Alcatel-Lucent's 100G Optical Switch Gains Russian Certification

The Alcatel-Lucent 1830 Photonic Service Switch (PSS) has successfully passed testing within the Russian telecom certification body. The Certificate of Conformance confirms that the Alcatel-Lucent solution fully complies with the requirements of the Russian telecommunications authorities and can be deployed in Russian networks.
http://www.alcatel-lucent.com

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Sandvine: Netflix now 29.7% of North American Peak Downstream Traffic

In North America, Netflix is now 29.7% of peak downstream traffic and has become the largest source of Internet traffic overall, according to Sandvine's newly released Global Internet Phenomena Report.


Sandvine's study is based on anonymous data, aggregated from fixed and mobile service provider networks spanning Europe, Latin America and North America. The company said its latest report aggregates data from over
220 service provider customers spanning more than 85 countries.


Some highlights:


Currently, Real-Time Entertainment applications consume 49.2% of peak aggregate traffic, up from 29.5% in 2009 – a 60% increase.


Sandvine forecasts that the Real-Time Entertainment category will represent 55-60% of peak aggregate traffic by the end of 2011.


In Latin America, Social Networking (overwhelmingly Facebook) is a bigger source of traffic than YouTube, representing almost 14% of network traffic. [Figure 4] Real-Time Entertainment represents 27.5% of peak aggregate traffic, still the largest contributor of traffic in that region.


In Europe, Real-Time Entertainment continues a steady climb, rising to 33.2% of peak aggregate traffic, up from 31.9% last fall. BitTorrent, a peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing protocol, is the largest single component of both upstream (59.7%) and downstream (21.6%) Internet traffic during peak periods.
http://www.sandvine.com

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Overture Ships ISG 400 Carrier Ethernet Platform

Overture Networks announced the general commercial availability of its ISG 400 platform. The ISG 400 is a modular Gigabit Carrier Ethernet edge platform enabling ubiquitous 1Mb to 1Gb Carrier Ethernet services across existing transport infrastructures and native optical Ethernet. It features six gigabit Ethernet interfaces and a rich feature set for native Ethernet transport. Where native Ethernet connections are not available, with the simple addition of a plug-in module the ISG 400 can be configured to provide identical Ethernet services functionality over existing SONET/SDH and DS3/E3 transport. Additional support for bonded DS1 and E1 transport is slated for release in July 2011.
http://www.OvertureNetworks.com

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Fujitsu FLASHWAVE 9500 Gains RUS Acceptance

The Rural Utilities Service (RUS) branch of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has granted "RUS Technical Acceptance" to the Fujitsu FLASHWAVE 9500 Packet Optical Networking Platform (Packet ONP). With RUS approval, the FLASHWAVE 9500 system joins several other Fujitsu platforms on the RUS List of Acceptable Materials (Telecommunications). Products currently on this list include the FLASHWAVE 7500 Reconfigurable Optical Add/Drop Multiplexer (ROADM), FLASHWAVE 4500 Multiservice Provisioning Platform (MSPP), the FLASHWAVE 4100 optical access platform, the FLASHWAVE 4010 remote SONET extension platform, the FLASHWAVE 7120 managed wavelength system, and the FLASHWAVE 7420 DWDM platform.http://us.fujitsu.com/telecom

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VimpleCom's Chairman Takes Over CEO Role

VimpleCom's current CEO, Alexander V. Izosimov, has decided to step down as of June 30, 2011 and will be replaced by the company's current Chairman, Jo O. Lunder, as the new CEO of VimpelCom.


The company's Supervisory Board has unanimously proposed Augie K. Fabela II (Co-Founder and Chairman Emeritus of VimpelCom) to serve as the new Chairman of the Supervisory Board.


Since his appointment as OJSC VimpelCom's CEO in October 2003, Mr. Izosimov has guided the Company's growth, first within Russia and then throughout the CIS, Southeast Asia and, most recently, Western Europe and Africa. Mr. Izosimov also led the Company's drive to become a provider of integrated telecommunications services, significantly diversifying the company's product offerings into fixed-line and broadband services to complement its mobile operations.


Jo Lunder previously served as Chief Executive Officer and Chief Operating Officer of OJSC VimpelCom at various times between 1999 and 2003. Since 2003, he has served as an independent director and as Chairman, first of OJSC VimpelCom, and more recently, VimpelCom Ltd. Prior to his time at VimpelCom, Mr. Lunder was employed in various capacities by Telenor and its affiliates from 1993 to 1999.
http://www.vimplecom.com

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Skyworks to Acquire SiGe Semiconductor

Skyworks Solutions will acquire SiGe Semiconductor, a supplier of radio frequency (RF) front-end solutions, for $210 million in cash, plus an additional $65 million if certain performance targets are met over the next 12 months.



SiGe Semiconductor specializes in solutions required by 802.11b/g/a/n, Bluetooth, WiMAX, GPS and ZigBee Systems. The company's innovative utilization of silicon-based semiconductor technologies simplifies the integration of RF signal processing. Its customers include Cisco, Dell, Huawei, Hewlett-Packard, NetGear, Itron, Microsoft, Nintendo, Samsung and Sony.



Skyworks said the addition of SiGe's innovative short range, silicon-based products will enable it to offer its customers a more complete product portfolio.



"Skyworks' acquisition of SiGe Semiconductor underscores our commitment to capitalize on ubiquitous wireless connectivity," said David J. Aldrich, president and chief executive officer of Skyworks. "To that end, this acquisition is highly complementary in terms of our addressed markets, sales channels, process technologies, design methodologies and baseband partnerships. At the same time, the SiGe business presents significant operational and cost synergies yielding immediate earnings accretion and long-term shareholder value creation."http://www.skyworks.com http://www.sige.com

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Huawei Launches 48-port and 64-port xDSL Cards

Huawei introduced two new xDSL cards for its DSLAM platform: a 48-port COMBO card and a 64-port VDSL2 card.



The 48-port COMBO card combines ADSL2+, voice, and splitter functions in one card. The density of ports significantly reduces the amount of required space in telecommunications rooms, simplifies copper cable routing, and reduces total power consumption. It also integrates traditional time-division multiplexing (TDM) voice capability along with VoIP support.



The 64-port VDSL2 card can be equipped with either an embedded or an external splitter to accelerate the deployment of VDSL2. With an embedded splitter, the 64-port VDSL2 card can significantly increase the integration of devices, and, as a result, the room space can be saved by at least 50%.



Both cards are equipped with the MELT line test function, enabling them to quickly identify line faults, eliminating the need for investment in dedicated test instruments, and thereby reducing OPEX.http://www.huawei.com

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First G.hn Chipset Interoperability Plugfest Set for Next Week

The HomeGrid Forum and the Broadband Forum will host the first G.hn Chipset Interoperability Plugfest next week at the ITU facilities in Geneva, Switzerland. The G.hn Chipset Interoperability Plugfest is being facilitated by the University of New Hampshire InterOperability Laboratory (UNH-IOL).



The specific goals of this first G.hn plugfest are to perform initial tests for interoperability and compliance of chipsets from a number of vendors, validate the test suite and act as a prelude to the launch of HomeGrid's formal Compliance and Interoperability program. Multiple G.hn chipset vendors are expected to participate.



"As one of the world's leading organizations for broadband best practices and technology evolution, we are pleased to be able to co-host the first G.hn chipset open interoperability event. This is a very important step on the road to bringing G.hn products to the market and represents a significant milestone for service providers planning to deploy G.hn," said Robin Mersh, CEO of the Broadband Forum.



"The ITU supports this event and we believe this represents a significant milestone in the world's service providers aligning around G.hn," said Malcolm Johnson, Director of the ITU Telecommunication Standardization Bureau from ITU. "A multi-vendor silicon interoperability event furthers the technology, and with the support of the Broadband Forum and HomeGrid Forum members, we are working with important players that will be deploying this technology in the near future."http://www.broadband-forum.orghttp://www.homegridforum.org

• In June 2010, the International Telecommunication Union (ITU-T) formally approved the G.hn standard for next-generation wired home networks, including the Data Link Layer (G.9961), Physical Layer (G.9960) and coexistence protocol (G.9972).
  
  
  
  G.hn is expected to simplify the home networking market, which has until now been cluttered with many competing technologies and upgrade variations.

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Aricent Undertakes Rebranding

Aricent unveiled a new corporate logo and changed its name to Aricent Group.



The Aricent Group name will serve as the new corporate brand for the company, with product innovation, design, and related engineering offerings marketed under the frog brand, and R&D engineering and carrier services marketed under the Aricent brand. The brands will each maintain their own client base and continue to collaborate in situations where clients can benefit from the Aricent Group's full breadth of capabilities.



The company said its new brand better reflects the Group's leadership role in helping clients capitalize on the disruptive innovations enabled by communication technologies, including 4G technologies such as LTE and WiMAX.



The Aricent Group was created in 2006 when private equity firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. (KKR), Sequoia Capital, and other investors combined the former Hughes Software Systems/Flextronics Software Division with frog design. Since then, the Aricent Group has grown to more than 10,000 employees in 36 locations, serving a client base that spans the entire telecommunications ecosystem (including communications service providers, equipment manufacturers, independent software vendors, and device makers) as well as Fortune 500 brands that are innovating in industries such as healthcare, energy, finance, retail, and media.http://www.aricent.com

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Norway's Direct Connext deploys Exalt Microwave Backhaul Systems

Direct Connect, an ISP bringing broadband services to rural Norway, is deploying Exalt Comunications' ExtendAir, ExploreAir, and EX systems microwave backhaul systems to extend its network into communities throughout the country. The equipment will replace fiber lines leased from a competitor as it connects community-based customer networks with the core of its network.



The Exalt systems help Direct Connect maintain a 15% annual subscriber growth rate while keeping networking costs at a minimum. For example, in a link between the cities of Bergen and Voss, Direct Connect is using three Exalt microwave systems to connect a node serving 320 subscribers, and by doing so is replacing a leased fiber connection costing nearly 240,000 Norwegian Kroner (NOK) per year (US equivalent $43,000).



Depending on the link, the Exalt EX, ExploreAir and ExtendAir microwave systems use licensed frequencies to deliver from 80 to 800 Mbps of Ethernet traffic over distances ranging up to 49 kilometers (approximately 30 miles). Direct Connect has chosen Exalt EX split-mount systems to meet the stringent requirements of a military base in its network, and all-outdoor ExploreAir and ExtendAir systems to support all other locations.

http://www.exaltcom.com

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Xilinx Acquires Sarance Technologies for 100G

Xilinx has acquired Sarance Technologies for an undisclosed sum.



Sarance Technologies is a leading supplier of ASIC and FPGA IP cores targeted at the packet processing space. The cores include Interlaken IP, classification and traffic management IP. Its solutions consist of very configurable, highly-FPGA-optimized portfolio of chip-to-chip interconnect focused on the Ethernet, Interlaken, and the Network Search Engine market segments. The companies said the Sarance IP is capable of scaling to 400G rates for bridging in an FPGA. Their IP along with Virtex FPGAs has allowed Xilinx to present optimized solutions to customers where many competitive alternatives require larger or non-optimized solutions that force compromises on features and performance.



Xilinx said the acquisition strengthens its portfolio for addressing next generation line card applications by adding premier connectivity communications capabilities. The new connectivity solution portfolio enables Xilinx to address the fast growing demand for 40G, 100G and beyond Interlaken, Ethernet and High-Speed Ethernet applications as well as new requirements for meeting 400G Ethernet system needs.



The latest acquisition follows the recent additions of Omiino Ltd. and Modelware to Xilinx's overall strategic portfolio.



"The insatiable global demand for bandwidth is drastically increasing constraints on network infrastructures and operators. Customers are increasing line card bandwidths well into the 200 Gbps to 400 Gbps and leading Ethernet MAC and Scalable Interlaken solutions are key for enabling FPGAs to play a central role in these applications," said Krishna Rangasayee Corporate Vice President & General Manager, Xilinx Communications Business Unit. "Sarance's expertise and portfolio is recognized throughout the industry. Bringing the MAC and Interlaken market leader into our fold gives Xilinx the ability to increase and accelerate the displacement of ASSPs and ASICs in many 40G/100G and beyond programs."http:/www.xilinx.com http://www.sarance.com/

• Sarance Technologies is based in Ottawa, Ontario.

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