Sunday, July 12, 2009

Ballard Fuel Cells Power Motorola TETRA Base Stations in Denmark

Ballard Power Systems' fuel cells are being used as the power source for a 1.6 kiloWatt backup power system in a public safety application deployed by Motorola in Denmark. Specifically, Dantherm Air Handling A/S, is utilizing Ballard's fuel cell product in a fully integrated cabinet solution for Motorola TETRA base stations throughout Denmark's SINE network. Motorola is responsible for establishment and operation of Denmark's nationwide SINE public safety network, which consists of approximately 500 sites. Ballard fuel cells will provide backup power in 123 base stations across Denmark.


Ballard Power Systems said backup power solutions based on fuel cell technology deliver a number of significant advantages over conventional batteries and diesel generators, including higher reliability over a wide range of operating conditions, lower maintenance costs, longer operating life, and reduced size, weight, installation footprint, and environmental impact.


Denmark's SINE network is based on the TETRA (Terrestrial Trunked Radio) standard, developed by the European Telecommunications Standards Institute. The TETRA standard and protocol are being specified for use in numerous professional mobile radio systems around the globe. These systems ensure that various public safety authorities - such as police, fire and ambulance services, transportation organizations, utilities and military groups - are able to maintain continuous, secure communication with one another during any emergency situation. TETRA standards ensure a higher level of reliability than public cellular services. As of September 2008, a total of 2,232 TETRA-based contracts were in-place across 105 countries in Europe, the Asia Pacific region and the Middle East.
http://www.ballard.com

HomeGrid Forum Collaborates with Digital Living Network Alliance

HomeGrid Forum, which promotes the ITU-T's G.hn standardization efforts, has signed a liaison agreement with the Digital Living Network Alliance (DLNA) setting the stage for collaboration between the two organizations and the approval of G.hn as a DLNA-recognized Physical Layer technology for the next-generation of home networking products.


The G.hn standard is aimed to deliver a single unified technology for the wired home network that addresses key issues of service providers, electronics manufacturers, and consumers alike. Through one worldwide standard, G.hn will unify the networking of content and devices over any wire -- coax cable, phone and power lines. With it, ITU enables service providers to deploy new offerings, including IPTV more cost effectively; allows consumer electronics manufacturers to provide powerful devices for connecting all types of entertainment, home automation, and security products throughout the house; and greatly simplifies consumer purchasing and installation processes.



By working with DLNA, HomeGrid Forum will be able to further assure that new services and products using G.hn can be easily connected to create high-quality, entertainment experiences. DLNA and the organization's interoperability guidelines are recognized throughout the industry for successfully uniting various consumer electronics, personal computer (PC) and mobile device technologies and standards into a cohesive home networking environment.
http://www.homegridforum.org

Telstra Boosts DWDM between Melbourne and Sydney

Telstra will upgrade the optical transmission capacity of the Next IP network between Melbourne and Sydney to cope with a tenfold increase in network traffic volumes between the two cities.


The upgrade will increase the capacity of Telstra's existing DWDM transmission technology from 10 to 40 Gbps and will use underlying optical fibre infrastructure without requiring major changes to the network. Telstra is using Ericsson's Marconi MHL 3000 WDM platform, which is capable of delivering 80 channels at 40Gbps per channel over a single fibre pair, with an upgrade path to 100Gbps per channel once the standards for the technology are ratified."http://www.telstra.com
http://www.ericsson.com

MetaSwitch Headed for Greenfield Deployment in Curaçao

MetaSwitch's IP communications platform has been selected for the Santa Barbara Plantation Resort Community in Curaçao.


Curaçao, with a population of approximately 150,000 and a land area of 171 square miles, is the largest and most populous island in the Netherlands Antilles. The Santa Barbara Plantation is a master planned mixed-use resort located on the southeastern side of Curaçao. A state-of-the-art telecommunications system is being developed for the ultimate convenience of hotel guests and resort residents. This advanced IP-based fiber to the home system (FTTH), will deliver a Triple Play of high-speed internet access and television along with residential and business telephony services from MetaSwitch, including voicemail and unified communications.
http://www.metaswitch.com

SureWest Selects ADTRAN Total Access 5000 for Carrier Ethernet

SureWest Communications has selected the ADTRAN Total Access 5000 Carrier Ethernet Access Platform and NetVanta 800 Series of intelligent Network Termination Units (NTUs) to deliver Ethernet services to business customers in its Sacramento, California market. The ADTRAN solution will allow SureWest's operating subsidiaries to offer Metro Ethernet Forum (MEF) compliant services such as Ethernet Private Line (E-Line) and Ethernet LAN (E-LAN) to their customers efficiently by leveraging the facilities and equipment that already exist at customer locations. Financial terms were not disclosed.


The ADTRAN Total Access 5000 combines with the NetVanta 800 NTUs to provide a highly scalable end-to-end Ethernet solution. By bonding together traditional TDM DS1 and DS3 circuits per the ITU-T G.998.2 standard, ADTRAN provides a cost effective, low overhead, fault tolerant Ethernet over TDM alternative to MLPPP technologies. This MEF-certified solution provides carriers with a powerful set of traffic management, quality of service and measurement capabilities that allow carriers to offer flexible SLA-based services to their end customers. Inherent in the solution are the necessary resiliency and redundancy features that enable a service provider to offer and support high-availability business services.
http://www.adtran.com

Juniper Announces Adaptive Threat Management for Distributed Enterprises

Seeking to close the security threat window-of-vulnerability from months to minutes or seconds, Juniper Networks is evolving its network security solution to enable dynamic and intelligent responses across all enterprise locations -- including data center, campus, branch, remote and partner/extranet locations. To do this, Juniper is making its platforms both identity-aware and application-aware.

The Adaptive Threat Management Solutions include: the new Juniper Networks WX Client for application acceleration; a new release of Juniper's network access control (NAC) solution, Unified Access Control (UAC) 3.1; new market-leading SA Series SSL VPN version 6.5 software with new standards-based interoperability functionality; new Intrusion Prevention System (IPS) technology; and new releases of Juniper Networks Security Threat Response Manager (STRM) 2009.1 and Network and Security Manager (NSM) 2009.1 for network-wide, centralized visibility and control.

  • Identity-Based Security and WAN Acceleration: The WX Client automatically downloads and launches upon starting a Network Connect SSL VPN session, so users transparently start receiving the benefits of application acceleration immediately, tailored and based on their identity. Scenarios commonly seen in networks can achieve an average of 9X performance improvement for company-based web applications and an average of 12X improvement in file transfer time network-wide.


  • Dynamically Provisioned Anti-Spyware and Anti-Malware: Juniper's anti-spyware and anti-malware solution is a license available on SA SSL VPN version 6.5 and UAC 3.1 software releases, which enables the delivery of the industry's first access control solution to dynamically provision anti-spyware and anti-malware software to endpoint devices regardless of the user or location. Independently validated as having the world's most scalable and deployed SSL VPN technology--up to 10,000 concurrent user sessions on a single box, Juniper delivers the performance and flexibility businesses require to consistently enforce global policies for any user or role, including employees, contractors, partners and offshore users wherever they are located. Juniper also offers application-aware policy enforcement and broadened support for mobile devices, as well as robust endpoint assessment.


  • Identity-Based, Application-Specific Enforcement with Visibility and Control: Juniper is also offering an access control solution that supports full Layer 2-7 role-based policy enforcement. With new IPS technology integrated with SA SSL VPN and UAC, Juniper delivers a role-based application policy enforcement with ‘follow-me' user access policies and application usage. This allows companies to enable IPS at all locations to detect and stop application misuse and sophisticated attacks before damage occurs, effectively eliminating security breaches before they happen.


Additionally, Juniper delivers an integrated management, visibility and control solution that can correlate applications, users and user sessions for granular security control and share policies across multiple Juniper product families to maximize security across the network infrastructure.

http://www.juniper.net

Harris Stratex Networks Build Network Operations Center in RTP, North Carolina

Harris Stratex Networks has commissioned a state-of-the-art network operations center (NOC) at its Morrisville, NC-based headquarters. The NOC, which was inaugurated last week, will centrally monitor, manage and control networks for enterprise, carrier, and state and local government customers. It is designed to manage and monitor multi-vendor, multi-protocol network infrastructure, including various subscriber access, 4G/WiMax access, IP backhaul and core network technologies, as well as network elements providing energy, security and surveillance controls. It provides around-the-clock network surveillance, performance monitoring and trouble ticket management for voice, video and data networks. The center monitors customer networks to identify network problems before they can impact business functions or productivity, and seeks to resolve issues remotely from the NOC or by dispatching technicians to customer sites. The center, which is located in a secured environment with 24-hour on-premise security, is staffed and monitored by a team of engineers and technicians.
http://www.HarrisStratex.com

AMIMON Secures $10 Million for Wireless HD Silicon

AMIMON, a start-up with operation in Herzlia, Israel and Santa Clara, California, raised $10 million in new venture financing for its wireless HD semiconductor solutions.




AMIMON's chipsets have been shipping in volume embedded in wireless HDTVs and video accessories by leading TV OEMs selling AMIMON-based products in the US, Europe and Japan. Earlier this year AMIMON announced its second generation chipset designed for the WHDI (Wireless Home Digital Interface) standard. The company said it can deliver full uncompressed 1080p/60Hz HD content throughout the entire home. WHDI chipsets will be integrated into wireless HDTV products and other WHDI devices from leading CE manufacturers.


The Series D round of funding was led by Stata Venture Partners and included all significant investors from prior rounds, in particular: Argonaut Private Equity, Cedar Fund, Evergreen Venture Partners, Walden Israel and Motorola through their strategic venture capital, Motorola Ventures.


"We are experiencing strong acceptance of our newly introduced 1080p/60Hz chipset; the additional funding will allow Amimon to seize this opportunity to solidify our leadership position," said Dr. Yoav Nissan-Cohen, chairman and CEO of AMIMON. "We will use this round of funding to enhance production and expand our worldwide operations to meet growing global demand for our technology in the consumer electronics market as well as the medical and professional video markets.
http://www.amimon.com

Microsoft Research Delivers Workflow Tools for Scientific Discovery

Microsoft Corp. has developed new software tools that help scientists work with large volumes of data.


Scientists in data-intensive fields such as oceanography, astronomy, environmental science and medical research can now use these tools to manage, integrate and visualize volumes of information. The tools are available as no-cost downloads to academic researchers and scientists at http://research.microsoft.com/en-us/collaboration/tools.
http://research.microsoft.com/

Vodafone UK Offers Samsung Netbook With built-In Mobile Broadband

Vodafone UK has begun promoting the Samsung NC10 ultra-mobile netbook with built-in mobile

broadband connectivity.


Free on both a 24 month contract for 25 pounds Sterling a month with 1GB of data and a 24 month contract for 30 pounds Sterling a month with 3GB of data, the Samsung NC 10 netbook has a Vodafone SIM and mobile broadband software pre-installed meaning customers won't need to use a USB modem.


The Samsung netbook weighs 1.33kg and includes a built-in webcam, a bright 10.2-inch glossy LED display and a normal-size, PC-style keyboard. http://www.vodafone.co.uk

Iridium/Boeing Completes High Integrity GPS Program Milestones

Iridium Satellite and Boeing have cited two major milestones in the High Integrity Global Positioning System (GPS) program for the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory.


The first milestone, completion of an Enhanced Narrowband (ENB) software modification to computers on Iridium satellites, enables second-generation GPS-aiding signals to be broadcast through the entire Iridium constellation. These broadcasts will enable rapid, more accurate GPS position fixes than are available with current technology. The GPS-aiding signals will provide appropriately equipped warfighters significantly improved capabilities for quickly locking on and maintaining a GPS signal, even while operating in restrictive environments such as urban areas, forests, mountains and canyons, as well as under enemy jamming attempts or amid battlefield radio frequency noise.


The second milestone was a demonstration of the acquisition of a GPS signal under substantial jamming while moving in a vehicle.


The principle behind High Integrity GPS, also known in government circles as "iGPS," uses satellite signals from the Iridium low-earth orbiting (LEO) satellite communications system and the U.S. Air Force-operated GPS mid-earth orbit navigational satellites. Iridium provides a high-power signal and rapidly changing ground track to accelerate an initial position fix by users. The GPS system provides navigational data in time, location and velocity. The result is an augmentation to GPS that provides iGPS receivers with improved navigation, higher signal integrity, precision accuracy and more jam-resistant capabilities. High Integrity GPS also has the potential to provide geographic positioning data to within centimeters, a vast improvement over current standalone GPS, which provides data within meters.
http://www.iridium.com

Exalt Supplies High-Speed Microwave Radios in Illinois

The Addison Fire Protection District in DuPage County, Illinois, has chosen Exalt Communications' EX-4.9i all-indoor digital microwave radio systems to deliver dispatch calls and to provide location information, traffic alerts, call specifics, mapping and other data vital to its mission. DuPage County spans 337 square miles west of downtown Chicago and has nearly 1 million residents, making it the second-largest county in Illinois. It is also home to 29 fire protection districts.


The Exalt EX-4.9i microwave radio systems were deployed by A Beep, Illinois' largest operator of specialized radio systems. The radios operate in the licensed public safety radio band and can support up to 55 Mbps of Ethernet data and up to four T1 lines with the company's exclusive CarrierTDD technology, which provides 99.999% throughput availability. Although the system was initially deployed to support only voice, the district later used the Exalt EX-4.9i web-based management system to configure 27 Mbps of Ethernet data without the need to travel to the radios themselves.
http://www.exaltcom.com

Thursday, July 9, 2009

Narus Raises $8.7 Million in New Funding

Narus, which delivers solutions for real-time traffic intelligence for the protection and management of large IP networks, announced an additional $8.7 million in expansion funding from its existing investors.


The funds will be used primarily to continue Narus' growth and expansion in the U.S. government market, as well as India and the Middle East, where the NarusInsight system is used by Narus customers to manage their IP networks and protect them against cyber attacks.


"Narus is proud to be an important part of protecting and managing the cyber infrastructure, especially in these difficult economic times," said Greg Oslan, CEO of Narus. "We are pleased to be able to count on our current investors' continued support for the growth of our business. We look forward to working with our investors, partners and customers through the next stage of our growth."http://www.narus.com

DOCOMO Develops HSPA Femtocell

NTT DOCOMO unveiled a compact indoor base transceiver station, or femtocell BTS, for linking mobile phones to the DOCOMO network via a broadband connection in the home.


The new femtocell BTS is compatible with High Speed Packet Access (HSPA) technology and supports plug & play convenience for smooth, automatic configuration after connection to the DOCOMO network via a broadband fixed line, such as optical fiber. The new model also will enable new services, such as mail notification to a parent when a child arrives home and their DOCOMO phone is detected to have entered the Home Area of the femtocell BTS. Another possible service is special limited-time electronic coupons sent from a store to nearby customers who choose to be detected when their DOCOMO mobile phones are in their Home Area.


DOCOMO will begin offering installation of its new femtocell BTS device this fall.
http://www.nttdocomo.com

Belgacom Offers Free IPTV to Subscribers of Fixed + Internet or Mobile

Belgacom began offering a way for its existing fixed line, Internet or mobile subscribers to qualify for a free IPTV service. Basically, customers must opt for two
products with Belgacom, i.e. Internet and fixed or mobile telephony, and Belgacom TV Comfort is thrown in for free, including the decoder. Customers wanting to connect a second TV set will need to pay a supplement of EUR 6 per month for renting a second decoder. It is also possible to buy one for EUR 79 (currently available for EUR 49 under a special offer). The one-time activation charge for these formulas is EUR 50.


BelgacomTV recently celebrated its fourth anniversary and now boasts 555,000 customers (or about 1.5 million viewers). Belgacom TV is available to 87% of the population, while 78% can connect two TV sets. Moreover, 66.2% of the population (about 75% of Belgacom TV customers) can receive programs in HD quality.


Earlier this year, Belgacom launched the Happy Time One rate (12,000 free minutes per month for making calls in the evenings and on weekends, from both fixed-line phones and mobile phones to all fixed-line and mobile numbers in Belgium) and Internet One (allowing Belgacom Internet customers to use their laptop to surf on the move and free of charge anywhere in Belgium on weekends and public holidays with the free option Mobile Internet Free Weekend One). Two months ago the Group went one step further by introducing the All-In-One formula, which groups all of the Belgacom Group's services together in one package: fixed and mobile telephony (Happy Time One), fixed and mobile Internet and Belgacom TV Comfort.
http://www.belgacom.com

Canada's Globalive Wireless Selects DragonWave's Wireless Ethernet Backhaul

Canada's Globalive Wireless Management Corp. has selected DragonWave to provide high-capacity, cost effective next generation wireless backhaul for its high speed packet access network Globalive acquired a significant amount of spectrum in Canada's Advanced Wireless Spectrum auction in 2008.


DragonWave's Horizon and AirPair products, which operate in both licensed and unlicensed radio frequencies between 6 and 38 GHz, enable software scalable, ultra-low latency transport of up to 1.6 Gbps per link.
http://www.dragonwaveinc.com

Vivendi Seeks Equity Stake in Zain Africa

In a press statement, Vivendi confirmed its interest for acquiring a majority stake in the Zain group's telecommunications activities in Africa. An acquisition would enable Vivendi to capitalize on its experience of developing mobile telephony in Africa. Vivendi said that at this stage there is no certainty that its discussions with Zain will lead to a deal,http://www.vivendi.com

Borqs Raises $17.4 Million for Open Source Application Software

Borqs, a start-up with operations in Beijing and Sunnyvale, California, secured a US$17.4 million Series B round of venture financing for its open source mobile application software.


Borq's client-side software is based on Google's Android platform. The company aims to give carriers the ability to create a consistent and branded user interface experience that can work across different types of smartphones. Borqs also provides carriers with the ability to create branded application store fronts that offer subscribers a wide range of mobile application choices by tapping into the Android Application Marketplace as well as existing Java-based mobile applications.


Norwest Venture Partners (NVP) led this round, which included participation from current investors, GSR Ventures - the Mayfield Fund China affiliate - as well as Keystone Ventures. As a part of the investment, Mohan Kumar of NVP will join Borqs' board of directors.
http://www.borqs.com

Lime Microsystems and Blue Wonder Collaborate on LTE

Lime Microsystems and Blue Wonder Communications are jointly developing an LTE reference platform that will enable early adoption of this emerging standard. The fully characterised LTE reference platform will accelerate time to market for OEMs developing LTE systems. The reference platform is based on Lime Microsystems' integrated single chip RF transceiver, the LMS6002, and Blue Wonder's advanced baseband solution.


Lime Microsystems' LMS6002 is a multi-band multi-standard RF transceiver IC designed for femtocells and small cell basestations. The highly frequency agile transceiver operates at user-selectable frequencies between 375MHz and 4GHz and is suitable for 3G, WiMAX, and LTE standards. Blue Wonder's advanced baseband solution is a complete LTE subsystem that can be integrated in System on Chip platforms. It provides a 3GPP Release 8 TDD and RFF multi-mode solution, up to category 4 and is designed for low power consumption. Blue Wonder will provide an FPGA based development system, which includes an interface to Lime's LMS6002 transceiver to allow all required interoperability tests.
http://www.limemicro.com
http://www.bluwo.de

CTIA: Wireless Industry Contributes $100 Billion to U.S. Economy

The wireless industry contributes nearly $100 billion either directly or indirectly to the U.S. economy on an annual basis, according to a recent filing with the FCC made by CTIA, a trade organization representing the wireless industry. Moreover, the wireless industry supports more than 268,000 direct employees and more than 2.4 million American jobs that are either directly or indirectly dependent on it. Pay for these workers is more than 50% higher than the national average of other production workers. In addition, U.S. carriers are investing $22.8 billion per year on average to upgrade their networks.


Steve Largent, CTIA President and CEO, offered the following comments in response to the filing:


"With the urgent focus from President Obama and Congress on stimulating the economy and creating jobs, CTIA has submitted a filing to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) that demonstrates the substantial investment and contributions the wireless industry is making to achieve the nation's economic and infrastructure goals. CTIA and our member companies are looking forward to continuing to work with the Obama Administration, Congress and FCC to ensure that wireless services continue to lead the way to economic recovery and prosperity."http://www.ctia.org