Cisco Acquires AppDynamics for $3.7 Billion

Cisco agreed to acquire AppDynamics, a start-up based in San Francisco, for approximately $3.7 billion in cash and assumed equity awards. AppDynamics will be run as a new software business unit in Cisco's IoT and Applications business.

AppDynamics offers an Application Intelligence Platform that helps businesses proactively monitor, manage, analyze and optimize complex software environments, providing real-time, actionable IT operational and business insights into application performance, user experience, and business outcomes — all in real time. AppDynamics said its helps ensure maximum application and business performance, greatly improved DevOps collaboration for faster delivery, and enhanced analytical insight leading to better decision-making.

Cisco said real-time visibility and intelligence at the network, security and application layers is transformational for companies.

"Applications have become the lifeblood of a company's success. Keeping those apps running and performing well has never been more important. Unfortunately, that job has only gotten harder, as IT departments and developers struggle with a tangled web of disconnected, complex data that's hard to understand," said Rowan Trollope, Cisco senior vice president and general manager of Cisco's Internet of Things and Applications Business Group. "The combination of Cisco and AppDynamics will allow us to provide end to end visibility and intelligence from the network through to the application; which, combined with security and scale, and help IT to drive a new level of business results."

"AppDynamics is empowering companies to build and successfully run the applications they need to compete in today's digital world," said David Wadhwani, AppDynamics CEO and president. "With digital transformation, companies must re-define their relationships with customers through software. We're excited to join Cisco, as it will enable us to help more companies around the globe."

http://www.cisco.com
http://www.appdynamics.com

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Cumulus Runs on Facebook's Backpack Open Platform

Cumulus Networks' Linux network OS is now available for Facebook’s latest open hardware platform named "Backpack."

In addition, the Cumulus Linux network OS supports Wedge 100, the fixed configuration switch platform which Facebook made available to the community via the Open Compute Project last year.

“It’s been our mission from day one to bring the agility and economics of web-scale networking to companies of all sizes,” said JR Rivers, co-founder and CTO of Cumulus Networks. “Through our close work with the team at Facebook and our partner Celestica, we’re making it simple for data center operators to take advantage of the first open ecosystem chassis, combined with software proven through production deployments at more than a quarter of the Fortune 50 and some of the world’s largest public clouds.”

Backpack highlights:

• Reliability - Backpack comes with 128x 100G front panel ports, which is equivalent to 12x 1U 100G fixed form factor switches. This reduces sourcing and deployment complexity by eliminating hundreds of cables and optics for the customer.
• Flexibility - This is the first Open Networking modular design switch that customers can commercially buy and load Cumulus Linux onto.
• Operational Efficiency - Eliminating supervisors and proprietary communication protocols from traditional chassis greatly improves control plane performance, high availability and troubleshooting. Further, an orthogonal direct chassis architecture enables better airflow and thermal performance, which reduces cooling and power requirements.
• Scalability - Backpack follows the web-scale principles that allow customers to maintain consistent automated provisioning across all their switches of different form-factors (fixed or chassis).

https://cumulusnetworks.com/blog/announcing-backpack-running-cumulus-linux/

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Barefoot Contributes Wedge 100B Switch Designs to OCP

Barefoot Networks unveiled two Wedge 100B switch designs based on its Tofino 6.5 Tb/s Ethernet switch chip: Wedge100BF-32X, a 3.2Tb/s 1RU 32x100GE switch and Wedge100BF-65X, a 6.5Tb/s 2RU 65x100GE switch.

The Wedge 100B switches support FBOSS, SONiC and several other switch operating systems, and can be controlled by the OCP's Switch Abstraction Interface (SAI) API, switchAPI (an extensible, open API) or APIs designed by the user. The default "switch.p4" program running on Tofino turns the Wedge 100B switches into a top-of-rack switch, with all the standard features expected in a data center. Users may add or remove features as they choose, add new protocols, change table sizes, give greater visibility and fold in middlebox functions, such as Layer-4 load-balancing. The Wedge 100B platforms also introduce several enhancements, including an optimized power supply unit, lower cost PCB design, improved Design For Manufacturability, beefier CPU module, etc. The switches run an updated version of OpenBMC.

"The Open Compute Networking Project is excited to see Barefoot Networks share two Wedge 100B hardware designs with the community," said Omar Baldonado, OCP Networking Project Co-Lead. "We look forward to seeing the new innovations enabled by these Wedge 100B designs and the flexibility that their programmable switching silicon brings to the industry."

"Barefoot Networks is delighted to share its Tofino based Wedge 100B switch designs with the Open Compute Project community," said Martin Izzard, Co-Founder & CEO, Barefoot Networks. "With Wedge 100B platforms, the OCP ecosystem, network owners and architects have unprecedented access to a fully disaggregated networking stack down to the forwarding plane, enabling them to build networks that best suit their needs."

http://www.barefootnetworks.com

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Comcast Business Launches DOCSIS 3.1 Service with 1 Gig and 500 Mbps Tiers

Comcast Business is rolling out DOCSIS 3.1-based Internet service to business customers in its Atlanta, Chicago, Detroit and Nashville service areas. "Business Internet 1 Gig" and "Business Internet 500" speed tiers are now available to thousands of business customers in these Comcast service areas using the company’s existing network.

Comcast said the new tiers of service complement existing gigabit and multi-gigabit options already available to Comcast Business customers, including Comcast Business Ethernet, which the company launched and has been expanding nationally since 2011. Those services can support speeds of 100 gigabits per second over fiber.

"High-capacity, high-performance internet can be a difference-maker for businesses that want to leverage software-as-a-service applications to improve their operations or enhance the customer experience by offering in-store Wi-Fi or a robust e-commerce site," said Kevin O’Toole, senior vice president of Product Management at Comcast Business. "DOCSIS 3.1 business internet service offers a new and easy plug-and-play option for accessing gigabit speeds in any business environment – whether that is a large distributed enterprise across a wide geographic area or a small business with one or a few locations."

Comcast Business plans to launch Business Internet 1 Gig and Business Internet 500 in the majority of its service areas throughout 2017 and into 2018.

http://corporate.comcast.com/news-information/news-feed/comcast-rolls-out-docsis-3-1-based-gigabit-internet-service-for-business-customers-in-multiple-markets

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NTTPC to Offer Managed Cloud Service Using Viptela SD-WAN

NTTPC Communications Inc. (NTTPC), a premier telecommunications carrier in Japan, is using  Viptela’s Software-Defined Wide Area Networking (SD-WAN) technology for its first managed cloud network service called "Master’sONE".

The Master’sONE Service uses the Viptela SEN (Secure Extensible Network) to establish a secure overlay network across MPLS and Internet circuits. It enables the mixing and matching of a variety of connections including MPLS, broadband, 3G/4G LTE, satellite and point-to-point links, which customers and/or NTTPC engineers can manage as a single network. Viptela enables NTTPC to centrally create, control and enforce policies throughout the network to meet performance requirements for different application types including mobile, voice, data and video.

“We are pleased to announce our partnership with NTTPC and help them roll out SD-WAN in Japan,” said Pepe Garcia, GM of Viptela, Japan & LATAM. “NTTPC joins a growing list of leading national and international carriers that have chosen Viptela to deliver managed SD-WAN services.”

http://www.nttpc.co.jp/english/overview.html
http://www.viptela.com

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Verizon's Revenue Dip as Competition Intensifies

Citing intensified wireless competition, Verizon reported lower Q4 and full-year 2016 revenues and profitability.

Total consolidated operating revenues in fourth-quarter 2016 were $32.3 billion, a 5.6 percent decrease compared with fourth-quarter 2015. Full-year 2016 revenues were nearly $126.0 billion, a 4.3 percent decline. Excluding revenues from since-divested local landline businesses and AOL, adjusted full-year total operating revenues on a comparable basis (non-GAAP) would have declined approximately 2.4 percent.

Net income was $4.6 billion in fourth-quarter 2016, and net income margin was 14.2 percent. EBITDA (non-GAAP, earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) totaled $12.0 billion, and the consolidated EBITDA margin (non-GAAP) was 37.1 percent in fourth-quarter 2016.

Fourth-quarter 2016 EPS came in at $1.10,and full-year EPS at $3.21. Adjusted fourth-quarter 2016 EPS (non-GAAP) of 86 cents excluded 24 cents in net gains related to mark-to-market pension and OPEB (other post-employment benefits) adjustments and severance-related costs.

During 2016, Verizon invested in its networks with $17.1 billion in capital expenditures, completed wireline divestitures of three markets, negotiated new labor contracts, executed successful technical trials of 5G wireless service and expanded its new growth businesses.

“We are positioning Verizon for future growth and continued sustainable shareholder value,” said Chairman and CEO Lowell McAdam. “In the fourth quarter we expanded our customer base in highly competitive wireless and broadband markets. This capped a year in which we delivered solid results and returned value to shareholders, including $9.3 billion in dividends. We enter 2017 with confidence, based on our investments in next-generation networks and the new capabilities we have acquired. Our goal is to continue to earn our customers’ loyalty every day in a rapidly expanding mobile-first digital world.”

Verizon Wireless highlights

• Verizon reported 591,000 retail postpaid net additions in fourth-quarter 2016. 
• At year-end 2016, Verizon had 114.2 million retail connections, a 1.9 percent year-over-year increase. Verizon’s retail postpaid connections base grew 2.1 percent to 108.8 million, and retail prepaid connections totaled 5.4 million. Full-year postpaid net additions of 2.3 million included 1.8 million 4G smartphones and 1.4 million 4G tablets, offset primarily by declines in basic phones and 3G smartphones.
• Total revenues were $23.4 billion in fourth-quarter 2016, a decline of 1.5 percent compared with fourth-quarter 2015, as more customers continued to choose unsubsidized device payment plans. For the full year, revenues totaled $89.2 billion, a decline of 2.7 percent. Service revenues plus device payment plan billings increased 1.7 percent in fourth-quarter 2016, compared with fourth-quarter 2015.
• At year-end 2016, approximately 67 percent of postpaid phone customers were on a non-subsidized service pricing plan, ahead of target due to high volumes in fourth-quarter 2016.
• In fourth-quarter 2016, overall traffic on LTE increased by approximately 49 percent compared with fourth-quarter 2015, while Verizon extended its lead in the industry’s third-party network performance studies across the country.

Wireline highlights

• Total wireline revenues decreased 3.1 percent, to $7.8 billion, comparing fourth-quarter 2016 with fourth-quarter 2015. Retail consumer revenues grew 0.2 percent, to $3.2 billion, supported by consumer Fios revenue growth.
• Total Fios revenues grew 4.4 percent, to $2.9 billion, comparing fourth-quarter 2016 with fourth-quarter 2015. Full-year Fios revenues were $11.2 billion in 2016, a 4.6 percent increase compared with 2015.
• In fourth-quarter 2016, Verizon added a net of 68,000 Fios Internet connections and 21,000 Fios Video connections. Customer demand for Custom TV continues to remain strong. At year-end, Verizon had 5.7 million Fios Internet connections and 4.7 million Fios Video connections.
• In the fourth quarter, Verizon began offering consumer and business fiber-based services to customers in Boston, as part of the company’s One Fiber initiative.
• Wireline operating income was $414 million in fourth-quarter 2016, compared with $7 million in fourth-quarter 2015. Segment operating income margin was 5.3 percent in fourth-quarter 2016. Segment EBITDA (non-GAAP) was $1.9 billion in fourth-quarter 2016, up 17.7 percent from fourth-quarter 2015. Segment EBITDA margin (non-GAAP) was 24.1 percent in fourth-quarter 2016, compared with 19.8 percent in fourth-quarter 2015.
• During the fourth quarter, Verizon Enterprise Solutions entered into new agreements, continued or completed work with a number of clients, including AECOM, ICICI Bank, LBC Tank Terminals Group, Nanyang Technological University and Target Corporation.

http://www.verizon.com/about/news/verizon-grows-its-strong-customer-base-profitably-4q

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Arbor: Weaponization of IoT Devices Drives Attack Size Higher by 60%

The threat landscape has been transformed by the emergence of Internet of Things (IoT) botnets, with attackers now able to weaponize inherent security vulnerabilities in certain IoT devices, according to Arbor Networks' 12th Annual Worldwide Infrastructure Security Report (WISR).  Arbor Networks is the security division of NETSCOUT.

“The survey respondents have grown accustomed to a constantly evolving threat environment with steady increases in attack size and complexity over the past decade,” said Darren Anstee, Arbor Networks Chief Security Technologist. “However, IoT botnets are a game changer because of the numbers involved. There are billions of these devices deployed, and they are being easily weaponized to launch massive attacks. Increasing concern over the threat environment is reflected in the survey results, which show significant improvements in the deployment of best practice technologies and response processes.”

Some highlights:

• The largest distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack reported this year was 800 Gbps, a 60% increase over 2015’s largest attack of 500 Gbps. 
• Since Arbor began the WISR in 2005, DDoS attack size has grown 7,900%, for a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 44%.
• In the past five years alone, DDoS attack size has grown 1,233%, for a CAGR of 68%.
• 53% of service providers indicated they are seeing more than 21 attacks per month – up from 44% last year.
• 21% of data-center respondents saw more than 50 attacks per month, versus only 8% last year.
• 45% of enterprise, government and education respondents experienced more than 10 attacks per month – a 17% year over year increase.
• 67% of service providers and 40% of Enterprise, Government and Education (EGE) reported seeing multi-vector attacks on their networks.
• 61% of data center operators reported attacks totally saturating data center bandwidth.
• 25% of data center and cloud providers saw the cost of a major DDoS attack rise above $100,000, and 5% cited costs of over $1 million.
• 41% of EGE organizations reported DDoS attacks exceeding their total internet capacity. Nearly 60% of EGE respondents estimate downtime costs above $500/minute.
• 77% of service provider respondents are capable of mitigating attacks in less than 20 minutes.
• Nearly 55% of EGE respondents now carry out DDoS defense simulations, with approximately 40% carrying them out at least quarterly.
• The proportion of data center and cloud provider respondents that are using firewalls for DDoS defense has fallen from 71% to 40%. 

https://www.arbornetworks.com/

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Sprint Names Néstor Cano as COO

Sprint named Néstor Cano to the newly created position of chief operating officer, a position where he will be responsible for delivering operational excellence, driving further expense reductions, and strengthening systems and processes across the business.

Cano most recently was president of European Operations at Tech Data, one of the world’s largest distributors of IT products and services. Cano also held other senior executive roles at the company where he fixed management processes and controls to drive the best-ever profit in the company’s European operations. Before joining Tech Data, Cano held positions with technology companies in Spain, including Tronik and CCR Informatica.

http://www.sprint.com

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