second, which is more capacity than today's entire fleet of two-way Ka-, C- and Ku-band capacity over North America combined. ViaSat...

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Eutelsat Selects to EADS Astrium to Deliver Ka-Band Satellite System

Eutelsat Communications has selected EADS Astrium to deliver its first satellite operating exclusively in Ka-band frequencies. The satellite will form the cornerstone of a major new satellite infrastructure programme that will significantly expand capacity for consumer broadband services across Europe and the Mediterranean Basin.Currently called KA-SAT and scheduled for launch in third quarter 2010, the satellite will be configured with over 80 spotbeams,...

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Panasonic Previews IP-Enabled HD Televisions

At CES in Las Vegas, Panasonic previewed its first IP enabled televisions. Panasonic's VIERA full HD 1080p PZ850 series features four sizes -- 46-inch, 50-inch, 58-inch and 65-inch. The IP enabled televisions provide access to on-line content directly using the company's "VIERA CAST" technology. They also feature a Pro Setting Menu, allowing the consumer to access professional calibration software; an improved native resolution contrast ratio of 30,000:1 and a dynamic ratio of 1,000,000:1; Digital Cinema Color Re-Mastering; 24p native reproduction;...

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Panasonic and Comcast Debut Portable DVR

Comcast will begin offering a portable DVR/DVD player from Panasonic powered by tru2way technology. The Comcast/Panasonic co-branded AnyPlay Portable DVR (P-DVR) will let Comcast customers record programming at home and take it with them. The device is expected to be available beginning in early 2009. The unit features 60GB of digital video recording capacity, an 8.5" folding LCD display screen, and integrated stereo speakers.http://www.pana...

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ShoreTel Cuts Financial Guidance

Citing fewer sales to new customers, ShoreTel trimmed its financial guidance for the quarter ending 31-Dec-2007, saying it now expects revenue to be in the range of $29.7 to $30.7 million, lower than its previous expectation of $32 to $35 million. Gross margin percentage is expected to be within the guided range of 62 percent to 64 percent, and GAAP operating expenses are also expected to be within the previously guided range of $19 million to $20 million."Despite delivering the second highest revenue quarter in the Company's history, we fell short...

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Motorola Acquires Singapore's Soundbuzz for Music Distribution

Motorola agreed to acquire Soundbuzz Pte. Ltd., a privately held, leading pan-Asian music provider based in Singapore. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. The acquisition, which is subject to customary conditions, is expected to close in the first quarter of 2008.Soundbuzz's multi-region music delivery platform enables the purchase and distribution of digital content through over-the-air and wired broadband connections. The company's end-to-end...

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