Alcatel-Lucent Enhances Triple Play Architecture with Intelligence, Control, Lots of Queues

Alcatel-Lucent has enhanced its Triple Play Service Delivery Architecture (TPSDA) with more capacity, better control and higher scalability for mass-market multimedia services. New capabilities are aimed at providing distributed, fine-grain policy enforcement with centralized policy control to deliver multiple services to subscribers, including managed services such as IPTV and voice as well as unmanaged services such as High Speed Internet (HSI). The goal is to enable per-subscriber, per-service and per-application control in the network for millions of users. The new capabilities being announced promise massive queue scaling -- the equivalent of 19.2M queues per rack! (20k subscribers with 8 queues each per HS-MDA).


With its recent announcement of terabit performance upgrades for the 7450 Ethernet Service Switch and 7750 Service Router, Alcatel-Lucent is extending TPSDA by supporting 2.5 times the capacity in the same footprint without any change to the existing common control modules.


In addition, an expanded portfolio of managed on-line broadband content services can be enabled by fine-grain application assurance, based on Deep Packet Inspection (DPI) technology and fully integrated within the TPSDA subscriber management system.


Finally, targeted software enhancements, including support for PPPoE termination, provide a smooth, staged migration of legacy HSI services and revenue onto a carrier's strategic triple play consumer broadband network, thereby enabling operators to cap investment in their legacy Broadband Remote Access Server (BRAS).


The hardware and software enhancements to the Alcatel-Lucent Service Router Portfolio include:

• IOM3-XP, which provides a 2.5 increase in capacity and density



• Application Assurance-Integrated Services Adaptor (AA-ISA), which enables fine-grain application policy enforcement with per-subscriber resolution



• High-Scale Media Dependent Adaptor (HS-MDA), which sets a new industry benchmark in granular queuing and traffic management -- the equivalent of 19.2 million queues per telecom rack, enabling specific policy and control for each service delivered to a subscriber. More granular queuing enables more fine-grain service control to ensure each service is delivered with the appropriate Quality of Experience (QoE) and uses network resources in the most efficient manner



• Point to Point Protocol over Ethernet (PPPoE) tunnel termination, which facilitates the smooth migration of legacy HSI transport networks and their present mode of operation to next-generation TPSDA networks



• 5670 Reporting and Analysis Manager (RAM), which provides extensive tools and capabilities to warehouse, aggregate and process detailed, application-level statistics per-subscriber.

http://www.alcatel-lucent.com/ipnews

• In March 2008, Alcatel-Lucent unveiled extensive enhancements to its IP service routing portfolio that leverage a new high-performance chipset for packet processing and traffic management. The new silicon boosts performance of the company's 7750 Service Router (SR) and 7450 Ethernet Service Switch (ESS) to terabit performance levels, enabling more speed for mass-market video-based services and applications; more services, including secure IPSec VPNs, Ethernet VPNs and MPLS-based IP VPNs; and more availability, including support for non-stop routing, non-stop services and In-Service Software Upgrades (ISSU).
  
  
  Alcatel-Lucent said its new custom FP2 chipset, which took three years to develop, is capable of sophisticated and optimized network processing and traffic management at speeds up to 100 Gbps. The upgrades to the current products include more than double the density of Gigabit and 10 Gigabit Ethernet ports as well as supporting up to 10 times the number of services per router. The FP2 chipset also provides a path to 100 Gigabit Ethernet. It also enables densities of up to 1,200 Gigabit Ethernet ports per rack, while delivering sophisticated services to each port at line rate.
  
  
  The following enhancements to the Alcatel-Lucent IP/MPLS service router portfolio will be available in Q3 2008:
  
  
  Next Generation Silicon
  
  
  
  • the 100 Gbps FP2 chipset integrates 112 array cores for 95,000 MIPs performance and is implemented in 90nm process technology. The silicon was developed in house.
  
  
  7750 Service Router Platform
  
  
  
  • Up to 1 Tb/s capacity
  
  
  • 50Gb/s (full-duplex) Input/Output Module3-XP (IOM3-XP)
  
  
  • 20-port Gigabit Ethernet MDA-XP (SFP-Fiber)
  
  
  • 20-Port 10/100/1000 Ethernet MDA-XP (Copper)
  
  
  • 2-port 10 Gigabit Ethernet MDA-XP (XFP)
  
  
  • 4-Port 10 Gigabit Ethernet MDA-XP (XFP)
  
  
  • Application Assurance Integrated Services Adaptor (AA-ISA) with DPI technology
  
  
  • IPSec Integrated Services Adaptor (IPSec-ISA)
  
  
  
  7450 Ethernet Service Switch Platform
  
  
  
  • Up to 1 Tb/s capacity
  
  
  • 50Gb/s (full-duplex) IOM3-XP
  
  
  • 20-port Gigabit Ethernet MDA-XP (SFP-Fiber)
  
  
  • 20-Port 10/100/1000 Ethernet MDA-XP (Copper)
  
  
  • 2-port 10 Gigabit Ethernet MDA-XP (XFP)
  
  
  • 4-Port 10 Gigabit Ethernet MDA-XP (XFP)
  
  
  • Application Assurance Integrated Services Adaptor (AA-ISA) with DPI technology
  
  
  Alcatel-Lucent noted that it has shipped more than 20,000 IP/MPLS systems since 2004.

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ECI Telecom and Ceragon Partner on Wireless Backhaul

ECI Telecom and Ceragon Networks announced a partnership to provide a multi-service transport radio solution for carriers. The joint multi-service transport radio combines ECI's XDM and Broad-Gate Multi-Service Provisioning Platforms (MSPP) with Ceragon's FibeAir IP & SDH microwave technology.


The partnership, which strengthens the long-term cooperation between the two market-leading companies, addresses the demand for an end-to-end integrated wireline and wireless backhaul solution, and offers reduced time-to-market, improved manageability and lower integration costs.


The companies said their integrated multi-service transport radio solution provides a complete wireless backhaul solution for today's 2G/3G networks, while allowing for a smooth migration to next-generation all-IP Radio Access Network (RAN) and wireless Ethernet. This migration is supported by Ceragon's Adaptive Modulation and native Ethernet capabilities, and by ECI's Integrated TDM, ATM and IP/MPLS capabilities.http://www.ceragon.comhttp://www.ecitele.com

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ADC Raises 2008 Annual Guidance

adc reported quarterly sales of $403 million up 16% from Q2 2007 and 19% from Q1 2008. Gross margin improved to 36.3% in the quarter compared to 34.5% a year earlier.


"We are very pleased with our second quarter results where we again exceeded our financial and operating targets. The momentum and success we achieved in 2007 has not slowed in the first half of 2008," said Robert E. Switz, president and CEO of ADC. "Our results demonstrate the successful execution of our strategy to position ADC in the high growth segments of fiber-based and wireless communications networks where our customers are investing in the infrastructure that delivers broadband services to business, residential and mobile subscribers."


ADC also raised its financial guidance. The company currently expects its 2008 sales to be in the range of $1.520-$1.540 billion, an increase of 15%-16% compared to 2007. Previous sales guidance was in the range of $1.480-$1.505 billion. Both the current and previous sales guidance include the results of the LGC Wireless and Century Man acquisitions that closed in the first quarter of 2008.http://www.adc.com

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Helio Deploys Foundry's 10GbE MPLS Metro Router

Helio, the U.S. mobile operator backed by SK Telecom,

has selected Foundry Networks' 10GbE NetIron MLX-16 MPLS metro routers and FastIron GS Power over Ethernet (PoE)-ready Layer 2/3 edge switches to power their mobile service over a nationwide high-speed 3G network. Foundry's NetIron MLX-16 routers and FastIron GS switches are being used to deliver and manage the mobile multimedia content that Helio members create, consume and share. Financial terms were not disclosed.http://www.foundrynet.com

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NTT Joins Mobile WiMAX Trial for Taiwan's High-Speed Rail

NTT will join a mobile WiMAX trial serving Taiwan's new High Speed Rail, which has served over 24 million since launching a year ago. The mobile WiMAX trial, which is backed by the Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI) of Taiwan.


NTT's specific technical contributions to this project include:

• Design wireless area for intra-car communication so as to provide WLAN access service


• Study inter-car communication and conduct network planning for the cars



• Design the WiMAX connection between high speed THSR trains running at 300 km/h



• Evaluate the radio propagation and communication quality, and investigate improvement methods for the quality while traveling at high speed.

NTT Broadband Platform (NTTBP) has been providing WLAN service aboard Japan's "Tsukuba Express" since 2005.
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http://www.ntt.co.jp

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BroadLight Awarded Key GPON Patent

BroadLight was awarded U.S. patent number 7,370,127,

which enables high-speed interconnect communication in a GPON design. The patent describes internal bus architecture capable of providing high speed inter-connection and inter-communication between modules connected in an integrated circuit. The company said its concept enables non-blocking with virtually unlimited capacity of data traffic between peripherals and processing elements without the penalty of complex backend flow in SoC design.http://www.broadlight.com

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MEF Launches Global Services Directory

The Metro Ethernet Forum (MEF) has launched an on-line Global Service Directory (GSD) with data on service coverage and availability across the globe.

The Global Service Directory allows enterprise users to pinpoint which service providers are providing what Carrier Ethernet services in locations around the world. The launch phase features 16 of the MEF's 46 service provider members covering Europe, Middle East, Asia-Pacific and the Americas -- with almost a thousand locations where Carrier Ethernet connections are available.http://www.metroethernetforum.org/gsd

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Atheros Provides 802.11n for New AMD Turion X2 Ultra Notebook Platform

Atheros Communications' most compact and power-efficient, single-chip XSPAN 802.11n solutions

are featured in the next-generation AMD notebook platform featuring AMD Turion X2 Ultra Processors. Atheros XSPAN designs will provide wireless connectivity to new notebooks based on this platform. Atheros said its AR9280 dual-band (2.4GHz and 5GHz) 2x2 MIMO and AR9281 single-band (2.4GHz) 1x2 MIMO PCI Express (PCIe) designs integrate the radio, baseband/MAC and host PCIe interface into the industry's smallest 802.11n footprint. Reference designs are available for both PCIe half-Mini Card and full-Mini Card form factors.


The AMD Turion X2 Ultra Dual-Core Mobile processor includes top enhancements including AMD Independent Dynamic Core Technology, a new mobile-optimized memory controller, and power-optimized HyperTransport 3.0. The new mobile AMD 7-series chipset, AMD M780G and AMD SB700, features integrated ATI Radeon HD 3200 Graphics and delivers support for Microsoft DirectX 10. The integrated graphics deliver up to three times the 3D graphics performance of comparable competitor graphics, according to AMD.http://www.atheros.com

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AT&T Boosts 3G LaptopConnect Speeds to 1.7 Mbps, up 20%

AT&T announced a more than 20% increase to the top end of the company's typical 3G network downlink speed range and a 50 percent increase to the top end of the typical uplink speed range for wireless laptop card customers.


The new typical wireless broadband speeds for LaptopConnect customers:

• Downlink - Between 700 Kbps and 1.7 Mbps, formerly 600 Kbps to 1.4 Mbps


• Uplink - Between 500 Kbps and 1.2 Mbps, formerly 500 to 800 Kbps

AT&T's 3G mobile broadband network is available in more than 275 major U.S. metropolitan areas. Later this month, AT&T will become the first U.S. carrier to have fully deployed High Speed Packet Access (HSPA) technology across its entire 3G network. By year-end, the company plans to offer 3G service in nearly 350 major metropolitan U.S. areas.http://www.att.com

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AT&T Net Reach Picks Strongest GSM, 3G, or Wi-Fi Signal

The latest AT&T Communication Manager software,

which is provided to residential and small business customers who subscribe to AT&T High Speed Internet and AT&T LaptopConnect services, automatically detects the strongest available AT&T signal from a nearby network -- 3G, EDGE, Wi-Fi or one's AT&T High Speed Internet connection at home.


AT&T Net Reach provides high speed Internet service at home, access to AT&T's 3G wireless network in more than 275 major metro areas, national coverage on AT&T's EDGE wireless network and free access to more than 17,000 Wi-Fi hot spots nationwide, including roughly 7,000 Starbucks locations.http://www.att.com

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Verizon Wireless Considers Bid for Alltel

Verizon Wireless is considering making an offer to acquire Alltel in a deal potentially worth $27 billion or more, according to media sources.


Together, the companies would have over 80 million wireless subscribers.


Headquartered in Little Rock, Arkansas, Alltel has nearly 13 million customers and annual revenues of nearly $9 billion. Alltel completed its merger with an affiliate of TPG Capital and GS Capital Partners in November 2007 and ceased trading on the New York Stock Exchange.

During Q1, Alltel added just over 1 million gross customers through internal growth, a 26 percent increase from a year ago. Post-pay net additions were 163,000, up 50 percent year-over-year, and pre-pay net adds were 183,000.http://www.alltel.com

• Alltel operates a CDMA network and a GSM network (through its 2005 acquisition of Western Wireless). It maintains roaming partnerships with the four national wireless carriers, including Cingular, T-Mobile, Sprint and Verizon.



• In July 2006, Alltel completed the spin off its wireline business, which was merged with VALOR Communications Group to create Windstream, a major wireline operator focused on the rural U.S. market. Windstream serves approximately 3.4 million access lines and offers voice, broadband and digital TV services in 16 states.



• In 2005, ALLTEL purchased Western Wireless Corporation in a stock-and-cash transaction valued at approximately $6 billion. ALLTEL gained about 1.4 million domestic wireless customers (GSM) in 19 western and midwestern states that are contiguous to existing properties.

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Provo City Council Approves Sale of iProvo to Broadweave

The Provo City Council voted 4-3 to approve the sale of the iProvo fiber-optic network to Broadweave Networks, creating the largest private municipal network in the U.S. The acquisition will officially close on June 30, 2008 with Broadweave's service going live July 1, 2008.


Last month, the city of Provo announced an agreement to sell the iProvo fiber-optic network to Broadweave Networks for $40.6 million. The network, now owned by Broadweave, was the largest municipally owned fiber-optic network in the U.S. The acquisition makes Broadweave one of the largest Fiber-To-The-Home (FTTH) network operators in the country with a network that passes 36,000 homes, businesses, government buildings, and schools at speeds up to 1,000 times faster than cable or DSL. Broadweave's acquisition of Veracity Communications garners the company another 3,000 business customers as Broadweave now expands its commercial data, voice, and hosted telephony business.http://www.broadweave.com

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Verizon Business Enhances Security Management Program

Verizon Business announced significant enhancements to its Security Management Program (SMP), including the incorporation of the ISO 27002 Code of Practice for Information Security Management as the basis for evaluating customer security programs and the launch of a new at-a-glance Web-based dashboard that enables organizations to immediately assess the status of their compliance efforts across an expanded set of standards.


The internationally recognized and publicly vetted ISO 27002 information security standard includes 133 security controls used to safeguard the integrity, confidentiality and availability of critical company data. The program had previously evaluated customer security controls primarily against best practices determined by Verizon Business.


The newly enhanced dashboard uses a comprehensive scorecard to provide a holistic view of how a customer's security controls align with the requirements of multiple regulations such as the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLBA) and Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), as well as security standards specific to a customer's industry.


Verizon Business is also expanding its support for additional industry standards and regulations, including the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) 1.1, COBIT 4.1, BITS AUP 3.0, North American Electric Reliability Corporation Critical Infrastructure Protection (NERC CIP) and Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC).http://www.verizon.com

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