Monday, January 11, 2021

Video: Four Key Things to Know about Edge Data Center Networking

The buildout of edge data centers will be one of the big investment trends for 2021. In this 3-minute clip, Mike Capuano, Chief Marketing Officer of Pluribus Networks, outlines 4 key things to know about edge data center networking.

See video: https://youtu.be/rGEv052x0Uk

Download our free 2020 Next-Gen Edge and Beyond Report here: http://ngi.how/edge-2020

O-RAN publishes 3rd software release - Cherry

The O-RAN Software Community (OSC) announced its 3rd open software release within 18 months, dubbed “Cherry”.

The main use cases delivered in Cherry include:

  • Policy based Traffic Steering using the A1 and E2 interfaces
  • Automated Monitoring and Health check of selected components using the O1 interface
  • Configuration, Fault and Performance Management Services aligned with OAM models and specifications newly approved by O-RAN
  • Life Cycle Management Framework of rApps and xApps using SMO
  • O-DU Low and High pairwise testing in O-RAN Software Community lab
  • Simulators for testing and integration, such as E2, A1, Open Test Framework, etc.

“It is gratifying to see the continued momentum of the OSC’s open-source O-RAN implementation,” said Jack Murray, co-chair of the OSC Technical Operating Committee (TOC) and Assistant Vice President of AT&T. “AT&T is proud to have continued its contributions to enable RAN AI/ML through the Near-Real Time RIC implementation, and to provide a platform for software testing and integration.”

“We are glad to see Cherry has made big progress by building on the base of Bronze,” said Chih-Lin I, the Co-Chair of O-RAN Technical Steering Committee. “It not only realizes more 3GPP-defined models, but also brings O-RAN defined interfaces including E2 and A1 closer to commercialization. More ML and AI technologies are implemented in the RIC, RICAPP and NRTRIC projects to push the traffic steering e2e use case forward, which makes it a more intelligent RAN. The newly created SMO project is also worth special mention for the quick momentum that it has gained in contributing to O-RAN automation and management within just 3 months.”

https://www.o-ran.org/software


Intel leverages silicon photonics for Mobileye's lidar system-on-chip

Mobileye, a division of Intel, unveiled a new silicon photonics processor for frequency-modulated continuous wave (FMCW) lidar. The new device, which was engineered at Intel’s silicon photonics fab in New Mexico, is expected to be in production by 2025. 

Mobileye envisions that AVs will use both radio- and light-based detection-and-ranging sensing.

The new software-defined imaging radar technology with 2304 channels, 100DB dynamic range and 40 DBc side lobe level that together enable the radar to build a sensing state good enough for driving policy supporting autonomous driving. 

“This is really game-changing. And we call this a photonic integrated circuit, PIC. It has 184 vertical lines, and then those vertical lines are moved through optics. Having fabs that are able to do that, that’s very, very rare. So this gives Intel a significant advantage in building these lidars,” stated Mobileye president and chief executive officer Amnon Shashua.

https://newsroom.intel.com/news-releases/ces-2021-mobileye-avs-on-move/

Intel shows bevy of new processors

Intel introduced four new processors families - a total of more than 50 individual processor designs - for laptops and PCs.

At the high-end, the new 11th Gen Intel Core vPro processors feature hardware security to detect and stop ransomware and crypto-mining attacks. It is also equipped with Intel Control Flow Enforcement Technology, ground-breaking technology to help shut down an entire class of attacks that long evaded software-only solutions. This processor line leverages Intel 10-nanometer (nm) SuperFin technology, Intel Iris Xe graphics, and integrated Intel Wi-Fi 6/6E (Gig+).

Additionally, Intel demonstrated “Alder Lake,” the next-generation in x86 architecture and Intel’s most power-scalable system-on-chip.  Alder Lake will combine high-performance cores and high-efficiency cores into a single product. Alder Lake will also be Intel’s first processor built on a new, enhanced version of 10nm SuperFin. Intel expects to ship Alder Lake in the second half of 2021.

“Only Intel has the breadth of products spanning multiple architectures; the large, open ecosystem; sheer scale of manufacturing footprint; and deep technical expertise customers need to unlock opportunities in this era of distributed intelligence,” said Intel Executive Vice President Gregory Bryant.

Acacia expects Q4 revenue in $160-164 million range

Acacia Communications reported preliminary Q4 2020 revenue in the range of $160.0 million to $164.0 million. The company was expecting GAAP net income to be $31.7 million to $35.4 million, while Non-GAAP net income was expected in the $38.3 million to $42.2 million range. Further details posted online.

In addition, Acacia filed its answer and affirmative defenses in response to the complaint filed by Cisco Systems. The counterclaim against Cisco seeks a declaration that Acacia validly terminated the merger agreement with Cisco because the required Chinese regulatory approval was not obtained and the merger did not close before the agreed-upon termination date under the agreement.


http://ir.acacia-inc.com/

NETGEAR launches flagship WiFi 6E router

NETGEAR unveiled its flagship WiFi 6E router, the Nighthawk RAXE500 Tri-band WiFi router boasting speeds up to 10.8 Gbps.  

“Our mission at NETGEAR is to provide products with cutting edge technologies to enable people to work, learn, stream and game more effectively in a connected world,” said David Henry, senior vice president of Connected Home Products for NETGEAR. “We are pleased to be recognized by the Consumer Technology Association for our commitment to this mission with the introduction of the industry’s first all-purpose WiFi 6E router. The Nighthawk RAXE500 Tri-band WiFi Router will capitalize on the available bandwidth afforded by the new 6Ghz channel, delivering an increase in speed and capacity that has never been experienced up until this moment.”

Technical Specifications:

  • New 6GHz Band— with up to 200% more available spectrum than dual-band (5GHz and 2.4GHz) WiFi alone.
  • Ultra-Low Latency—Very few devices on new 6GHz band means lower latency for gaming and real-time traffic.
  • More High-Bandwidth WiFi Channels— Blazing-fast speed and less interference with 3X more high-bandwidth 160MHz WiFi channels.
  • 12-Streams Tri-Band WiFi— Four streams of 6GHz, four streams of 5GHz, and four streams of 2.4GHz equates to more available bandwidth and less congestion for all devices on WiFi.
  • WiFi 6E Optimized Powerful Processor— Ideal for Gigabit Internet speeds, a 64-bit 1.8GHz quad-core processor ensures smooth 4K/8K UHD streaming and gaming.
  • Multi-Gig Ethernet Port 2.5G— 2.5X the wired speed of a typical Gigabit port, to be used for LAN or Internet connectivity.
  • Five (5) Gigabit Ethernet Ports— Connect more wired devices for faster file transfer and uninterrupted connections. Aggregate two Gigabit LAN ports and two Gigabit WAN ports (configurable) concurrently.
  • MSRP is US$599.99

Mavenir extends its cloud-native approach

Mavenir, which has embraced a cloud-centric approach of moving applications to Commercial Off-The-Shelf (COTS) computing servers whether private, hybrid or public, announced four new additions to its portfolio:


Webscale Platform: Suresh Somasundaram, SVP of 5G Cloud Platforms at Mavenir explains, “Mobile networks require digital transformation towards webscale platform technology that utilizes open source, Kubernetes platform as a service (PaaS). While a Kubernetes-based platform (PaaS) provides the foundation for fully automated life cycle management, it is built for mainly IT and enterprise applications and requires additional and specialized functions to support telecom and specifically, mobile workloads. To support those types of workloads, Mavenir has developed a common software extending standard opensource PaaS components to support telco needs for webscale deployment and to provide agile delivery of new applications expanding to Performance, Monitoring, Legal Intercept and Security. Mavenir’s WebScale Platform is the solution to give Mobile Operators the webscale agility of the Internet players.”

AI-powered Analytics: Kuntal Chowdhury, GM, AI & Analytics at Mavenir said, “With the cloudification and automation of the telecom networks, it becomes essential to utilize AI & Analytics solutions in a scalable platform combining real-time and big data analytics based on advanced Machine Learning algorithms. Mavenir’s AI & Analytics platform delivers extensive insights that are mandatory for WebScale network automation, slice management, security and many other use cases defined for the MEC (EdgeAI), RAN intelligence, traffic optimization and security. The AI/ML algorithms are defined with Mavenir’s deep telecom domain expertise, while keeping the interfaces standards-compliant & the platform open for collaborative innovation.”

Multi-access Edge Computing (MEC): Ashok Khuntia, GM Cloud Packet Computing says, “Delivering low latency and high bandwidth at the edge of the network promises many exciting applications in 5G. Mavenir's optimized low-footprint data processing 5G Core platform enables mission critical MEC applications in the areas of Industrial automation, Augmented Reality/Virtual Reality, Gaming, Video surveillance, Autonomous driving and others. The additional focus on Multi-access Edge Computing (MEC) will accelerate such applications for many different industries and sectors.”

Digital Enablement: Sandeep Singh, GM, Digital Enablement at Mavenir noted, “Mavenir enables Operators and Enterprises to launch innovative value-based services faster to market with lower upfront investments in capital and time. Mavenir’s Digital Enablement Platform unlocks any network data, sources partner data, and serves up a value-added offering enriched through the platform’s flexible business control functions like Partner/Customer Management, Order Journey-Experience builder, Subscription/Usage Billing, Charging and Settlement. With the design focus on ‘adaptability’, the platform provides customers the agility and flexibility to experiment iteratively and deliver enhanced subscriber engagement experiences, ultimately benefitting in increased market reach and customer stickiness through new revenue-generating services.”

Tele2 picks Nokia for cloud core

Tele2 will deploy Nokia's Standalone (SA) 5G Core and Voice over 5G (Vo5G) to enhance its cloud infrastructure and improve data and voice connectivity for Tele2’s subscribers in Sweden, Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia. Deployment is expected to start in 2021.

The deployment encompasses cloud and network management products from Nokia's CloudBand, Network Services Platform (NSP) and NetAct product portfolios to further secure, automate and scale network management operations. Nokia solutions will be deployed across Nokia Container Services, a cloud-native solution that integrates multi-vendor and multi-technology environments.


Nokia core offers near zero-touch automation capabilities that drive greater scale and reliability, allowing Tele2 to cost-effectively lay the foundation for 5G and enable faster time to market with new services. Nokia’s open architecture also provides the flexibility to be responsive to market demands while controlling costs at a time of growing network complexity. As part of Tele2’s core evolution, Nokia will deploy its Cloud Packet Core products to support both 4G and 5G core network functions and enhance network scale, performance and reliability.

Nokia’s further enhancements include deploying new Subscriber Data Management software to streamline Tele2’s network operations. To support Tele2’s strategy of delivering Voice over 5G (Vo5G), Nokia will further deliver Vo5G services to support connectivity and reduce operating expenses for both 5G and 4G. Nokia is leading the market in CSP core network deployments with 25 of the top 40 service providers relying on Nokia Core Network products.