MIPI RFFE v3.0 offers tighter timing precision for 5G

The MIPI Alliance released an updated version of its standard interface for control of radio frequency (RF) front-end (FE) subsystems.

MIPI RFFE v3.0 is designed to deliver tighter timing precision and reduced latencies need for 5G.

The MIPI Alliance said that since its initial release a decade ago, RFFE has been deployed in billions of devices—in virtually every device with cellular connectivity—including handsets, smartwatches and automobiles, to name a few.

MIPI RFFE simplifies the design, configuration and integration of the increasingly complex RF front end—which encompasses the power amplifiers, antenna tuners, filters, low-noise amplifiers (LNAs) and switches—connecting with the modem baseband and/or RF integrated circuit (RFIC) transceiver. As the number of RF bands involved in both uplink and downlink communications has exploded in the rollout of 5G, the subcarrier spacing (SCS) windows among RF packets have narrowed. MIPI RFFE v3.0 addresses the decreased reconfiguration windows and lower-latency switching among various bands and band combinations demanded in the 3GPP 5G standard by delivering enhanced triggering features and functionality, which results in fast, agile, semi-automated and comprehensive control of individual RFFE subsystems.

MIPI RFFE v3.0 utilizes multiple, complementary triggers to synchronize and schedule changes in register settings, either within a slave device or across multiple devices:

• Timed triggers—Allows for tighter, synchronized timing control of multiple carrier aggregation configurations
• Mappable triggers—Enables groups of control functions to be remapped to other triggers quickly and easily
• Extended triggers—Boosts the number of unique triggers available in the RF control system and accommodates increasingly complex radio architectures
• With the enhanced triggering functions, MIPI RFFE v3.0 improves throughput efficiencies and reduces packet latency, while also improving the precision in trigger placement. For back-to-back triggering operations, for example, the specification delivers a 20x improvement in timing precision.

“The new version of the specification expands its applicability to 5G use cases beyond mobile, such as for automotive, industrial and the Internet of Things (IoT),” said Joel Huloux, chairman of MIPI Alliance. “Development of MIPI RFFE v3.0 was laser focused on satisfying the unprecedented requirements for tight timing precision and low latency in the 3GPP 5G standard today. In this way, the specification helps ensure that manufacturers’ 5G devices deliver the high-performance RF capabilities necessary to enable critical consumer and business features in emerging 5G application spaces.”

“With MIPI RFFE v3.0, the specification has been streamlined and optimized to deliver the specific capabilities required to thrive in today’s 5G rollout across the Frequency Range 1 (FR1) of traditional sub-6 GHz cellular bands,” said Jim Ross, MIPI RF Front End Control Working Group Chair. “The working group is always looking to refine the specification to continue differentiating and benefitting our user community, and we welcome engagement in requirements gathering for Frequency Range 2 (FR2) and the ongoing evolution of the next-generation MIPI RFFE for the subsequent stages of 5G deployment.”

http://www.mipi.org

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Windstream Wholesale expands to Equinix NY5 Secaucus

Windstream Wholesale is establishing a presence at the Equinix NY5 International Business Exchange (IBX) data center in Secaucus, New Jersey.

Windstream Wholesale will offer fully diverse 10 and 100 Gig Waves to the ecosystem of companies operating within Equinix’s New York metro data center campus, which offers a highly scalable platform with more than 90 network service providers.

Windstream Wholesale said expects to be built into the Equinix facility by July. However, urgent network capacity needs continue to grow, so, in the meantime, Windstream has provided a creative temporary solution for one of its established partners, Seaborn Networks, a leading developer-owner-operator of subsea fiber optic cable systems. Windstream delivered four 100-Gig waves from Ashburn, Va., to the international landing station in Wall Township, N.J., to meet Seaborn’s immediate expansion needs. When Windstream’s build is complete at the NY5 IBX, it will move two of those waves to Secaucus.

“We are pleased with Windstream Wholesale’s new presence at Equinix’s New York area data center campus. We have been partnering for some time and this new, diverse route between Secaucus and Ashburn will enhance and enrich our ability to serve our customers through Windstream’s network in U.S.,” said Michel Marcelino, senior vice president and head of Latin America for Seaborn. “I look forward to expanding our connectivity together, offering resilient services for our customers both domestically and internationally.”

“Windstream Wholesale continues to expand our data center portfolio with our presence at the Equinix NY5 IBX, which provides diverse, low-latency access to a massive electronic trading ecosystem and major cloud service providers,” said Joe Scattareggia, executive vice president of Windstream Wholesale. “We’re excited that this location has enabled us to enhance our partnership with Seaborn Networks, and our ability to meet their expansion needs even before our build is complete speaks to the creativity that we bring to client relationships.”

“Windstream Wholesale is a valued participant in the ecosystem of world-class providers offering their services on Platform Equinix®,” said Adam Janota, senior director of business development at Equinix. “Windstream’s 100 Gbps Wavelength service offers a strong option for the core backbone capacity needs of Equinix customers seeking low latency connectivity between our Secaucus, N.J., and Ashburn, Va., data center campuses, providing a diverse path between the New York and Washington, D.C., metros that avoids Manhattan data centers. The more than 500 businesses operating at Equinix’s Secaucus data center campus will also benefit from Windstream’s direct access to Seaborn Networks’ sub-sea capacity.”

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Nutanix gains FedRAMP designation for its Government Cloud

Nutanix's Xi Government Cloud has achieved the Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (FedRAMP) Authorized designation at the Moderate security impact level. Xi Government Cloud has successfully completed a full security assessment and authorization at a moderate security impact level of 325 controls. The FedRAMP Moderate control baseline equates to a DoD Impact Level 2.

The Nutanix Xi Government Cloud, which is purpose-built for U.S. Federal government customers, includes Xi Frame, a multi-cloud Desktop as a Service (DaaS) platform, and Xi Beam, a Hybrid Cloud Cost Governance tool on the market. The platform could be used by federal agencies efficiently and securely offer telework capabilities to more employees, over an extended period of time.

The Xi Government Cloud is operated by Nutanix in compliance with United States International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR). As part of this, Xi Frame is a DaaS platform that supports high-performance remote desktops running in AWS GovCloud, Azure Government, and Google Cloud FedRAMP regions, as well as on premises desktops using Nutanix AHV. Additionally, Xi Beam, a multi-cloud cost optimization and governance service, supports consolidated resource management, spend visibility and cost optimization for agencies of all sizes on both public and private clouds.

“Achieving the FedRAMP authorization for our Xi Government Cloud offerings, Xi Frame and Xi Beam, allows us to deliver new solutions to federal agencies that need to quickly and securely expand telework capabilities, while also managing the costs and governance of their cloud resources,” said Chris Howard, Vice President of U.S. Federal Sales at Nutanix. “With federal agencies adjusting to remote work environments, they will be able to access the same seamless hybrid cloud environments and security provided by internal networks from remote locations.”

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Cal.net to build CBRS network for rural California

Cal.net, a wireless internet service provider based in Northern California, has contracted with network partner ExteNet Systems build a CBRS network serving rural areas of the state.

Nokia is the primary supplier of equipment deployed in the Cal.net network, including microwave radios, IP routers and the AirScale RAN solution. ExteNetis responsible for the design, build and operations of Cal.net’s CBRS network while also providing a hosted IP core service.

The new Cal.net network buildout is underway with most of the work planned for completion in the first four years of the agreement. The network is expected to be one of the first deployments of CBRS technology in the U.S.

Tim Mahoney, National Director of Sales – U.S. Regionals, Nokia, said: “Nokia believes in bringing connectivity to everyone, whether they live in large urban cities, or in counties such as those in Northern California where Cal.net is staking its claim as the leading service provider in the region with this new network design and build. During this critical time where people are operating under ‘stay at home’ protocols, it’s more important than ever that we solve internet traffic overload issues due to COVID-19 and ensure we keep people connected with their communities. This Cal.net buildout is strategically planned over the next 10 years with the majority of work completed up front. As such, we are committed to our long-term partnership with Cal.net and ExteNet Systems to put the enormous benefits of access to high-speed internet for education, commerce, healthcare and more into the hands of the people.”

Jason Osborne, VP of Strategic Solutions, ExteNet Systems, said: “The combination of Nokia equipment with our Infrastructure-as-a-Service offering proved to be the right fit for Cal.net. We have worked with Cal.net for many years and selected Nokia RAN and microwave radio as an integrated offering with our distributed evolved packet core (EPC) solution for the CBRS network build. Cal.net benefits from our carrier-class network assurance, including 24/7 monitoring and maintenance. Nokia is our trusted partner and we look forward to working closely together on this important network buildout for Cal.net.”

Nick Sekulich, Director of Operations, Cal.net, said: “In the rural regions that we serve, we needed a wireless solution that can deliver the same performance as fiber, and we needed a trusted partner in wireless infrastructure to help bring our vision of a highly reliable wireless network to life. We chose to build our new network exclusively with Nokia equipment given the company’s decades-long reputation for quality in telecom and our mutual commitment to bridging the digital divide for underserved communities.”

https://www.cal.net/

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Airgain’s antenna-modem brings FirstNet LTE to public safety vehicles

Airgain introduced an antenna-modem that includes an integrated FirstNet Ready high-power LTE modem supporting the 3GPP Band 14 High Power UE output power functionality.

Band 14 spectrum is the nationwide, high-quality spectrum set aside by the U.S. government specifically for FirstNet.

The rugged vehicle antenna-modem solution tightly couples essential LTE radio components to meet the most demanding needs of public safety and fleet vehicles.

Airgain said its new AC-HPUE product ensures transmission of the maximum allowable radiated power directly to the LTE antenna elements. AirgainConnect’s patented technology eliminates the signal loss over coax cables that run from mobile routers mounted in vehicle compartments to roof-mounted antennas, which combined with HPUE capability provides up to ten times the transmit power at the antenna when compared to the router’s conventional modem and antenna. The result is a dramatic increase in the coverage area and higher data rates.

Airgain has partnered with Assured Wireless Corporation to utilize the industry’s first FirstNet Ready™ certified Band 14 HPUE modem module in the AirgainConnect platform.

“AirgainConnect is a breakthrough new platform that integrates high-power mobile modem technology with an antenna into the same package, enabling superior performance for 4G and 5G communications,” said Jacob Suen, President and CEO of Airgain. “Through our new partnership with Assured Wireless we are proud to announce AirgainConnect AC-HPUE, the first AirgainConnect product. Powered by Assured Wireless’ HPUE modem module, the AirgainConnect AC-HPUE enables more reliable connections, wider coverage, and greater performance. We are thrilled to announce this new platform, which for Airgain represents a new level of advanced product solutions, enabling improved connectivity to those who need it most, our first responders.”

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GTT posts Q1 revenue of $399 million

GTT reported recurring revenue of $399.4 million for the 1st quarter 2020, an increase of 0.6% as compared to the 4th quarter 2019, and a decrease of 4.4% compared to the 1st quarter 2019. Recurring revenue represents 94% of total revenue for the 1st quarter 2020 compared to 94% and 93% for the 4th quarter 2019 and the 1st quarter 2019, respectively. Non-recurring revenue of $25.3 million for the 1st quarter 2020 decreased 5.2% compared to the 4th quarter 2019, and decreased 21.9% compared to the 1st quarter 2019. Net loss qA $83.3 million for the 1st quarter 2020 compared to a net loss of $19.1 million for the 4th quarter 2019, and a net loss of $27.3 million for the 1st quarter 2019. The net losses in all periods include non-recurring costs, including exit, transaction and integration costs of $4.3 million for the 1st quarter 2020, $7.5 million for the 4th quarter 2019, and $12.0 million for the 1st quarter 2019.

GTT said it continues to explore the monetization of its Infrastructure Division, which is expected to include the company’s highly differentiated pan-European fiber assets, subsea transatlantic fiber and data center infrastructure, which GTT acquired as part of the Interoute and Hibernia acquisitions.

https://www.gtt.net/media/2585/gtt-investor-presentation-may-20.pdf

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