Friday, May 8, 2009

AT&T Works with Jasper Wireless on M2M Mobile Integration

AT&T has entered into a multi-year, strategic agreement with Jasper Wireless, a start-up based in Sunnyvale, California, to connect and support a variety of emerging consumer electronic and business devices on AT&T's nationwide wireless network. Specifically, AT&T's emerging device organization will capitalize on the Jasper Wireless platform to provide the applications and design services necessary to accelerate market entry for new categories of connected devices on AT&T's network, including personal navigation, e-readers, mobile internet devices, gaming, healthcare, tracking, and in-car navigation systems, among others. AT&T becomes the exclusive U.S. carrier on the Jasper Wireless platform. Financial terms were not disclosed.


Jasper Wireless's platform, applications, and design services are designed to accelerate market entry for connected device manufacturers. In addition, Jasper Wireless's automation of operational processes ensures a superior out-of-box user experience.

For some AT&T powered devices, Jasper Wireless's applications will provide automated operational management capabilities, including custom device provisioning, instant activation, real-time diagnostic tools and detailed billing and usage reports -- managed through a Jasper Wireless core software-as-a-service platform designed exclusively for M2M and consumer electronics communication

:Connecting consumer electronics and machine-to-machine (M2M) devices to a wireless network requires a unique set of assets," said Jahangir Mohammed, CEO, Jasper Wireless. :We've built a complete service platform with the applications that enable our customers to build, deploy and manage connected devices with the lowest total cost of operations. We help them embed connectivity easily, get to market quickly and deliver a superior user experience so they can deploy their connected devices profitably and at scale, across multiple countries."http://www.jasperwireless.com
http://www.att.com

Synopsys Acquires MIPS' Analog Business for $22 Million

Synopsys has acquired the Analog Business Group of MIPS Technologies for $22 million in cash. The acquisition expands Synopsys' DesignWare intellectual property (IP) portfolio with a new family of analog IP such as Analog-to-Digital Converters, Digital-to-Analog Converters, Audio Codecs and Power Management. It will also add HDMI TX and RX protocols to Synopsys' existing interface IP solution. Synopsys already supplies digital controllers, PHY and Verification IP for widely used protocols such as USB, PCI Express, DDR, SATA and Ethernet. http://www.synopsys.com

Portugal Telecom and Corning Plan GPON Rollout

Portugal Telecom is working with Corning to develop, test, and implement innovative and advanced Gigabit Passive Optical Network (GPON) technology solutions for Next-Generation Access (NGA) fiber optic networks in Portugal. Portugal Telecom has recently signed an agreement with the Portuguese government and other telecommunications providers to develop a fiber optic network in the country. The goal is to enable access to next-generation services such as true high-speed Internet, voice, and HDTV based on a new network for up to 1.5 million Portuguese.

Corning will utilize its new ClearCurve product suite optimized for the European market in the Portugal Telecom solution. The new product suite is enabled by ClearCurve fiber which is hundreds of times more bendable than standard single-mode fiber. Fhttp://www.corning.com

Case Western Reserve Teams with Cisco for Smart Buildings

Cisco is working with Case Western Reserve University to transform its campus facilities into an integrated smart building infrastructure implementing the latest networking technology.


With Cisco executives, Case Western Reserve is launching a new Connected Real Estate project. The university will pilot the new technology solutions in its Frank O. Gehry-designed Peter B. Lewis Building, its biomedical Wolstein Research Building and one of its largest campus residence halls, known as Pierce Hall.


"Connected Real Estate is about changing the way buildings, campuses, communities, and cities are designed, built and managed in the most efficient and economical fashion while maintaining environmental responsibility. Collaborating with thought leaders such as the Case Western Reserve University is another example of Cisco's commitment to create 'smart connected communities' which take advantage of the network as the platform," said Thierry Martens, vice president, Cisco Worldwide Connected Real Estate practice. http://newsroom.cisco.com

AT&T and Verizon Wireless Exchange Alltel and Centennial Assets

AT&T agreed to acquire wireless assets from Verizon Wireless for $2.35 billion in cash. The deal includes licenses, network assets and 1.5 million current subscribers in 79 service areas, primarily in rural areas across 18 states. Verizon Wireless is required to divest these properties as part of the regulatory approvals granted for its purchase of Alltel earlier this year. The states represented are: Alabama, Arizona, California, Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Virginia and Wyoming.


"Wireless continues to be AT&T's greatest growth driver, and this transaction will complement our existing network coverage, particularly in rural areas," said Ralph de la Vega, president and CEO, AT&T Mobility and Consumer Markets. "The acquisition will add network assets, distribution channels and 850 MHz spectrum in a significant portion of the U.S., enabling even better coverage for AT&T's subscribers in those areas.

The companies also announced a separate transaction under which AT&T will sell certain wireless assets of Centennial Communications Corp. to Verizon Wireless for $240 million. Specifically, Verizon Wireless will acquire former Centennial wireless properties, including licenses, network assets and nearly 120,000 current subscribers, in five service areas in Louisiana and Mississippi. The five service areas are Lafayette, La., LA-5 (Beauregard), LA-6 (Iberville), LA-7 (West Feliciana) and MS-8 (Claiborne). The transaction is contingent on completion of AT&T's acquisition of Centennial. AT&T announced plans to acquire Centennial in November 2008, and that transaction is pending regulatory approval.
http://www.att.com
http://www.verizonwireless.com

ST-Ericsson Previews its First LTE Modem

Newly launched ST-Ericsson previewed its mobile broadband product roadmap including plans for an LTE modem platform targeting data devices.

The M700 promises top downlink speed of 100 Mbps with 50 Mbps uplink. It will support for all defined LTE bandwidth (1.4 up to 20 MHz). The platform is being released this year and will leverage a software-defined architecture.


ST-Ericsson, which is the second largest silicon company for mobile broadband, is now sampling its U8500 smartphone HSPA modem solution. The device will offer HD 1080p camcorder and video capabilities, along with up to 18 Million pixels camera.
ST-Ericsson estimates such smartphones, which may cost under US$150 depending on manufacturer, will offer 10 hours on HD video playback. Follow-up platforms are under development.


A archived webcast of Ericsson's Capital Markets Day events is available online.

http://www.ericsson.com/ericsson/investors/index.shtml