Comcast Tests 1 Tbps, Long-Haul Super-Channel with Ciena

Comcast and Ciena completed a live field trial of a 1 Terabit/sec optical transmission spanning nearly 1,000 km over Comcast’s existing long-haul fiber infrastructure connecting Ashburn, Va. to Charlotte, N.C.

The 1 Tbps trial, which took place during the first week of October, carried live data traffic over a 1 Tbps 16QAM super-channel.  At the same time, that network was also carrying customer traffic over 10G, 40G and 100G wavelengths, all coexisting on a mix of flexible and 50GHz-spaced fixed grid channels.

The trial used Ciena’s 6500 Packet-Optical Platform solution that combined flexible grid Reconfigurable Optical Add/Drop Multiplexers (ROADM) with 16QAM coherent modulation to achieve 5b/s/Hz of spectral efficiency over a distance of nearly 1,000 km of uncompensated ELEAF fiber.

Ciena’s next generation Raman and programmable gain amplifiers, the newest addition to the WaveLogic intelligent coherent portfolio, provided optimized performance and system reach. The trial ran in parallel over the same optical infrastructure that supports a combination of HD video, Internet and voice traffic on Comcast’s existing 100G national backbone.

“We continue to work with Ciena to leverage our already installed Ciena 6500 platforms to deliver more content, faster Internet speeds and enable new cloud-based applications for our customers,” said Steve Surdam executive director, Network Engineering at Comcast Cable. “As we look to continuously evolve our network infrastructure, Ciena’s high-capacity Terabit optical technology will give us the flexibility and scalability required to future proof our network to deliver next-generation products and services for our customers.”

http://www.ciena.com
http://wwww.comcast.com

• Comcast has been leveraging Ciena’s coherent 40G and 100G technologies across its national fiber network since 2009. Ciena’s packet networking solutions also support Comcast’s Metro Ethernet services offering.

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Vitesse Unveils Jaguar-2 Switch Chip for Carrier Ethernet 2.0

Vitesse Semiconductor introduced its Jaguar-2 single chip solution for MEF Carrier Ethernet 2.0 business services over public and private cloud networks.

Jaguar-2 features 48 Gigabit Ethernet ports, 24 2.5G ports, up to four ports of direct connectivityto 10G optical modules and Layer-3 routing support. Sampling is expected to begin later this quarter.

Jaguar-2 leverages Vitesse Service Aware Architecture (ViSAA) to enable advanced Operations, Administration and Maintenance (OAM) and Service Activation Testing (SAT) capabilities, including wirespeed RF2544 and Y.1564.

Highlights of the Jaguar-2 family:

• MEF CE 2.0 readiness with per Ethernet Virtual Connection (EVC) feature control and resource allocation support for 1 Gigabit Ethernet (GE) and 10GE applications;
• Hierarchical service OAM and performance measurement including up and down MEP OAM and Service Activation Testing for maintenance and SLA assurance purposes;
• Hierarchical QoS on a per-service basis, versus the port-level QoS available in competitive solutions;
• VeriTime, which is Vitesse's high accuracy IEEE 1588v2 Precision Time Protocol implementation for nanosecond-accurate network timing and synchronization.

“As businesses increasingly outsource applications and data services to the cloud, their Ethernet connection becomes more critical than ever,” said Uday Mudoi, vice president, product marketing at Vitesse. “Representing the third-generation in Vitesse’s Carrier Ethernet switch engine portfolio, Jaguar-2 with ViSAA enables unprecedented levels of remote provisioning, monitoring and troubleshooting capabilities on service provider network access equipment. This granular level of control fundamentally changes how service providers can monetize their services and create new revenue opportunities.”

http://www.vitesse.com/products/product.php?number=VSC7468

Accurate timing and synchronization is mission-critical for next generation networks. Carriers are migrating to packet-based timing architectures, including IEEE 1588, for the  advantages it offers over traditional synchronization techniques. This video discusses the evolution of network timing (0:51), IEEE 1588 (2:02), 1588 and Small Cell Architecture (2:29), LTE-Advanced Timing Accuracy Requirements (3:22), Differences in 1588 Implementations (3:50), and Vitesse's VeriTime solution (4:41).

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GSA: 222 LTE Networks Launched

Th Global mobile Suppliers Association (GSA) confirmed that 222 operators have commercially launched LTE services in 83 countries.

Some highlights of their most recent report:

• 109 LTE networks were commercially launched in the past 12 months.
  
• 474 operators are investing in LTE in 138 countries, including 421 firm operator commitments to build LTE networks in 128 countries, plus 53 additional operators engaged in various trials, studies, etc. in a further 10 countries.
  
• The majority of LTE operators have deployed the FDD mode of the standard.
  
• The most widely used band in network deployments continues to be 1800 MHz (band 3) which is used in 43% of commercially launched LTE networks.
  
• The next most popular contiguous bands are 2.6 GHz (band 7) used in 30% of networks, followed by 800 MHz (band 20) which is used in over 12% of networks today.
  
• Interest in the TDD mode is strengthening and global. 23 LTE TDD systems are commercially launched in 18 countries, of which 11 that have been deployed in combined LTE FDD & TDD operations.

"Having globally aligned spectrum bands is a great result for end consumers, as these make international roaming easier, and help drive early device availability. Adoption of the APT700 MHz band plan represents a major opportunity for regional and global spectrum harmonization that could deliver the benefits of economies of scale for end-user devices," stated Alan Hadden, President of the GSA.

http://www.gsacom.com/news/gsa_390.php

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Alcatel-Lucent Intros Fixed-Access Micronodes

Alcatel-Lucent launched a range of fixed access micro-nodes that combine fiber and VDSL2 vectoring to bring ultra-broadband fixed access to more users, more quickly.

The small, customizable, fiber-fed micro-nodes can be deployed on telephone poles, in manholes, in buildings, and any other “fiber-to-the-distribution point” (FTTdp) location, covering 192, 48, 16, or even a single subscriber. The units offer a choice of powering options (remote or reverse), uplinks (GPON or GE), mounting, and service ports.  The range includes:

• 7367 ISAM SX-48V with 48 VDSL2 vectoring ports
• 7367 ISAM SX-16V with 16 VDSL2 vectoring ports
• 7368 ISAM ONT G-010V with 1 VDSL2 port
• 7363 ISAM MX-6: a compact modular system (with 6 mini linecards) supporting up to 192 VDSL2 vectoring ports. In addition, xDSL, POTS, and P2P fiber are also supported.

Alcatel Lucent also recently unveiled an EPON fiber solution, as well as a new Motive ServiceView solution that provides visibility across the entire network – including a view of micro-nodes and EPON fiber. It also looks across network services and all customer connected devices.

http://www.alcatel-lucent.com
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GQwJ73TinOA&feature=share&list=UUB4MBMGaIN6zcfWHLJLwZlA

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Infonetics: Managed Security Services Projected to Grow

Managed security services are projected to grow 45% over the next 5 years, according to a new report from Infonetics.  Major factors include:

• An increase in the volume, variety, and complexity of threats of all types
• Security product sprawl
• A distributed workforce and the proliferation of BYOD erasing network perimeters
• As IT infrastructure continues its march into the cloud, security will follow: cloud-based security service revenue is forecast by Infonetics to grow at a 10.8% compound annual growth rate (CAGR) from 2012 to 2017, to $9.2 billion.

Though prominent SaaS providers like Google and Microsoft are transforming the standalone security business and bundling security functionality with business apps (Google Docs/Drive and Office 365), they remain serious competition for traditional managed security vendors

"The long-term outlook for managed security services, and especially cloud services, is quite strong, but there are some potential stumbling blocks,” cautions Jeff Wilson, principal analyst for security at Infonetics Research. “Improvements in the efficacy and ease of management of security products could decrease the urgency to move to the cloud, and regulatory drivers are forcing some customers to keep all data on premise.”

http://www.infonetics.com

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Broadcom Posts Revenue of $2.15 Billion, Announces 1,150 Job Cuts

Broadcom reported net revenue was $2.15 billion for the third quarter of 2013, up 2.7% compared with the $2.09 billion reported for the second quarter of 2013 and an increase of 0.8% compared with the $2.13 billion reported for the third quarter of 2012. Net income GAAP) was $316 million , or $0.55 per share (diluted), compared with a GAAP net loss of $251 million , or $0.43 per share (basic and diluted), for the second quarter of 2013 and GAAP net income of $220 million , or $0.38 per share (diluted), for the third quarter of 2012.

"Broadcom delivered better-than-expected results across the board in the September quarter," said Scott McGregor, Broadcom's President and Chief Executive Officer. "With the Renesas transaction closed, the combined team is working diligently to deliver LTE revenue in early 2014. Looking forward, we are taking the necessary steps to tightly manage the business while focusing on strategic initiatives, including LTE, data center innovation and driving the next generation of home video with HEVC."

Broadcom also noted that it has launched a global restructuring plan that includes a workforce reduction of up to 1,150 employees (some of whom originated from the Renesas acquisition). In connection with the plan, Broadcom recorded restructuring costs of $12 million in the third quarter of 2013 and anticipates that it will record approximately $20 million in restructuring costs in the fourth quarter of 2013.

http://www.broadcom.com/investors

• In September 2013, Broadcom agreed to acquire LTE-related assets from affiliates of Renesas Electronics Corporation for approximately $164 million in cash. Broadcom is gaining a dual-core LTE SoC that is ready for volume production and is carrier-validated by leading global operators in North America, Japan and Europe. Broadcom also receives high-quality multimode, multiband, LTE-A/HSPA+/EDGE modem IP that includes support for leading-edge features such as Carrier Aggregation and VoLTE. The acquisition adds quality patents and applications to Broadcom's IP portfolio and brings some of the world's most experienced cellular engineers to Broadcom.  Broadcom said the deal will accelerate the launch of its first multimode, carrier-validated LTE SoC platform, which is now expected in early 2014. 

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Cloudian Raises Funding from Intel for its Distributed Object Software

Cloudian, a start-up based in Foster City, California, announced Series B funding from Intel Capital.

Cloudian develops software for distributed object storage in cloud and enterprise use cases. Cloudian aims to help enterprise IT and cloud service providers (CSPs) to deploy turnkey multi-tenant private and public object storage systems on commodity IA servers, scaling from two servers to exabytes across multiple datacenters with high reliability and elasticity.

Cloudian is actively partnering with leading cloud computing environments including Citrix Cloud Platform, Apache CloudStack, and OpenStack, cloud on-ramp providers, and the vast ecosystem of tools and applications that is afforded through true S3 compatibility. Cloudian's customers include Vodafone, Nextel, NTT, Nifty, and LunaCloud. The company has additional offices in China and Japan.

"Cloudian puts the power of on-premise object storage and S3 application ecosystem into the hands of IT professionals at enterprises and managed service providers," said Michael Tso, co-founder and CEO, Cloudian. "We are thrilled to have Intel's support in our quest to deliver Cloudian globally through distributors and channel partners, bringing Cloudian's rich features and economics to private, public, and hybrid clouds."

http://www.cloudian.com

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ZTE Posts 9-Month Revenue of RMB 54.66 Billion (US$8.98b)

ZTE reported a net profit of RMB 552 million (US$90.69 million) from January to September, with basic earnings per share of RMB 0.16, in line with the company’s earlier forecast. Revenue dropped 10% to RMB 54.66 billion (US$8.98 billion). ZTE posted a quarterly profit after extraordinary items in the July-September period, ending a negative sequence that began in the second-quarter of 2012. ZTE forecasts the company will post a full-year net profit in 2013, after a loss in 2012.

Some highlights:

• There was positive operational cash flow reported in Q3, following a sequence of negative cash flow in the July-September periods in 2009 to 2012.
  
• Capital investment by global telecom operators remained sluggish, with spending focused on 4G networks and the construction of broadband networks, and their ancillary transmission networks.
   
• In the China market, large-scale TD-LTE network construction will drive investment opportunities for solution providers, while the ongoing implementation of the Broadband China strategy would provide policy support for the development of high-speed broadband infrastructure nationally, ZTE is in a strong position to capitalize on these market opportunities by building our competitiveness and working closely in tandem with the operators.
   
• Internationally, ZTE continued to focus its efforts in major and globally-leading carriers, and gained strong momentum in key sectors such as enterprise and government ICT solutions, services and mobile devices, while consolidating its share of the telecommunications network infrastructure market.

 http://wwwen.zte.com.cn/en/press_center/news/201310/t20131022_408739.html

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