Sunday, December 13, 2009

Continuous Computing Develops Application-Ready LTE EPC Systems

Continuous Computing has incorporated Trillium FastPath protocol software into its pre-integrated, application-ready system solutions for Long Term Evolution (LTE) Evolved Packet Core (EPC) network elements.


Leveraging the 6WINDGate software suite from 6WIND, Trillium FastPath enables key protocols such as Stream Control Transmission Protocol (SCTP) and GPRS Tunneling Protocol (GTP) to move into the native execution environment on Continuous Computing's ATCA-PP50 packet processing blade. The company said it is able to achieve performance gains of up to 3X over generic implementations for next generation mobile cores.


The Third Generations Partnership Project's (3GPP) choice of SCTP as the IP-transport layer for all signaling in the LTE EPC has created a significant strain on SCTP processing that was not anticipated when the protocol was first defined. In addition, the focus on small cell wireless deployments has also increased the sheer number of SCTP connections that need to be managed by the EPC. While the built-in reliability mechanisms of SCTP are attractive for providing carrier-grade networks, they create substantial overhead and thus generic SCTP implementations are unable to scale sufficiently to meet the massive core networking requirements of the EPC.


Similarly, 3GPP has identified GTP as the primary bearer plane protocol in the EPC. Since each LTE eNodeB could provide more than seven times the current throughput of today's 3G base stations, the EPC will be expected to handle a much larger amount of data traffic than legacy mobile networks. Coupled with the fact that both voice and data are expected to traverse the core and that consumer appetite for data remains insatiable, the EPC must be built to support massive data plane scalability. Trillium FastPath SCTP and GTP are designed to meet these demands whereas standard implementations fall short.


Trillium FastPath software complements the company's extensive selection of Trillium LTE protocols, including S1AP, X2AP, Diameter and more. All Trillium LTE protocol stacks are optimized for multi-core / multi-threaded processing architectures and each stack includes a reference application for the relevant LTE network interfaces including LTE-Uu, S1, S6, S7, S10 and X2.
http://www.ccpu.com

TelisSonera Reports 20-80 Mbps on New LTE Service

In a press conference launching its new LTE service in Stockholm and Oslo, TeliaSonera said it is delivering up to 100 Mbps downlink rates with both the network and the LTE modem. Typical user rates are expected to be in the 20-80 Mbps range. The service uses a Samsung LTE dongle modem.


The Samsung dongles currently are 4G only, although TeliaSonera expects to offer models with a fall-back to 3G in those locations outside of its LTE footprint.


TeliaSonera has three nation wide 4G/LTE licenses; in Sweden, Norway and also recently in Finland. The network roll out is in progress to offer 4G to Sweden's and Norway's largest cities.


Evaluation of suppliers for TeliaSonera's common 4G core network and radio networks in the Nordic and Baltic countries is in progress and vendors will be selected in the beginning of 2010.


Ericsson provided TeliaSonera with LTE Radio Base stations, which are part of the new RBS6000 series, an Evolved Packet Core network, a mobile backhaul solution including SmartEdge 1200 routers, the latest EDA multi-access aggregation switch and an Operation and Management System. The LTE system is based on 3GPP standards for Long Term Evolution (LTE) radio technology and Evolved Packet Core (EPC) technology.


Huawei delivered both network infrastructure and services, including access network gear, core network equipment, operation support systems, and network planning and optimization.
http://www.ericsson.com

Nortel Confirms 100G Optical Shipments

Nortel confirmed commercial sales of its 100 G optical transmission solution. The capabilities are delivered using two new, compact 100G cards within Nortel's flagship Optical Multiservice Edge 6500 platform . Nortel's Common Photonic Layer line system can also be used as part of the 100G solution for in-line amplification and wavelength switching.


Nortel's 100G solution provides for single-channel 100G transmission in a format that can coexist over the same fiber infrastructure with 10G and 40G networks. A Nortel 100G line card transmits the full 112Gbps payload within a single ITU standard 50GHz-spaced channel, allowing for a full 88 wavelengths over a single fiber.


Nortel said its 100G solution is based on technologies such as coherent detection, DP QPSK modulation, and advanced electronic digital signal processing techniques, all of which Nortel is the first and only vendor to successfully commercialize to date. More than 50 service providers and operators worldwide already rely on these technologies in live deployments of Nortel's 40G solution, which has been generally available since May 2008. In addition to Verizon's industry-first live 100G deployment, Nortel has previously conducted eight successful trials of its 100G solution with service providers around the world.
http://www.nortel.com

New Submarine Cable Links Reunion in Indian Ocean

A new Lower Indian Ocean Network (LION) submarine cable was officially inaugurated in Reunion, an island located in the Indian Ocean that is one of the overseas départements of France.


The new submarine cable, which connects Madagascar, Reunion and Mauritius, adds significantly to the broadband capabilities of the island. It was financed by a consortium made up of Orange Madagascar, Mauritius Telecom and France Telecom S.A.
http://www.orange.com

Dell'Oro: Wireless LAN Market Surges

The worldwide Wireless LAN market grew to more than $1 billion in the third quarter of this year, due in large part to the increased spending in the healthcare and education sectors, as well as a rise in sales of higher valued 802.11n products, according to a new report from Dell'Oro Group.
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According to the report, product revenues for Cisco, HP, and Enterasys each grew more than 30 percent in the third quarter. HP's wireless LAN product revenues were the strongest ever, growing more than 60 percent in the third quarter.


"Second quarter 2009 supply constraints were largely resolved, and overall Wireless LAN market revenues rebounded to pre-2009 recession levels," stated Loren Shalinsky, Senior Analyst of Wireless LAN research at Dell'Oro Group. "During the third quarter, the overall market was boosted by strong growth in the enterprise segment. In particular, Cisco benefited from strong sales in North America and HP showed strength in the hospitality sector with sales of their integrated wireless LAN and wired access device," added Shalinsky.







http://www.delloro.com

IEEE Forms SIEPON Working Group

The IEEE Standards Association is forming a new Working Group with the task of developing a new communications standard, IEEE P1904.1, "Standard for Service Interoperability in Ethernet Passive Optical Networks (SIEPON)."


Ethernet Passive Optical Networks (EPON) already serves an estimated 30 million subscriber lines using 1G technology. Deployment volumes are soon expected to reach more than 10 million new subscribers annually. The SIEPON standard project will develop system-level specifications, targeting "plug-and-play" interoperability of the transport, service, and control planes in a multi-vendor environment.
http://www.ieee.org

Motorola Offers Point-to-Multipoint for WiMAX in 3.3 - 3.8 GHz

Motorola introduced its PMP 320 wireless broadband access network solution offering secure wireless connectivity based on 802.16e standards. Motorola's PMP 320 fixed licensed outdoor access solution operates in the 3.3 - 3.8 GHz licensed frequency bands. It features all-outdoor integrated radios and standards-based servers, so it does not require specialized gateways, routers or servers. Its supports standard WiMAX QoS profiles, is interoperable with WiMAX 802.16e CPEs, and uses standard AAA/ RADIUS servers for authentication. With 2x2 MIMO and matrix B functionality, 10 MHz channels, and 802.16e coding/error correction, the PMP 320 delivers high throughput with excellent coverage and link budgets.


"Motorola's PMP 320 provides a reliable and secure connectivity solution that enables network operators and enterprise customers to leverage standards-based technology," added Tim Mason, senior director for Wireless Network Solutions, Motorola Enterprise Mobility Solutions. "Robust, standards-based networks deliver a new level of business agility for both public and private network operators."http://www.motorola.com

Verizon Activates 100G Ultra-Long-Haul Optical in Europe

Verizon is now carrying live, commercial traffic over a 100 Gbps ultra-long-haul optical system. This system was deployed on the company's European optical core network between Paris and Frankfurt. The accomplishment marks the first time for deployment of ultra-long-haul 100G using a single channel on a production network.


Specifically, Verizon is using Nortel's commercially available 100G solution to carry live Private IP traffic between Verizon's core routers over the 893-kilometer (555-mile) route without modifying the system. Verizon sent a true 100G signal by using the same spacing between wavelengths that is used for a single wavelength, demonstrating the company's drive to promote 100G in a serial fashion on just one information channel. The 100G transmission was conducted on a Verizon ultra-long-haul optical system carrying other live 10G wavelengths.


Verizon said that by installing advanced optics and electronics on the existing network facilities, the upgrade to 100G was done easily and quickly. The objective is to implement a "plug and play" approach that avoids any changes to embedded network equipment and facilities.


"This latest 100G-first gives Verizon the edge in meeting the growing bandwidth demands of our customers," said Mark Wegleitner, senior vice president of technology at Verizon. "By consolidating traffic onto one large pipe rather than several smaller ones, customers will benefit from increased network capacity, improved transmission quality and greater network efficiencies."http://www.verizon.com
http://www.nortel.com

NETGEAR Cable Gateway and Cable Modem Earn DOCSIS 3.0 Certification

NETGEAR's newest Cable Gateway has achieved DOCSIS 3.0 certification in CableLabs Certification Wave 71.The device delivers DOCSIS 3.0 service via four Gigabit Ethernet LAN ports and 802.11n wireless. The resulting data rates of up to 160 Mbps downstream and 120 Mbps upstream. It is IPv6 compliant and is also fully backwards-compatible with IPv4 and DOCSIS 2.0 and 1.1. It supports remote management and provisioning, simple plug-in installation, and post-installation manageability with Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP).


A separate cable modem unit, the CMD31B, also achieved DOCSIS 3.0 certification in CableLabs Certification Wave 71. The CMD31B bonds eight downstream and four upstream channels, significantly exceeding the minimum 4 x 4 requirement of the DOCSIS 3.0 specification. The resulting data rates of up to 320 Mbps downstream and 120 Mbps upstreamhttp://www.netgear.com

Verizon Adds On-Screen Self-Help to FiOS TV

Verizon has implemented a new on-screen self-help tool that can diagnose and solve problems with its FiOS TV service. The tool uses the advanced FiOS network to diagnose issues, report back to customers, and then quickly and automatically fix most problems. The on-screen version is initially available to FiOS customers in Texas, California and parts of the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic.


The new on-screen agent is being deployed coincident with the current upgrade of the Verizon Interactive Media Guide, being introduced progressively across the FiOS footprint.
http://www.verizon.com
http://www.verizon.com/inhomeagent

MetroPCS Selects Bridgewater for LTE in 2010

MetroPCS Communications has selected Bridgewater Systems' LTE product suite including tits Home Subscriber Server and Policy Controller, both anchored by Bridgewater's Subscriber Data Broker for its 4G LTE network. A deployment is planned for the second half of 2010. Financial terms were not disclosed.


MetroPCS will deploy the Bridgewater Home Subscriber Server (HSS), a master repository that contains subscriber and device profile and state information, and manages subscriber identities, service profiles, authentication, authorization, and quality of service in real time. The installation will also include the Bridgewater Policy Controller (PCRF), which provides smart network, application, and subscriber policies to manage mobile data growth and deliver personalized services. Bridgewater's Subscriber Data Broker provides a common subscriber data management platform that brings together rich, dynamic subscriber data with the sophisticated tools to broker that data to multiple systems and applications to personalize services.
http://www.bridgewatersystems.com

SK Telecom Pursues Mobile Credit Card Strategy

SK Telecom, which provides mobile services to 24 million (roughly half of South Korea's population, is planning to introduce mobile credit card service in conjunction with Hana Financial Group. As part of this plan, SK Telecom has agreed to acquire a 49% in Hana Card for approximately $343 million. The goal would be to use a chip embedded in the mobile phone to initiate credit card payments.
http://www.sktelecom.com/

TelisSonera Launches First LTE in Stockholm and Oslo

TeliaSonera has activated the first commercial LTE network in the world. Downtown Stockholm is covered with the Ericsson LTE network and a similar deployment is live in Oslo using equipment supplied by Huawei. Customers can access the LTE service using Samsung LTE dongles.


TeliaSonera said it is delivering up to 100 Mbps downlink rates with both the network and the LTE modem. Typical user rates are expected to be in the 20-80 Mbps range.


The Samsung dongles currently are 4G only, although TeliaSonera expects to offer models with a fall-back to 3G in those locations outside of its LTE footprint.

Ericsson provided TeliaSonera with LTE Radio Base stations, which are part of the new RBS6000 series, an Evolved Packet Core network, a mobile backhaul solution including SmartEdge 1200 routers, the latest EDA multi-access aggregation switch and an Operation and Management System. The LTE system is based on 3GPP standards for Long Term Evolution (LTE) radio technology and Evolved Packet Core (EPC) technology.


Huawei delivered both network infrastructure and services, including access network gear, core network equipment, operation support systems, and network planning and optimization.


TeliaSonera has three nation wide 4G/LTE licenses; in Sweden, Norway and also recently in Finland. The network roll out is in progress to offer 4G to Sweden's and Norway's largest cities.


Evaluation of suppliers for TeliaSonera's common 4G core network and radio networks in the Nordic and Baltic countries is in progress and vendors will be selected in the beginning of 2010.


"The new era of mobile broadband has just begun today. With LTE, so-called 4G, your mobile broadband experience is moving to unequalled levels. The LTE speed gives you an absolutely effortless feeling of broadband access," stated Carl-Henric Svanberg, President and CEO of Ericsson.

Kenneth Karlberg, President and Head of Mobility Services, TeliaSonera says: "We are very proud to be the first operator in the world to offer our customers 4G services. Thanks to the successful cooperation with Ericsson we can offer 4G to our customers in Stockholm earlier than originally planned."http://www.ericsson.com

Verizon Wireless Hit by Outage

Verizon Wireless was hit by a major service outage. Initial reports on Sunday night indicated service disruption on the carrier's voice network in the upper mid-West. http://www.verizonwireless.com