Labor Contracts at AT&T with Expire with its Major Union

Contracts covering nearly 100,000 AT&T workers represented by the Communications Workers of America (CWA) expired at midnight on April 5, 2009.


No agreement has been announced by the parties and the CWA noted that many important issues -- including employment security and health care -- have not been resolved.


For now, the CWA is calling for employees to continue to report to work, although it is the option to strike open. CWA members at AT&T operations voted by an 88 percent yes vote to authorize a strike if a fair contract isn't reached. For workers, the terms of the contracts will remain in effect, meaning that wages, working conditions and benefits like health care will continue unchanged, with the exception of arbitration for grievances.
http://www.cwa-union.org

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Exar Completes Hifn Acquisition

Exar closed the previously announced acquisition of hi/fn. Al Sisto, the former chief executive officer and chairman of the board of directors of Hifn, has joined Exar's board of directors. It is expected that Hifn's personnel and operations will be relocated during the second calendar quarter of 2009.


Hifn (NASDAQ: HIFN), which is based in Los Gatos, California, supplies a line of Applied Services Processors (ASPs) to network OEMs. Exar (Nasdaq: EXAR), which is based in Milpitas, California, said the acquisition brings valuable intellectual property related to Ethernet, embedded processors, network security, compression, deduplication, RAID, packet processing architecture and SoC design methodology.
http://www.exar.com

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Frontier Prices Offering of $600 Million of Its Senior Notes

Frontier Communications, a full-service communications provider and one of the largest local exchange telephone companies in the U.S., priced a registered offering of $600 million aggregate principal amount of 8.25% senior unsecured notes due 2014. The issue price is 91.805% of the principal amount of the notes. Frontier will receive net proceeds of approximately $538 million from the offering after deducting underwriting discounts and estimated offering expenses. Frontier intends to use the net proceeds from the offering to reduce, repurchase or refinance Frontier's indebtedness or the indebtedness of its subsidiaries or for general corporate purposes. The offering is expected to close on April 9, 2009.
http://www.frontier.com

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JDSU Appoints Dave Holly to Head Test and Measurement Business

Dave Holly has been appointed president of JDSU's Communications Test & Measurement business segment, succeeding Tom Waechter, who was named JDSU president and Chief Executive Officer earlier this year. Holly has been serving as interim leader of the test and measurement business since January 1, 2009 and will be responsible for global sales, product development and operations. He will report directly to Waechter.


Prior to JDSU he had managerial sales responsibilities at NYNEX (now part of Verizon) and began his career in engineering at IBM.
http://www.jdsu.com

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CableLabs Offers Tru2way Reference Platform

CableLabs plans to release a source code reference implementation of its tru2way specifications that will accelerate the development and deployment of tru2way devices and applications.


The "tru2way" brand, which replaced the term "OpenCable Platform," enables consumers to access two-way digital cable programming without the need for a cable operator-supplied set-top box and is capable of supporting all cable services now delivered to devices currently leased to consumers as well as future services written to the tru2way technology. Major cable operators have committed to deploy support for the tru2way platform.


With the support of its member cable operators, CableLabs plans to publicly launch the reference implementation later this year under both a free open source license and a commercial license. CableLabs will make the reference implementation available for use on a PC, making it easier for device manufacturers and application developers to design and test new features and services on the tru2way platform without having to connect to a cable plant.


As new features are added to the tru2way platform and approved for inclusion in the specification, CableLabs also will issue an updated version of the reference implementation and a new compliance test plan. This will allow device manufacturers and application providers to easily and cost effectively incorporate these new features into their products and services.


In cooperation with Sun Microsystems, the reference implementation will be hosted, developed and evolved in an open source community within the OpenCable Project located on Sun's java.net. Because the tru2way specifications are based on the Sun PhoneME Java stack, the same Java core that powers Blu-ray and the DVB Multimedia Home Platform, the release of the reference implementation could enable exciting device convergence possibilities. CableLabs will continue to support tru2way device manufacturers and developers in ongoing events such as developer conferences and interops as well as access to a development lab.
http://www.cablelabs.com

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IBM + Sun Deal Called Off

The expected acquisition of Sun MicroSystems by IBM was called off after Sun's Board of Directors rejected the latest offer and IBM dropped its bid.
http://www.ibm.com
http://www.sun.com

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U.S. EPA Conducts National Cell Phone Recycling Week

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) is conducting a National Cell Phone Recycling Week, which runs April 6-12. The project brings together leading cell phone manufacturers and service providers to encourage consumers to recycle used cell phones, Personal Data Assistants (PDAs), cell phone batteries, chargers and other accessories -- and to reduce the amount of reusable materials in landfills, especially e-waste.


According to the EPA, more than 100 million cell phones are discarded annually; and, in 2007, only 10 percent were recycled.
http:www.epa.gov/cellphonehttp:// www.att.com/sustainability

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Singapore Selects StarHub as Operator for Next Gen Broadband Network

The Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore (IDA) has selected StarHub to serve as the Operating Company (OpCo) under the Next Generation National Broadband Network. Four proposals were considered: Intellinet (Axia + Cisco), Kliq (M1), 1NNOV8 (Singtel) and Nucleus Connect (StarHub). Last year, the OpenNet consortium backed by SingTel was selected to serve as the Network Company (NetCo) of the Next Gen National Broadband Network.


Under the NBN structure established by the government, the NetCo (OpenNet) is responsible for deploying fiber while the OpCo (StarHub) is responsible for delivering wholesale services to Retail Service Providers (RSPs). A strict structural separation will be maintained.


Under its proposal, StarHub will establish the Next Gen NBN OpCo, called Nucleus Connect, to design, build and operate the active infrastructure. The Government of Singapore will provide a grant of up to $250 million to Nucleus Connect to support its deployment of this infrastructure. Together with the grant of up to $750 million for the Next Gen NBN Network Company1, OpenNet, the Government is investing up to a total of $1 billion to put in place the Next Gen NBN.


Nucleus Connect will, for example, offer a wholesale price of $21 per month for a 100 Mbps residential end-user connection and $121 for a 1Gbps connection. For non-residential premises, such as offices and schools, Nucleus Connect will offer a wholesale price of $75 per month for a 100 Mbps connection. Enterprise users who have more demanding requirements can opt for a 1Gbps connection at $860 per month.


Nucleus Connect will work together with OpenNet, on a coordinated nationwide rollout of the network. It is expected to start offering commercial services by the first half of 2010, and be ready to fulfill its Universal Service Obligations of meeting all reasonable requests for service from 2013.


Nucleus Connect'sservices made available soon after OpenNethas declared coverage of a building. A Universal Service Obligation (USO) shall prevail from 1 Jan 2013.


The Next Gen NBN NetCo and OpCo RFPs were structured to ensure that downstream operators have Effective Open Access to the Next Gen NBN. This is to spur a vibrant and competitive Next Generation broadband market where businesses and consumers can enjoy innovative services from a variety of RSPs. Effective Open Access through structural separation for the Next Gen NBN NetCo and operational separation for the Next Gen NBN OpCo is key to achieving such a vision. Nucleus Connect will be operationally separated from all RSPs. It will also be a separate legal entity from StarHub, with a different corporate brand, separate premises and an independent board of directors. With such an industry structure, RSPs can obtain wholesale bandwidth services from Nucleus Connect on a fair and non-discriminatory basis, and offer a wide range of services at competitive prices to end-users.


Ms Yong Ying-I, Chairman, IDA, said: "With this selection of the Next Gen NBN OpCo RFP proposal, we have achieved another major milestone in the Next Gen NBN project. The Next Gen NBN is a key national infocomm infrastructure that will enhance Singapore's competitiveness in a globalised and digital economy. It will spur the development of rich and innovative content, applications and services, and bring significant benefits to the various economic sectors such as finance, healthcare and education. All in Singapore can soon look forward to a richer broadband experience and a wide range of innovative broadband services at competitive prices, transforming the way we work, live, learn and interact."


Mr Terry Clontz, StarHub's CEO, said: "We are delighted that IDA has selected our proposal. Our proposal is the culmination of years of StarHub's extensive experience in managing and operating what is already Singapore's highest speed broadband network in Singapore. With the fiber optic-based Next-Gen NBN being extended directly to homes and businesses, Singapore will benefit from a robust national infrastructure that will serve the country's broadband needs well into the future."


StarHub will underline its commitment to create a vibrant RSP environment by establishing an integration test lab facility that will help RSPs trial and test out new applications and services over the Next-Gen NBN before commercial deployment. The OpCo is also committed to attracting overseas online service providers to host their content in Singapore. With the fast broadband speeds provided by the Next-Gen NBN, this will undoubtedly bring a more enriching experience to the end users here.


Nucleus Connect expects to spend about $1 billion for the active network over the 25-year period of the license. It is eligible for the government grant of up to $250 million from IDA. StarHub's investment in Nucleus Connect is estimated to be around $100 million.
http://www.starhub.com/http://www.infocommsingapore.sg/

• In September 2008, The Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore (IDA) selected the OpenNet consortium as its successful Network Company (NetCo). OpenNet will be contracted to provide passive fibre grid services for Singapore's Next Generation National Broadband Network (NGNBN). OpenNet will be making use of existing ducts and other underlying infrastructure, thereby minimizing disruption to the public and enabling the network to reach homes and buildings nationwide by 2012.
  
  
  The OpenNet consortium consists of Axia-Netmedia (30%), Singapore Telecommunications (30%), Singapore Press Holdings (25%) and SP Telecommunications Pte Ltd (15%).
  
  
  OpenNet expects to complete the agreement contracting process with the IDA as planned within the next seven months and expects that the Singapore-wide fiber grid will be completed by June 2012. This fiber grid will be made available on equal terms at very compelling prices to any parties qualified by the IDA.

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TerreStar and EB Ready Satellite-Terrestrial Smartphone for Upcoming Launch

TerreStar Networks and EB (Elektrobit) demonstrated an integrated satellite-terrestrial smartphone reference design for the upcoming Terrestar mobile satellite service.


TerreStar's forthcoming service will enable users across North America to be connected to TerreStar's network through a "virtual handshake" between the next-generation mobile satellite and a next generation terrestrial network. Launch of TerreStar's satellite is expected later this quarter. Highlights of the satellite-terrestrial reference device include:

• Compact form factor with an internal antenna



• The world's first quad-band GSM and tri-band WCDMA/HSPA smartphone with integrated all-IP satellite-terrestrial voice and data capabilities;



• The only fully IP-based satellite phone using high-speed packet data;



• The first satellite-terrestrial smartphone with a touch screen and a full QWERTY keyboard;



• The first satellite-terrestrial smartphone with planned service offerings, including: SMS, MMS, IM, Email, Push to Talk and Location Based Services (LBS).

http://www.terrestar.com

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Verizon Wireless Collaborates with Itron on Smart Grid

Verizon Wireless and Itron announced a joint marketing agreement for development of secure, two-way communications that support utilities' access to energy usage data and advance their smart grid projects.


The Itron "OpenWay" Cell Relay will operate on the Verizon Wireless network to more collect, measure and manage energy data on behalf of utility companies.


A primary component of Itron's advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) solution, OpenWay by Itron, the OpenWay Cell Relay is the router for the Itron radio frequency local-area network (RFLAN). The relay, which has passed the Verizon Wireless open development compliance process, solidifies integration between the OpenWay RFLAN and the wide-area network (WAN) provided by Verizon Wireless' CDMA (1x EV-DO and 1xRTT) wireless data network. The Verizon Wireless network is now available as a WAN backhaul connection option in the OpenWay architecture. Ultimately, this provides a secure approach to data collection and communications with the meter or other smart grid devices.

Itron said the communications architecture of its OpenWay complies with the American National Standards Institute C12.22 protocol for transport of device data over a network and remains independent of any particular communications technology.
http://www.verizonwireless.com
http://www.itron.com

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D2S Secures $9 Million for E-Beam Silicon Design

D2S, a design and software company based in San Jose, closed $9 million in Series B financing to further enhance and expand the market development for D2S' design-for-e-beam (DFEB) technology, which allows semiconductor manufacturers to eliminate the barrier of rising mask costs and speed time to market.


As the industry moves to smaller geometries, mask costs become an even bigger challenge for IC manufacturers, making low-volume production of custom ICs economically infeasible. The company said its DFEB technology tackles this dilemma head on and enables leading-edge semiconductor systems-on-chips (SoCs) to be manufactured without the upfront mask cost. http://www.direct2silicon.com

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XO Introduces 3 and 5 Mbps Mid-Band Ethernet Options

XO Communications announced the nationwide availability of an expanded range of new Ethernet access speeds for businesses, enterprises and wholesale customers. Now available in more than 75 metropolitan markets where XO offers services, customers can now obtain new Ethernet transport speeds of 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 200, 300, 400, or 500 Mbps at XO on-net fiber locations, and speeds of 3, 5, 15 or 20 Mbps at locations served by last mile copper where XO has deployed Ethernet over copper technology. This also marks the first time the 3 and 5 Mbps mid-band Ethernet access options will be available to XO Communications' customers for Dedicated Internet access service.


"As companies look to their wide-area networks and Internet connections to support mission critical business applications, XO Communications offers an extensive nationwide footprint and a wide range of bandwidth options that enable businesses to cost-effectively boost network performance through Ethernet," said Randy Nicklas, chief technology officer at XO Communications. "XO's extensive local metro network assets combined with our nationwide inter-city network give us the unique ability to offer businesses flexible, scalable, and high-performance Ethernet solutions regardless if they are served by fiber or last mile copper."


Last year, XO Communications deployed an enhanced Ethernet switching platform in major metropolitan locations across its nationwide network. This platform provided a highly-reliable, service rich next generation infrastructure enabling XO Communications to offer a broader range of Ethernet bandwidth options and services at speeds of 3 Mbps to 10 Gbps. In addition, this platform provided a pathway for XO Communications to offer true any-to-any, multi-site Ethernet solutions, along with multiple classes of service on an on-demand basis.


XO Communications noted a number of other milestones it has passed in expanding the availability of Ethernet services:

• Extensive Nationwide Inter-City and Metro Fiber Networks: XO Communications offers Ethernet services at speeds from 10 Mbps to 10 Gbps to businesses and service providers in 75 major metropolitan markets through its 19,000 route mile inter-city fiber optic network and nearly one million fiber miles of metro networks.



• Nationwide Deployment of Ethernet over Copper Technology: With deployments today in 75 major metropolitan markets, Ethernet over copper technology enables XO Communications to extend its Ethernet services footprint beyond its fiber network and enable businesses at copper-fed locations to take advantage of Ethernet services for the first time at speeds of 3 Mbps to 80 Mbps.



• Fixed Broadband Wireless Capabilities: XO Communications currently has the capability to utilize fixed broadband wireless technology in 36 major metropolitan markets to further expand its network footprint and deliver Ethernet services directly to businesses at speeds ranging from 10Mbps to 800 Mbps.

http://www.xo.com

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Sprint Offers Enhanced Calling Features for its Wholesale Cable Customers

Sprint announced the availability of an integrated, enhanced services portfolio to cable companies. These enhanced services include Caller ID to the TV, Caller ID to the PC, and new voicemail features such as a home voicemail alert sent to a customer's mobile phone, and voicemail to email.


Sprint currently provides wholesale cable VoIP services to 14 leading cable companies and supports more than 4.5 million cable VoIP/digital phone subscribers -- covering more than 31 million cable households-passed.


"Linking SMS capabilities to our VoIP voicemail is just the first step in our ongoing integration of VoIP and wireless services," said Jim Patterson, president-Wholesale for Sprint. "Our goal with Sprint's VoIP services, in particular with our enhanced voice services offering, is to continue to make it easier for our cable partners to offer solutions that increase their market share and increase the value they bring to their customers."http://www.sprint.com/wholesale

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Infineon, SkyTerra and TerreStar Target Satellite-Cellular Mobile Platforms

Infineon Technologies, SkyTerra, and TerreStar Networks are collaborating on the a multi-standard mobile platform based on Infineon's software-defined-radio (SDR) technology. The SDR-enabled satellite-terrestrial handsets will operate with multiple cellular and satellite-based communications technologies including GSM, GPRS, EDGE, WCDMA, HSDPA, HSUPA and GMR1-2G/3G.


SkyTerra and TerreStar are both developing next-generation integrated satellite-terrestrial communications networks.


To enable satellite connectivity in the SDR platform, Infineon will integrate GMR1-3G technology furnished by Hughes Network Systems.
http://www.infineon.com.
http://www.terrestar.com

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Alcatel-Lucent to Develop Satellite Base Station Sub-Systems for SkyTerra and TerreStar

SkyTerra and TerreStar Networks jointly announced an agreement for the development of mobile network technology that integrates Qualcomm's EV-DO-based satellite communications technology into an Alcatel-Lucent base station.

The satellite-adapted EV-DO base stations -- developed by Alcatel-Lucent -- will form key components of SkyTerra's and TerreStar's integrated satellite-terrestrial networks designed to offer uninterrupted voice and data service coverage throughout North America.


Under the agreement, Alcatel-Lucent will work with SkyTerra and TerreStar to develop satellite base station sub-systems, or S-BSS, based on Qualcomm's Satellite DO technology, a satellite-adapted implementation of CDMA/EV-DO. These base stations will support seamless connectivity between satellite and terrestrial networks for users of next-generation, satellite-capable devices.


TerreStar and SkyTerra previously announced an agreement with Qualcomm under which Qualcomm is integrating this satellite and cellular communication technology in select multi-mode mobile chipsets.
http://www.skyterra.com
http://terrestar.com

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CTIA: U.S. Wireless Data Spending Rose 39% in 2009

Wireless data service revenues in the U.S. for the year 2008 rose to more than $32 billion, according to a semi-annual industry survey published by the CTIA Wireless Association.. This represents a 39% increase over 2007, when data revenues totaled $23.2 billion. Wireless data revenues for 2008 amounted to nearly 22% of all wireless service revenues, and represent what consumers spend on non-voice services.


According to the survey, more than one trillion text messages were carried on carriers' networks in the U.S. in 2008 -- breaking down to more than 3.5 billion messages per day. That's almost triple the number from 2007, when 363 billion text messages were transmitted. Wireless subscribers are also sending more pictures and other multi-media messages with their mobile devices, with 15 billion MMS messages reported for 2008, up from 6 billion the year before.


As of December 2008, the industry survey recorded more than 270 million wireless users in the U.S. This represents a year-over-year increase of nearly 15 million subscribers. The industry's 12-month record for subscriber growth was reached in 2005, when 25.7 million new users came online.


Other highlights of the survey include: wireless customers using more than 2.2 trillion minutes in 2008, an increase of 100 billion minutes from 2007, and record-breaking six-month wireless service revenues of more than $75 billion with annual service revenues reaching $148 billion by year-end 2008.


"The new survey results clearly prove that mobile broadband services are enabling more Americans to grow their world like never before. Wireless technology is an integral part of everyday life for more than 87% of the U.S. population; changing and improving the way we connect and interact with the world around us," said Steve Largent, President and CEO of CTIA -The Wireless Association. "The wireless industry consistently evolves, innovates, competes and grows every year at a rapid pace, and 2008 has carried on this remarkable trend."

The CTIA Semi-Annual Wireless Industry Survey results were released at International CTIA WIRELESS 2009 in Las Vegas.
http://www.ctia.org

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Turin Completes Merger with Force10 Networks

Turin Networks completed its merger with Force10 Networks. The combined company will be known as Force10 Networks and be based in San Jose, California. The company offers solutions that address data center consolidation, virtualization and cloud computing as well as enabling carriers around the world to transition to IP/Ethernet optimized networks and services. The combined company's customers include enterprise data centers, global wireless and wireline service providers, top supercomputing environments and iconic Internet brands. More than 60,000 cell sites are using Force10 wireless backhaul solutions worldwide, while more than 1,400 customers have deployed its Ethernet switching/routing, metro edge and converged access solutions.
http://www.force10networks.com.

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Firetide Launches Wireless Video Surveillance

Firetide introduced an integrated wireless video surveillance solution for public safety and commercial security applications that will reduce the costs and complexities of large-scale video surveillance deployments. The solution incorporates a Firetide HotPort wireless mesh node, IP camera or analog video camera with IP encoder, and optional storage.


Firetide's edge-of-network storage capability combined with an option for on-demand transmission, reduces the load on the network, enabling support for more cameras with the same infrastructure. It also provides distributed access to recorded video from mobile incident command centers and enables retrieval of video should a major incident disable a large portion of the network.
http://www.firetide.com

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Huawei Showcases M2M 3G Embedded Module

Huawei Technologies (Huawei) showcased a machine-to-machine (M2M) UMTS embedded module designed to endure extreme conditions, including temperatures ranging from -30°C to +75°C, extreme humidity (5%-95%), shock, air pollution and congested wireless network traffic.


The EM700 module also features a broad range of performance enhancements, including Firmware Over-the-Air (a technology that fixes device software remotely), multiple interfaces that allow flexible usage and connections to other devices, voice and SMS services, and support for mainstream operating systems such as Window2000, XP, VISTA and LINUX.
http://www.huawei.com

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Clearwire to Launch WiMAX Innovation Network in Silicon Valley

Clearwire plans to launch a "WiMAX Innovation Network" covering approximately 20 square miles in Silicon Valley. This will bring Clearwire's 4G wireless service to the campuses of Google and Intel. Cisco Systems will provide core Internet Protocol Next-Generation Network (IP NGN) infrastructure equipment in support of the network. Service is expected to be available to developers by late summer of this year giving them a head start on commercial service launching in the Bay Area in 2010.


Service will be provided free to a limited number of qualified developers for one year. Clearwire will provide WiMAX USB Modems for $49.99. To qualify, developers must register for Clearwire's developer program and describe the products or business ideas they wish to pursue.
http://innovation.clear.com

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