ZTE Report Rising Sales, Declining Profits

ZTE reported 1H2011 revenue of RMB 37.3 billion for the first half of 2011, up 21.5% over the first half of 2010. Total profit was RMB 1.27 billion, down 8.7% compared to the same period last year.


In its domestic Chinese market, ZTE reported domestic business revenue of RMB 16.5 billion, representing a year-on-year growth of 6.9% and accounting for 44.3% of its operating revenue.


ZTE's revenue from international markets increased by 36.4 per cent year-on-year to RMB 20.81 billion, accounting for 55.7 per cent of the company's operating revenue.


ZTE's gross profit margin for the reporting period was 29.76%, down 3.69 percentage points from the 33.45% reported for the same period last year.


Revenues from handset sales as a percentage of its total operating revenue increased from 25.35%
for the same period last year to 30.03%.


ZTE shipped 60 million terminal products, including 35 million smartphones in the first six months of the year. This is a 400% increase year-on-year in smart terminal sales. Consequently, operating revenue for the company's handset products as a percentage of total operating revenue increased to 30.0 per cent from 25.4 per cent in the same period last year. Overall gross profit margin for handset products declined to 19.6% from 22.7% previously.


Looking ahead, ZTE said it expects domestic carriers to increase their CAPEX spending in the second half of the year.
http://www.zte.com.cn

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CENX Supports LightSquared LTE Rollout

CENX announced further expansion of its 4G-LTE wireless backhaul platform, including support of LightSquared's forthcoming wholesale LTE network.


CENX said it is ready to assist wireless operators implementing LTE who require ubiquitous Ethernet backhaul, which means integrating multiple access providers across a region. The CENX Ethernet exchange and wireless backhaul platform offers support systems for monitoring backhaul and SLAs that are Ethernet ready.


"Our decision to work with CENX was based on their unparalleled expertise in Carrier Ethernet and its exchange services," said LightSquared Chief Network Officer Doug Smith. "CENX's advanced OSS will help ensure LightSquared delivers a best-in-class integrated 4G-LTE wireless broadband and satellite network."


"Efficiently delivering the bandwidth required in the wireless backhaul space is the single biggest challenge in the industry; Carrier Ethernet, with its Multi-Class of Service capability, can break the bandwidth logjam and drive the lowest cost per bit and higher profitability," said Nan Chen, President of CENX. "We are proud to be supporting LightSquared's development of its industry changing network."http://www.cenx.com

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ADTRAN Acquires Bluesocket

ADTRAN has acquired Bluesocket, a privately held company in Burlington, Mass., that supplies virtual wireless LAN solutions. Financial terms were not disclosed.


Bluesocket enables virtual control of WLANs via identity-based QoS and fairness algorithms that are appolied at the access point. Tightly integrated security modules offer robust and scalable NAC, Guest Access, AAA and WIDS capabilities.

The Bluesocket team and product portfolio will be incorporated into ADTRAN's Enterprise Networks Division.

ADTRAN said that combining its enterprise networks portfolio and Bluesocket's innovative solutions will result in a carrier-class, seamless wireless/wireline end-to-end voice, data, video and mobility solution with virtual control.
http://www.adtran.com

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DISH Loses 135,000 Subs in Q2 -- Base Now at 14.056 Million

DISH Network's net subscribers decreased by approximately 135,000 during the second quarter, and the company ended June 30, 2011, with approximately 14.056 million subscribers.


Financially, revenue totaled $3.59 billion for the quarter ended June 30, 2011, a 13.3 percent increase compared with $3.17 billion for the corresponding period in 2010. Net income attributable to common shareholders totaled $335 million for the quarter ended June 30, 2011, a 30.3 percent increase compared with $257 million during the same period last year. http://www.dishnetwork.com/

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Malaysia's Maxis Goes 100G with Alcatel-Lucent

Maxis Berhad, Malaysia's leading integrated communications service provider, has deployed Alcatel-Lucent's 100G optical coherent technology in its core transmission network.


Maxis operates its optical fibre network, covering over 10,000 km of fibre infrastructure, within Peninsular Malaysia with part of the fibre infrastructure delivered through collaborative sharing and swapping.

Alcatel-Lucent noted that Maxis' optical backbone network is the first 100G single carrier with optical coherent technology system commercially deployed in Asia-Pacific. http://www.alcatel-lucent.com

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Sunrise Telecom Adds T1 and SHDSL.bis to Test Platform

Sunrise Telecom has enhanced its RxT Platform with the addition of Dual T1 and SHDSL.bis test modules.


The Dual T1 Module (RxT 2080) is designed to assist field technicians with the new installation, routine maintenance, and troubleshooting of T1 and DS1 problems in the network. The Dual T1 Module is suited for everything from wireless backhaul, call center, and integrated voice and data service installation and maintenance. The module offers a full suite of tools for testing T1 circuits including pulse mask analysis, frequency and signal level measurement, error detection, alarm monitoring, voice frequency, and loopback control.


The new SHDSL.bis module (RxT 2600) represents an effective option for connecting towers which are too distant to run fiber. Additionally, many operators have turned to SHDSL.bis to deliver carrier-grade Ethernet services to small and medium businesses over the existing copper infrastructure. The SHDSL.bis module for the RxT Platform addresses key test requirements for the installation of business class services and mobile backhaul deployed over an SHDSL access network. Both legacy ITU-T SHDSL and enhanced SHDSL.bis technologies are supported for one to four copper pairs.


Sunrise Telecom also highlighted the ability of its ruggedized, hand-held test platform to optimize work flows of field technicians. The solution speeds the installation, verification and troubleshooting of 2G and 3G backhaul circuits as well as 4G/LTE backhaul services. Sunrise Telecom's mobile backhaul solution now includes the RXT-2600 SHDSL.bis, RXT-2080 Dual T1, RxT-2270 E1, RxT-2380 SONET/SDH, RxT-2500 1GE, and RxT-5000 10GE modules, which are all available today through the company's worldwide distribution channels.


"We continue to add new capability to the RxT platform at an aggressive pace, in keeping with our customers' desire to fully equip and enable a growing force of "super techs" in the field," said Bahaa Moukadam. "Outfitting field personnel capable of deploying and maintaining both new and legacy network technologies with a single, robust test platform is the key to increasing productivity for our customers who are rolling out new services." http://www.sunrisetelecom.com

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Nokia Siemens Networks Expands in India

Nokia Siemens Networks, is expanding its Chennai (Oragadam) manufacturing facility from 35,000 to 55,000 square meters, and increasing the number of product lines to 33. The company, which now ranks as India's largest international telecom infrastructure manufacturer, plans to export approximately 37% of the facility's production across the Asia Pacific. The expansion will also enable the company to manufacture and distribute new multiradio and LTE products, among other equipment such as GSM and LTE-ready 3G base stations and its FlexiPacket radio. The manufacturing facility will offer energy-efficient equipment to reduce the carbon footprint of new network deployments. It has already started the production of innovative Flexi Multiradio Antenna System, which forms part of Nokia Siemens Networks' Liquid Radio architecture. http://www.nsn.com

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FCC Approves Order Adding 650 MHz of Spectrum for Microwave Backhaul

The FCC voted to remove certain regulatory barriers to make 650 MHz of additional spectrum available for Fixed
Service (FS) use and provide additional flexibility to enable FS licensees to reduce operational costs,
increase reliability, and facilitate the use of wireless backhaul in rural areas with wider channel bandwidths in the 6 and 11 GHz bands.


"Today, we implement another key recommendation of our National Broadband Plan by
unleashing additional spectrum to help drive our economy. We do so by removing regulatory barriers to
efficient spectrum use and rapid broadband build-out. Today's Order is a trifecta: It's another important step in our spectrum agenda, recognizing the powerful role that wireless communications can play in economic revitalization. It's another important step in our Broadband Acceleration Initiative, recognizing the importance to job creation of accelerating broadband build-out and reducing its costs. And it's another important step in our regulatory reform agenda, recognizing our ongoing commitment to remove or reform outdated regulations," stated FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski.


Specifically, the FCC order includes the following actions:


Permits FS Operations in Certain BAS and CARS Frequencies: The FCC will now allow FS operators to share the 6875-7125 MHz and 12700-13100 MHz bands currently used for Fixed and Mobile Broadcast Auxiliary Service (BAS) and Cable TV Relay Service (CARS). The order eliminates regulatory impediments to permit FS operations in rural areas where the band is not currently licensed to TV mobile pickup stations used in newsgathering operations and
adopt rules to protect BAS and CARS operations. This action will make 650 megahertz of additional backhaul spectrum available in rural areas where the band is not currently licensed to TV mobile pickup stations used in newsgathering operations.


Eliminates Final Link Rule: The FCC will grant broadcasters greater access to microwave spectrum by eliminating the "final link" rule that prohibits broadcasters from using FS stations as the final radiofrequency (RF) link in the chain of distribution of program material to broadcast stations.


Permits Adaptive Modulation: The Part 101 rules contain a minimum payload capacity rule, 47 CFR § 101.141(a)(3), intended to ensure that FS links are operated efficiently. The new order will permit temporary operations below the minimum capacity under certain circumstances, which will enable FS links to maintain critical communications during periods of fading.


Declines to Permit "Auxiliary" Fixed Stations: The FCC declines to permit FS licensees to coordinate and deploy "auxiliary" links, which would effectively allow point-to-multipoint operations under the point-to-point rules.

The full order is posted online. http://www.fcc.gov

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Pangaea Networks Partners with Ciena for Metro Ethernet in New York

Ciena announced a partnership with Pangaea Networks, which delivers flat-rate Ethernet access to more than 2,700 enterprise buildings and interconnectivity to nearly all of the New York and New Jersey metro area data center and colocation facilities. Pangaea has selected Ciena's 3960 Service Delivery Switch, a next-generation Ethernet access system that delivers premium business Ethernet services via fiber or copper connections, to serve as the foundation of its metro network backbone architecture. http://www.ciena.com

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Verizon Offers Mobile Satellite Access to MPLS VPNs

Verizon is adding Mobile Satellite Solutions to its Private IP service suite, enabling corporate customers to gain access to their MPLS networks from anywhere in the satellite footprint in the continental U.S.


Mobile Satellite Solutions comprise any combination of auto deploy kits, communications trailers and an executive coach to provide dependable backup service and enhanced disaster recovery for customers looking for primary access, business continuity, digital signage, IPTV and content delivery.
"With Verizon's 20-plus years of offering satellite services to business and government customers, we are well-equipped to provide the flexibility and coordination satellite projects require," said Nicola Morris, vice president of marketing and strategy for Verizon Business. "Our Mobile Satellite Solutions offer the powerful combination of satellite technology and Verizon's Private IP network."http://www.verizon.com

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MRV Introduces Hybrid NID Capabilities for the Carrier Ethernet Access Market

MRV Communications introduced a lineup of hybrid Network Interface Devices (NID) for its OptiSwitch Carrier Ethernet access series. The new devices feature Hybrid NID functionality, which enables service providers and cable operators to reduce equipment requirements and increase manageability while jointly deploying and managing their rapidly growing portfolio of Ethernet services.


MRV said this hybrid capability is needed because many Ethernet services require the cooperation of two service providers or cable operators to create an end-to-end service and this requires two customer devices – one for each service provider. The OptiSwitch Hybrid NID capability gives both service providers and cable operators the ability to simultaneously monitor and manage the same Carrier Ethernet demark device located at a customer's site in their partners out-of-franchise network.


"Carrier Ethernet is becoming the pervasive network technology because it enables creative and important new packet-based services," said David Stehlin, Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing for MRV's Optical Communications Systems™ (OCS) division. "As a result, there is now a critical need for providers to efficiently hand off packet-based services between networks. The hybrid NID technology now included in our OptiSwitch family of products is a key innovation that increases manageability, lowers capital expense and facilitates consistent regional, national and global Ethernet services."http://www.mrv.com

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Comcast Offers $10 Internet Service in Georgia

Comcast will offer low-cost, residential Internet access to 17,000 low-income families with children eligible to receive a free lunch under the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) in 28 metro-Atlanta area school districts.


The Internet Essentials plan will include:

• Residential Internet service for $9.95 a month plus applicable taxes;



• No price increases, no activation fees, or equipment rental fees;



• A voucher to purchase a low-cost computer for $149.99 + tax;



• Access to free digital literacy training in print, online and in-person.



• Additional benefits include the Norton™ Security Suite ($160 value), which provides comprehensive online security protection at no additional charge.

http://www.comcast.com

• In approving the Comcast-NBCU mega-merger, the FCC and the Department of Justice imposed a number of conditions and commitments which generally will remain in effect for seven years. One of these conditions was a requirement to make available to approximately 2.5 million low income households: (i) high-speed Internet access service for less than $10 per month; (ii) personal computers, netbooks, or other computer equipment at a purchase price below $150; and (iii) an array of digital literacy education opportunities.

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NTELOS Wireline and FiberNet to Become Lumos Networks

NTELOS Wireline and FiberNet will combine to become one new brand concurrent with the separation of the Company's wireline operations into a new publicly traded company. A new logo and brand will be unveiled in early September. It is expected that Lumos Networks Corp. common stock will be listed on the NASDAQ Stock Market, trading under the symbol "LMOS."http://www.ntelos.comUl>

In December 2010, NTELOS announced plans to separate into wireline and wireless businesses.

In 2010, 30956

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Verizon Claims at Least 12 Cases of Sabotage

As the strike by 45,000 of its employees entered its second day, Verizon reported at least at least 12 cases of sabotage to its network, including damage to its communications facilities in four states.


Specifically, Verizon cited ten incidents of fiber-optic lines being deliberately cut in the Bronx, Pomona, Farmingdale and Guilderland in New York; two separate incidents in Tewksbury in Massachusetts; incidents in Bel Air in Maryland, and East Dover, Oakland and Plainfield in New Jersey. There was also an outage due to stolen electronic equipment in Cedar Grove, N.J., affecting a local police department, among other customers. The company also believes there was tampering with a heating system at a central office in Manhattan.


The company is offering a reward of up to $50,000 for information leading to the arrest and prosecution of individuals that intentionally damage Verizon cables or facilities or cause or attempt to cause physical injury to any Verizon employee or contractor.


For its part, the CWA and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers issued a press release stating that it does not condone any illegal activity.
http://www.verizon.com
http://www.cwa-union.org

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Telstra's LTE Launch Confirmed for August

Telstra confirmed the upcoming commercial launch of its LTE network this month. The first LTE base stations were activated in May. The company has the first 2,000 LTE USB modem ready for customer rollout on August 29. A nationwide launch is anticipated later in the year.


Telstra's first 4G product, the Telstra 4G USB, will use dual mode 4G/3G HSPA technology enabling it to operate across the 1800MHz and 850MHz spectrum bands, giving customers the benefits of 4G connectivity where it is available and switchover to high-speed HSPA technology across the Telstra Mobile Network which reaches 99 per cent of the Australian population. http://www.telstra.com

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Motorola Debuts In-Vehicle LTE for First Responders

Motorola introduced two LTE devices aimed at public safety applications.


The VML700 LTE Vehicle Modem connects equipment in the patrol car, fire apparatus, or command vehicle to Band Class 14 LTE networks. The solid state device can also connect to EVDO and WiFi networks. It is built to withstand heat, cold, rain, dust, humidity and vibration


The UM1000 USB LTE Modem plugs into a USB port to allow laptops or mobile computers access to a Public Safety LTE network.


In addition, Motorola will be rolling out two Public Safety LTE-equipped vehicles at this week's APCO 2011 tradeshow: a Chevrolet Caprice PPV and a Chevrolet Tahoe PPV with integrated VML700 LTE Vehicle Modem, integrated steering wheel push-to-talk (PTT), APX 7500 Multi-Band Mobile Radio with O9 Control Head that operates the mobile radio, siren and lights, MVX1000 Digital In-Car Video System, MW810 Mobile Workstation, Automatic License Plate Recognition (ALPR), Real-Time Video Intelligence (RTVI) and PremierOne™ Mobile. http://www.motorolasolutions.com

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Stoke Appoints Former Comcast Exec as CTO

Stoke named Dave Williams as Chief Technology Officer. Previously, he was senior vice president of wireless technology at Comcast, responsible for the evaluation and strategy of wireless technology solutions. He has also served on the boards of the GSM Association, Vantage Point, Bubble Motion, the Femto Forum and the WiMAX Forum. Prior to Comcast, Williams was O2 Telefonica Europe's chief technology officer, where he merged Telefonica's and O2's networks. http://www.stoke.com

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Harris and NSN Join Public Safety 700 MHz LTE Demo Net

Harris Corporation, in partnership with Nokia Siemens Networks, has provided its 700 MHz LTE public safety network infrastructure to the NIST (National Institute of Standards and Technology) testing lab in Boulder, Colorado. The solution is now operational within the 700 MHz Public Safety Broadband Demonstration Network.


Harris notes that its 700 MHz LTE network support a wide range of existing and emerging high-bandwidth applications such as streaming video, advanced situational awareness and PTT (Push To Talk) voice-over-broadband features. The networks also provide users with priority and Quality of Service (QoS) controls, user authentication and air link encryption, advanced load balancing and Self-Optimizing Network Management.


"By participating in this important program, we are providing emergency responders with hands-on experience with our LTE solution, so that they can actually see how the system meets their unique and varied needs," said George Helm, vice president – LTE Business, Harris Public Safety and Professional Communications. "The capabilities that the Harris LTE solution brings to first responders today provide transformational enhancements to their mission critical operations."




In public safety and professional communications, Harris is a leading supplier of assured communications® systems and equipment for public safety, federal, utility, commercial and transportation markets -- with products ranging from the most advanced IP voice and data networks, to industry leading multiband, multimode radios, to public safety-grade broadband voice, video and data solutions. Harris has more than 80 years of experience in public safety and professional communications and supports over 500 systems around the world.
http://www.harris.com http://www.nsn.com

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PAETEC Provisions 200+ Mbps Ethernet-over-Copper Services

PAETEC has successfully provisioned high-rate Ethernet services in excess of 200 Mbps via its advanced Ethernet-over-Copper (EoC) network. The first 200 Mbps customer is a prominent web marketing company which is using the service to connect its newest state-of-the-art datacenter to the Internet.


EoC utilizes multiple bonded copper pairs in the same conduit to reach businesses where fiber optic facilities are either not available or cost prohibitive. PAETEC's deployment leverages Overture Network's Carrier Ethernet edge and aggregation solutions.


"With more enterprises taking advantage of emerging technologies like cloud computing, data streaming, and server virtualization, the need for dependable, high-speed Ethernet service delivery is rapidly accelerating," said Clint Heiden, president of national accounts and fiber services, PAETEC. "By leveraging the latest EoC advancements, we're able to meet increasing customer demand for robust bandwidth volumes at a fraction of the cost of other media." http://www.paetec.com

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Overture Networks Boosts Ethernet over Copper for 200 Mbps Links

Overture Networks has upgraded its Carrier Ethernet-over-copper (EoC) solutions with the ability to increase service bandwidth to 200 Mbps.


Specifically, Overture is introducing higher rate adaptive span profiles on the line cards of its HN series of platforms, boosting capacity to 15 Mbps per copper pair. The newly expanded profiles also reduce turn-up times when compared to manual tuning, and ensure easier, broader deployment and adoption of 200 Mbps EoC services. The system could support up to 32 pair for a theoretical top speed of 480 Mbps of EoC


Other additions that help network operators streamline service validation, and lower installation and maintenance costs include:

• New packet capture capabilities allowing capture of data packets for onboard or external analysis. An extensive sub-system of advanced filters and filter chains enable improved visibility for network and service troubleshooting, reducing installation complexity and facilitating faster service turn-up.



• Expanded support for ITU-T Y.156sam service activation methodology (soon to be known as Y.1564) streamlines device and service provisioning, as well as improving performance and stability testing. Rich sampling and testing functionalities also make it an essential verification tool for Service Level Agreement (SLA) contracts.



• Newly extended Routing Information Protocol v2 (RIPv2) support facilitates single-box Ethernet circuit termination and IP routing CPE solutions. By transitioning from a two-box to a single-box solution, users can generate tangible operating expense cost-savings.

Overture Networks also noted that PAETEC is already leveraging the upgraded solution for the delivery of symmetric 200 Mbps EoC services.


"The need for higher-speed network connectivity continues unabated, driven by the convergence of bandwidth-intensive applications like enterprise automation, streaming media, cloud-based services, and mobile data. It truly sets the stage for a 'perfect storm', where carrier capacities and infrastructures are overwhelmed by surging demand," said Vijay Raman, vice president, product management and marketing, Overture Networks. http://www.overturenetworks.com

• Earlier this month, Windstream agreed to acquire PAETEC Holding Corp. for approximately $2.3 billion.
  PAETEC is a competitive local exchange carrier and provides telecommunications services primarily to business customers in 46 states and the District of Columbia.

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