IP Infusion Adds Design Services to Source Code Portfolio

IP Infusion, which is known for its ZebOS Network Platform software and its domain expertise in network protocols, network appliances and IP-aware applications, is now offering turnkey Network Solutions Services to help telecommunications suppliers achieve the fastest time-to-market. The services include network consulting, network equipment customization and testing.


In addition to licensing, maintenance and support, IP Infusion provides consultation on network software architectures, design, technologies, protocols and product development. IP Infusion's Network Solutions Services are available across the entire product development lifecycle. The company said its Q/A testing lab provides an extensive range of testing scenarios, which can include more than 12,000 test scripts and interoperability use cases, many of which are not generally made available to customers in this industry.


IP Infusion's expansion into Network Solutions is being led by Frank Nguyen, vice president of engineering operations. As a wholly owned and independently-operated subsidiary of ACCESS Systems, IP Infusion is also positioned to leverage its parent company's design expertise in Web browsing, mobile phones, wireless handhelds and other networked devices.


"Network Solutions Services have always been an integral part of the solution IP Infusion has offered to help customers differentiate themselves and compete globally while meeting cost goals and rapid time-to-market objectives," said Koichi Narasaki, president and CEO, IP Infusion. "With our expanded Network Solutions Services, telecom customers such as SoftBank BB, focusing on IPv6 deployment and promotion, can take advantage of a complete, one-stop solution. Leveraging the global reach of ACCESS, our wide-ranging Network Solutions Services make IP Infusion the logical choice as a preferred systems integrator."http://www.ipinfusion.comIn June 2009, IP Infusion began shipping its ZebOS Network Platform version 7.7 software which supports PBB-TE functionality. Specific features in ZebOS 7.7 include:

• Support for Provider Backbone Bridge-Traffic Engineering
  
• Support for OpenSAF, the industry's leading high-availability (HA) middleware


• Hardened implementation of BGP Route Server for deployment in Carrier Networks utilizing commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) hardware


• Enhanced resiliency for IP routing with the support for Bidirectional Forwarding Detection (BFD)


• Ability of MPLS solution to support pseudowires across multiple Packet Switched Networks (PSNs)


• Complete non-stop forwarding (NSF) functionality for IP and MPLS.

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DragonWave Posts 41% Sequential Growth

DragonWave provided a business update and issued financial results (Canadian dollars), reporting record revenues of $16.0 million for the most recent fiscal quarter, representing growth of 41% over the preceding quarter and 49% over the same period last year. The company expects revenue will approximately sequentially double in the next quarter of this quarter.


While there was growth in demand from a variety of customers globally, the most significant increase came from the company's existing major North American based customer, which accounted for 52% of revenue in the quarter.


Revenue from customers within North America increased from $8.0 million in the first quarter of the previous year to $12.9 million and represented 80% of total revenue for the quarter. Revenue from outside North America increased as well, growing from $2.7 million to $3.1 million and represented 20% of total revenue for the quarter.
http://www.dragonwaveinc.com/irevents.asp

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Nuance Acquires Jott for Voice-to-Text Mobile Apps

Nuance Communications has acquired Jott, an online service company that delivers mobile voice-to-text applications. Financial terms were not disclosed.


Jott allows individuals and businesses to easily capture thoughts, send emails and text messages, set reminders, organize lists, and post to web services and business applications -- all with their voice, using any phone. Jott also converts voicemail into email and text messages, making voicemail a more productive tool. As used in Jott for Salesforce, Jott provides open APIs that allow for voice integration with third party CRM providers and other critical enterprise applications that require mobile access.



Jott will become part of Jott's Mobile Division voice services portfolio. To further extend the power of Jott across the mobile mass market, Nuance plans to package and offer Jott Assistant to mobile operators as part of its voice services portfolio, including Nuance Voicemail-to-Text. Nuance also said that it will continue to mainstream and expand Jott's CRM partner program through its existing CRM partnerships, enabling enterprise application providers to better meet the needs of the evolving professional mobile market.
http://www.jott.com
http://www.nuance.com

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Nortel and Microsoft Expand Innovative Communications Alliance

Nortel and Microsoft expanded their Innovative Communications Alliance (ICA) with five new commercial offeringsin unified communications. New solution bundles include:

• SIP Contact Center 7.0 + Microsoft Office Communications Server: The Contact Center 7.0 release brings unified communications into the contact center through its integration of OCS2007 presence capability, providing the capability to immediately contact the appropriate subject matter expert leading to higher first call resolution rates.



• Web Services: Targeted at companies with 100-500 users, this solution includes UC capabilities that enable seamless user experience with presence and click-to-call into other business applications and processes.



• Enterprise Lighthouse: This offering provides a cost-effective option for the large enterprise to take advantage of the enhanced productivity that unified communications provides. The offer includes deployment services to enable UC integration, including Office Communications Server Voice and Conferencing and Microsoft Exchange Voicemail for deployments of greater than 2,000 users.



• Enterprise Mini Lighthouse: This offering provides a cost-effective option for the small enterprise to take advantage of the enhanced productivity that unified communications provides. The offer includes deployment services to enable UC integration, Office Communications Server Voice and Conferencing and Microsoft Exchange Voicemail for deployments starting at 250 users.



• UC Conferencing: For very large-scale conferencing capabilities, this package provides a cost-effective option for enterprises to take advantage of the enhanced productivity that unified communications provides through Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007 Release 2. The offer includes consulting and the needed deployment services to enable the Office Communications Server conferencing capability for a minimum of 500 users.

The companies said they have attracted 1,300 ICA customer wins over their three year alliance.
http://www.nortel.com
http://www.microsoft.com

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TerreStar-1's 18 meter 2GHz Reflector Successfully Deployed

TerreStar Corporation reported that its recently launched TerreStar-1 satellite was successfully placed into its assigned orbital slot in the geosynchronous arc and has successfully deployed its 18 meter 2GHz S Band reflector, the largest commercial satellite antenna ever deployed. TerreStar-1 is now poised to deliver the voice, data and video services over TerreStar's all IP next-generation mobile broadband network that combines the power of TerreStar-1, an all-IP core network, and the latest in smartphone technology.
http://www.terrestarcorp.com

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The Bahamas Telecommunications Company to be Privatized

The government of The Commonwealth of The Bahamas is preparing to sell a 51% stake in The Bahamas Telecommunications Company. The sale will include operational control of the company.


BTC currently provides services to over 334,000 wireless (through its GSM and CDMA networks), 132,000 fixed line and 18,500 broadband customers throughout The Bahamas. In addition, BTC has some 190 roaming agreements in place serving the more than 4 million tourists who visit the Bahamas each year.
http://www.btcprivatization.com

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Ericsson completes Live Network Upgrade for Vodafone Essar

In what is described as the world's largest upgrade of a live mobile network, Ericsson has helped Vodafone Essar to replace more than 10,500 GSM radio sites. The pace of replacement reached a peak rate of one site every minute.


Vodafone Essar serves 13 million subscribers in India's four key zones, including three large cities (Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata). Uninterrupted network services were maintened during the upgrade.


The network modernization project began in February 2008 and ended first quarter 2009, two months ahead of schedule. During this time, Ericsson delivered more than 16,000 base station cabinets and more than 250 base station controllers, completing the project in only 13 months. As part of the agreement, Ericsson also provided an expansion of the layered architecture circuit core including mobile packet back bone (MPBN) and microwave transmission equipment.
http://www.ericsson.com

• In 2007, Vodafone acquired the controlling interest in Hutchinson-Essar from Li Ka Shing Holdings for US$11.1 billion.

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Teraco Raises Funding for Data Centers in South Africa

Teraco Data Environments (Teraco), which operates vendor neutral colocation facilities in South Africa, has raised R50-million in a successful Series-B round of financing to expand its facilities. The financing, which consists of equity and loans, follows on the conclusion of a Series-A financing round of R45-million in 2008.


Teraco plans to expand its data centre in Isando on the East side of Johannesburg. Construction is under way and will be complete by the end of the year. A number of Teraco customers have entered into agreements to move their telecommunications and IT equipment into the facility from January 2010.


Series-A investors participated in this second round with one new investor, Guy Willner, co-founder and CEO of IXEurope (now Equinix Europe) who recently joined Teraco's board.
http://www.teraco.co.za

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AT&T Conducts Largest-Ever Network Disaster Recovery Exercise in Wash DC

AT&T is conducting its largest ever Network Disaster Recovery (NDR) exercise at the Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium in Washington, DC from July 8 to 17, 2009. The NDR exercise will feature more than 45 disaster recovery trailers and vehicles, including 28 semi-tractor trailers, two emergency communications vehicles, four hazmat trailers, one Satellite COLT (cell on light truck), and five smaller utility and support trailers.


Conducted several times per year, AT&T NDR exercises are designed to test, evaluate, refine, and strengthen how well AT&T can facilitate recovery from emergency situations, ranging from hurricanes to wildfires. The NDR exercise is a key component of AT&T's business continuity plan which ensures communications can be restored quickly to its government and business customers.


Last year, AT&T announced that the NDR team consolidated wireless, wired and backbone network recovery capabilities, enabling AT&T to bring an integrated approach to disaster recovery that helps ensure the flow of both wireless and wired communications during times of need.


"With hurricane season underway, the importance of ensuring communications combined with the need to be fully prepared is critical for both government and business," said, Kevin Peters, executive vice president of AT&T's Global Network Operations. "With the AT&T NDR Exercise, our federal, state and local government agency and Washington metropolitan area business customers can get a firsthand look at how AT&T's integrated approach to disaster recovery can help them maintain communications during a disaster."


Since 1992, AT&T NDR team has been activated more than a dozen times in response to disasters, including restoring service after the tornadoes in Oklahoma in 1999; the September 11th attacks on the World Trade Center in 2001; Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005; and Hurricanes Gustav, Dolly and Ike in 2008.
http://www.att.com/ndr

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Microsoft Unveils Windows Azure Business Model for Cloud Computing

Microsoft outlined its business model and partner strategy for its Windows Azure platform, which includes a cloud services operating system, a Web-based relational database in Microsoft SQL Azure, and connectivity and interoperability with .NET Services. Microsoft plans to offer the Windows Azure platform with automated service management and pay-as-you-go pricing -- all backed by service-level agreements and support.

Specifically, Microsoft will offer Windows Azure, SQL Azure and .NET Services for purchase through a consumption-based pricing model, allowing partners and customers to pay only for the services that they consume.


Microsoft partners will be offered special promotional offers and discounts that will help enable partners to bring solutions to market faster, reduce IT complexity, and increase revenue opportunities. Microsoft will provide partners with enterprise-class guarantee backed by a service-level agreement that covers service uptime, connectivity, and data availability for Windows Azure, SQL Azure, and .NET Services.


As part of the Microsoft Partner Network, partners receive an additional 5 percent promotional discount on Windows Azure compute, SQL Azure and .NET Services. As an added benefit of MSDN Premium, Microsoft also announced that it will provide subscribers with resources to develop and test their cloud-based applications. Microsoft will also provide the development accelerator promotional offer for partners and customers who want to quickly develop and deploy applications with dynamic scaling, predictable pricing, and a deep discount.


"With the Windows Azure platform, we're focused on delivering the best services platform to create compelling Web applications and services -- which enables our customers and partners to quickly develop and deploy compelling solutions," said Bob Muglia, president of the Server and Tools Business at Microsoft. "What's unique about the Windows Azure platform is that Microsoft manages the complexity, which allows partners to focus on what matters most for their business -- building innovative services solutions and driving new revenue. This can drive down total cost of ownership by up to 60 percent for certain workloads during a three-year period."


http://www.microsoft.com
http://www.windowsazure.com

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California's Sebastian's Selects Occam to Upgrade Copper/Fiber Network

California-based Sebastian (Kerman, Calif.) has chosen Occam's BLC 6000 platform as part of its strategy to deploy bonded DSL architecture to significantly increase the bandwidth of its copper network and offer subscribers new advanced features. Specifically, the company selected Occam's BLC 6252 ADSL2Plus and BLC 6246 ADSL2Plus with T1 capabilities to implement Triple Play and wholesale broadband services. These products enable Sebastian to deploy ADSL2Plus and POTS service from a single platform, providing a natural transition to higher performance broadband without the need of a costly infrastructure overhaul. In addition, Sebastian also plans to use Occam to build out all fiber networks to greenfield subdivisions.


Sebastian operates more than 10,000 access lines, serving both businesses and residences.
http://www.sebastiancorp.com
http://www.occamnetworks.com

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Verizon Business Offers Tiered Routing Options for Wholesale Voice

Verizon Business will now allow its wholesale customers to choose among different levels of routing options for voice calls terminating outside the U.S., providing new standards of flexibility and choice. Each routing choice is associated with specific destinations.


International tiered routing for outbound service offers standard, premium and premium-plus routing options for traditional voice calls, with mobile roaming and fax capabilities where possible. Customers can also choose a different tier for each dedicated access line, providing even further delineation of route and cost structures.


Premium plus routing is the highest level of tiered routing, using direct routing where possible. Premium routing provides high-quality delivery in a cost-effective manner while standard routing supports quality tiered routing at competitive rates.
http://www.verizonbusiness.com

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CBS Joins Comcast's On Demand Online Trial, Advancing Project Infinity

CBS is the first broadcast network to participate in Comcast's technical trial of On Demand Online. The new service will significantly expand the number of top-rated TV shows available online and across platforms at no additional charge to Comcast's cable customers while delivering increased advertising value to content owners.


During the course of the trial, CBS plans to test various types of current and library content.


Comcast will begin its technical trial of On Demand Online with approximately 5,000 customers from across the U.S. in the coming weeks -- the first national trial of its kind. A major focus of the trial is to test Comcast's new "authentication" technology, which will allow Comcast customers to receive the same content online for free that they subscribe to on TV. The service will utilize a simple log-on system for streaming content and, in the future, will allow for download content to go. The On Demand Online service will roll-out in phases, adding new features, functionality and content over time to provide consumers with a new way to watch television.


On Demand Online is part of Comcast's Project Infinity, the company's long-term vision to give customers an ever growing amount of video content on multiple platforms, whenever they want.
http://www.comcast.com

• Comcast has previously announced an agreement with Time Warner Inc. to facilitate deployment of online television content in a way that is consumer friendly and pro-competitive.
  

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Genachowski Appoints FCC Managing Director and General Counsel

FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski announced two senior staff appointments.


Managing Director -- Steven VanRoekel has over 18 years of Information Technology and management experience and was most recently a top executive in the Windows Server and Tools division at Microsoft. He held various positions in his 15 years at Microsoft, including managing Microsoft's cross-industry Web Services team and serving as Speech and Strategy Assistant to Bill Gates.


General Counsel -- Austin Schlick has served most recently as Chief of the Civil Division of the Office of the Maryland Attorney General, responsible for the state's civil litigation at the trial and appellate levels. In addition to overseeing the defense of the State of Maryland and its officers and employees, Mr. Schlick has led affirmative litigation in the fields of environmental and consumer protection. Mr. Schlick previously served at the FCC as Deputy General Counsel for Litigation and as Acting General Counsel. Prior to that, he was an Assistant to the Solicitor General in the U.S. Department of Justice, where he argued seven cases before the U.S. Supreme Court.
http://www.fcc.gov

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