Cignal AI: Network operators accelerate Capex in response to COVID-19

The effects of COVID-19 simultaneously catalyzed demand for transport equipment and paralyzed supply chains worldwide during the first quarter of 2020, according to Cignal AI’s latest Transport Hardware Report. Results show that sales of optical and packet hardware varied dramatically by region, product category, and vendor. “Demand for equipment is solid right now, with one major operator reporting that 70% of its annual capex budget has already...

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Qualcomm extends its Wi-Fi 6 portfolio

Qualcomm introduced four new chipsets supporting "Tri-Band Wi-Fi 6," offering simultaneous operation in 2.4, 5, and 6 GHz frequency bands. They offer support for up to 2,000 simultaneous users and are designed to deliver full network capacity in an unprecedented 16-stream Wi-Fi 6E configuration. Some additional capabilities: Qualcomm Multi-User Traffic Management: Provides advanced scheduling algorithms and buffering with universal uplink data...

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Vertical Systems Group: How will COVID-19 impact SD-WAN?

Following a triple-digit revenue increase in 2019 for U.S. Carrier Managed SD-WAN Services, the growth outlook for 2020 has been lowered to 17% due to the impact of COVID-19, according to ENS @SD-WAN research just released from Vertical Systems Group. Despite this market dip, the forecast shows measurable economic recovery during Q4 of this year, and a revenue rebound starting in 2021 that extends through 2024. Vertical’s SD-WAN forecast incorporates...

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SmarTone launches 5G in Hong Kong with Ericsson

SmarTone activated its commercial 5G service in Hong Kong. Ericsson is the network provider and was also the sole supplier of SmarTone’s 4G network. Notably, SmarTone is the first mobile operator in Asia to deploy Ericsson Spectrum Sharing, which enables 4G and 5G to be deployed in the same band and on the same radio through a software upgrade. Ericsson's solution dynamically allocates spectrum based on user demand on a 1 millisecond basis. The...

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Docomo launches multi-streaming on its 5G TV service

DOCOMO introduced a multistreaming capability for its "Hikari TV for docomo" service, making it possible to watch up to 7 programs simultaneously on a compatible Docomo 5G smartphone and app. The multi-multistreaming is available from Docomo's catalog of 18 channels. https://www.nttdocomo.co.jp/info/news_release/2020/06/01_00.h...

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Cisco to acquire ThousandEyes for real-time Internet visibility

Cisco agreed to acquire privately-held ThousandEyes, a provider of real-time visibility tools for the delivery of applications and services over the Internet. Financial terms were not disclosed. ThousandEyes, which is headquartered in San Francisco, was founded in 2010 by Mohit Lad and Ricardo Oliveira who had worked together during grad school in the UCLA Internet Research Lab to visualize Autonomous System topologies. T ThousandEyes vantage points...

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OpenRoaming envisions a globally available Wi-Fi federation

The Wireless Broadband Alliance (WBA) activated "OpenRoaming", a globally-available Wi-Fi federation with support from Boingo, Broadcom, Cisco, Deutsche Telekom, Google, Intel, Orange and Samsung, amongst others. WBA OpenRoaming offers an automatic and secure connection potentially to billions of devices across millions of Wi-Fi networks. The idea is to make it easier for users to join public Wi-Fi networks without needing to search for them, or...

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Investors pour $100 million into Ligado for its terrestrial L-Band network

Ligado Networks announced more than $100 million in new investments to begin taking the necessary steps to build 5G IoT networks. “With this new round of capital, we are better prepared than ever to do exactly what we’ve said: get this mid-band spectrum deployed to support the next-generation wireless networks needed to bring America’s critical infrastructure and essential services into the 21st century,” said Ligado CEO Doug Smith. “The investments...

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Zayo to supply diverse wavelength network to pharmaceutical company

Zayo has been selected to provide a diverse wavelength solution to a leading, global pharmaceutical company. The diverse wavelength solution will provide core network infrastructure and upgraded capacity to support the company’s data analytics, research collaboration and product innovation.  Zayo will also provide IP transit and zColo data center space. Zayo said the deal underscores how the pharmaceutical and biotechnology sector are driving...

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VMware sales rise 12% YoY as subscription and SaaS revenue grows

VMware reported quarterly revenue of $2.73 billion, an increase of 12% from the first quarter of fiscal 2020. GAAP net income for the first quarter was $386 million, or $0.92 per diluted share, compared to $380 million, or $0.89 per diluted share, for the first quarter of fiscal 2020.  Non-GAAP net income for the first quarter was $640 million, or $1.52 per diluted share, up 21% per diluted share compared to $535 million, or $1.25 per diluted...

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OneWeb looks to increase its constellation up to 48,000 satellites

OneWeb, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in March, is now asking the FCC for permission to increase the size of its planned constellation up to 48,000 LEO satellites. OneWeb said a larger constellation will allow for greater flexibility to meet soaring global connectivity demands. To date, OneWeb has successfully launched 74 satellites and developed a significant portion of its ground network. In August 2019, OneWeb met the requirements...

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Marvell posts sales of $694 million citing growth in data center and 5G

Marvell Technology Group reported quarterly revenue of $694 million, which exceeded the midpoint of the company's guidance provided on March 4, 2020. GAAP net loss for the first quarter of fiscal 2021 was $(113) million, or $(0.17) per diluted share. Non-GAAP net income for the first quarter of fiscal 2021 was $118 million, or $0.18 per diluted share. Cash flow from operations for the first quarter was $176 million. "In a challenging environment,...

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Dell’Oro: Optical Transport Equipment sales for DCI up 13% in Q1

Sales of optical transport equipment used for data center interconnect (DCI) increased 13 percent year-over-year in 1Q 2020, according to a new report from Dell’Oro Group,. The top three vendors — Ciena, Cisco, and Infinera — with a combined share of over 70% benefited the most from the rising demand for data center connectivity. “Data center interconnect continued to be an important application for optical transport equipment, especially in times...

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Canadian court rules extradition process can continue for Huawei exec

A Canadian court has ruled that the extradition process of Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou to the United States to face fraud charges may continue. The question at hand was whether the case should be dismissed for failing to meet the criteria of "double criminality" -- whether the alleged activity also violates Canadian law. In a press statement, Huawei expressed its disappointment and said it hoped Canada's judicial system would ultimately "prove Ms. Meng's...

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KKR to invest $1 billion in European data center venture

KKR, a leading global investment firm, will make a $1 billion equity capital commitment in the formation of Global Technical Realty (“GTR”), a build-to-suit and roll-up acquisition data center platform in Europe. The plan is to develop and build data centers for large technology companies across Europe.  Franek Sodzawiczny, a leading data center entrepreneur and executive, will lead the venture. Sodzawiczny is the former founder &...

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