Vertical Systems Group: U.S. Fiber Lit Buildings LEADERBOARD

Vertical Systems Group’s 2020 U.S. Fiber Lit Buildings LEADERBOARD results are as follows (in rank order by number of on-net fiber lit buildings): AT&T, Verizon, Spectrum Enterprise, Lumen, Comcast, Cox, Crown Castle Fiber, Atlantic Broadband, Frontier, Zayo and Altice USA. These eleven retail and wholesale fiber providers qualify for this benchmark with 15,000 or more on-net U.S. fiber lit commercial buildings as of year-end 2020.

Additionally, fourteen companies qualify for the 2020 Challenge Tier as follows (in alphabetical order): Cincinnati Bell, Cleareon, Cogent, Consolidated Communications, Conterra, DQE Communications, Everstream, FirstLight, IFN, Logix Fiber Networks, Segra, Unite Private Networks, Uniti Fiber and Windstream. These fiber providers each qualify for the 2020 Challenge Tier with between 2,000 and 14,999 U.S. fiber lit commercial buildings.

“The base of fiber lit buildings in the U.S. expanded in 2020, although the pace of new installations was hampered by the pandemic. Challenges for fiber providers ranged from impeded installations due to commercial building closures and business shutdowns to supply chain disruptions,” said Rosemary Cochran, principal of Vertical Systems Group. “As the economy rebounds in 2021, fiber providers have opportunities to monetize the millions of small and medium U.S. commercial buildings without fiber, as well as larger multi-tenant buildings with only a single fiber provider. However it remains uncertain how changes in U.S. regulatory policies and federal funding could alter fiber investments and deployment plans in the next several years.”

2020 Fiber Provider Research Highlights

• AT&T retains the top rank on the U.S. Fiber Lit Buildings LEADERBOARD for the fifth consecutive year.
• The threshold for a rank position on the 2020 Fiber LEADERBOARD is 15,000 fiber lit buildings, up from 10,000 buildings previously.
• Atlantic Broadband advanced to eighth position on the LEADERBOARD, up from eleventh in the previous year.
• Windstream and Consolidated Communications move into the Challenge Tier from the LEADERBOARD.

https://www.verticalsystems.com/

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Vertical Systems Group: 2020 U.S. Fiber Availability

New deployments of optical fiber to U.S. commercial buildings and data centers expanded in 2020 despite the pandemic, according to the latest ENS @Fiber Plus research from Vertical Systems Group. Fiber lit buildings are strategic assets that enable competitive advantages such as more profitable delivery of services and applications requiring up to gigabit speeds.

The latest research analysis shows that fiber availability for commercial sites continues to vary widely based on the size of the building. The U.S. Fiber Lit Landscape chart below illustrates the two primary segments tracked for this research: Fiber 20+ (buildings with twenty or more employees) and Fiber <20 (buildings with fewer than 20 employees). 

For 2020, fiber availability extends to 14.1% of buildings in the Fiber <20 segment. In contrast, the availability of fiber is 69.2% for all buildings in the Fiber 20+ segment. Detailed ENS research available for Fiber 20+ shows how fiber penetration varies significantly across four medium/large building size segments: 20 – 50 employees, 51 – 100 employees, 101 – 250 employees and 251+ employees.

Fiber market leadership is measured by Vertical Systems Group with annual Fiber LEADERBOARD benchmarks based on lit building counts. Eleven retail and wholesale fiber providers attained a rank position on the 2020 U.S. Fiber Lit Buildings LEADERBOARD.

A fiber-lit building is defined for this analysis to include multi-tenant and company-owned commercial sites plus data centers that have on-net optical fiber connectivity to a network provider’s infrastructure and active service termination equipment onsite. Excluded from this analysis are standalone cell towers, small cells not located in fiber-lit buildings, near net buildings, buildings classified as coiled at curb or coiled in building, HFC-connected buildings, carrier central offices, residential buildings, and private or dark fiber installations.

https://www.verticalsystems.com/

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Five carriers acquire spectrum in Australia's mmWave auction

Five companies have won spectrum in the Australian Communications and Media Authority’s latest spectrum auction in the 26 GHz band.

Winners include:

• Dense Air Australia Pty Ltd won 2 lots for $28,689,900
• Mobile JV Pty Limited won 86 lots for $108,186,700
• Optus Mobile Pty Ltd won 116 lots for $226,203,100
• Pentanet Limited won 4 lots for $7,986,200
• Telstra Corporation Limited won 150 lots for $276,576,200

Of the 360 lots available in the auction, 358 were sold, realising a total revenue of $647,642,100, equivalent to almost $0.0127/MHz/pop.

“This outcome represents another significant milestone for 5G in Australia. The successful allocation of this spectrum will support high-speed communications services in metropolitan cities and major regional centres throughout Australia,” said ACMA Chair Nerida O’Loughlin.

Licences won at auction will come into force later this year, for a 15-year term ending in 2036.

Full results are here:

https://www.acma.gov.au/auction-summary-26-ghz-band-2021

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Fujikura demos vehicle-to-infrastructure over 60 GHz millimeter-wave

Fujikura has demonstrated high-speed vehicle-to-infrastructure communication using an electric pole and in-house developed 60 GHz millimeter-wave wireless communication modules.

The demonstration, which was conducted in March in Himeji City, Hyogo Prefecture, confirmed the effectiveness of the safe driving support system for local bus services by vehicle-to-infrastructure communication.

In this demonstration, Fujikura installed a communication device equipped with the module on both electric poles and a local bus to establish a wideband wireless connection between the two. The module has successfully uploaded in-vehicle camera images in real time and also  transmitted the GNSS (global navigation satellite system) correction data necessary for high-precision vehicle positioning.

In addition, the module achieved a speed >2Gbps over a distance of >500m.

Other participants in the test included Kansai Transmission and Distribution, KYOCERA, Shinki bus Co., Panasonic System Networks R&D Lab, and Magellan Systems Japan.

https://www.fujikura.co.jp/eng/newsrelease/products/2063554_11777.html

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OneWeb launches 36 more satellites bringing constellation to 182

A Russian Soyuz rocket lauched 36 OneWeb broadband satellites from the Vostochny Cosmodrome in the Amur Oblast, in the Russian Far East. 

The launch brings OneWeb’s total in-orbit constellation to 182 satellites, and is the third launch in OneWeb’s ‘Five to 50’ programme, to deliver its connectivity solution to regions north of 50 degrees latitude by June 2021.

OneWeb’s ‘Five to 50’ programme aims to connect broadband data users in the northern hemisphere, with services covering the United Kingdom, Alaska, Northern Europe, Greenland, Iceland, the Arctic Seas and Canada. Service will be ready to start by the end of year, with global service available in 2022.

OneWeb also highlighted recent distribution signings across multiple industries with The AST Group, PDI, among others.

OneWeb also agreed its latest MoU with the Government of Kazakhstan this month as it continues to demonstrate the company’s commercial viability and the confidence customers have in its services and offering.

https://www.oneweb.world/

• In March 2021, OneWeb conducted its first network demonstrations to the U.S. Government and will be rolling out additional demonstration kits and Service Demo-centres in locations such as: Westcott 5G Centre, U.K., Talkeetna, Alaska, in the Washington D.C. area and more.

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EFFECT Photonics raises $43 million for system-on-chip

EFFECT Photonics, a leading developer of DWDM components based on its optical System-on-Chip technology, announced $43 million in Series-C funding.

EFFECT Photonics, which is a spin-off from the Eindhoven University of Technology in the Netherlands, has developed a photonic chip in which light signals can be generated, modulated, filtered, and detected. 

The first close of the investment round, was co-led by Smile Invest together with existing investor Innovation Industries Fund, exactly one year after announcing the tape-out of its Manta full photonic integration coherent PIC. Smile Invest are joined by existing investors including Innovation Industries Fund, Photon Delta, btov Partners, Brabant Development Agency (BOM) and individual investors. This new round of funding will be used to further expand the current product line of optical transceivers for among other things 5G networks, and to scale up production capacity. In addition, the R&D activities for the next generation of optical chips, with capacity of more than 400 gigabits per second, will also be ramped up.

Boudewijn Docter, one of the founders and President of EFFECT Photonics: “As a company, we have come a long way to make the photonics technology market-ready. We are pleased that Invest-NL is joining our other investors in helping us scale up our production and enabling us to bring additional products to market quicker”.

Ruud Zandvliet, Senior Investment Manager at Invest-NL: “The Netherlands has a unique ecosystem for photonics technologies. EFFECT Photonics is a leading player in this field, capable of developing complex, fully integrated photonic chips. This offers the company the opportunity be a leading player as a manufacturer of the next generation of transceivers. By joining this investment round, Invest-NL contributes to the availability of financing for upscaling and future R&D investments. This is a good example of the role Invest-NL plays in increasing the strength of scale-ups and is in line with our objective of making the Netherlands more sustainable and innovative.

https://effectphotonics.com/

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QTS moves to renewal energy in 4 more mega data centers

QTS Realty Trust announced that the following four additional data centers are now powered by renewable energy: QTS Hillsboro, QTS Fort Worth, QTS Eemshaven, Netherlands and QTS Richmond.

The four locations join QTS data centers in Irving, TX, Chicago, IL, Piscataway, NJ and Groningen, Netherlands currently powered by renewable energy.

QTS said approximately 36% of its portfolio-wide data center power requirements are now sourced from renewable energy and that it is committed to procuring 100% of power for all of its data center from renewable sources by 2025.

• 
• QTS Hillsboro – Purchases renewable energy certificates equal to at least the expected electricity needs of the facility from Three Peaks Power, LLC solar facility in Utah through Calpine Energy Solutions. With the purchase, QTS said it now offers a true zero water cooling solution powered by 100% renewable energy.
• QTS Fort Worth – Purchases renewable energy from a provider in Texas equal to 100% of the projected power consumption of the data center.
• QTS Eemshaven – Purchases environmental attributes from Dutch wind and Nordic hydro sources. The agreements cover over 20 gigawatt hours of energy and account for 100% of the expected electrical load of QTS Eemshaven.
• QTS' Richmond --  signed a multi-year agreement to purchase renewable energy certificates equal to the majority of the expected electricity needs of the facility.  

"Today's announcement is another significant step towards our goal of procuring 100% of our power from renewable energy sources by 2025," said Travis Wright, Vice President Energy and Sustainability, QTS. "Renewable energy is a cornerstone of our ESG program that documents our commitment to minimizing our carbon footprint through advanced development and procurement initiatives.

http://www.qtsdatacenters.com

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Dell'Oro hires Cliff Grossner to cover Edge Computing and IT Equipment Silicon

Dell'Oro Group has appointed Dr. Cliff Grossner to the role of Vice President, Edge Computing and IT Equipment Silicon including coprocessors for AI and ML. His current research agenda also includes AI driven data center automation suites and adoption of open infrastructure including OCP certified designs.

Dr. Grossner has more than 25 years of telecommunications experience encompassing scientific research, market analysis, strategy, and product management. Prior to joining Dell'Oro Group, Dr. Grossner held management roles in Omdia, and IHS Markit, focused on cloud services, data center IT and physical infrastructure.  He frequently is an expert judge for industry and technology innovation awards and an invited speaker, and often quoted in technical publications. Dr. Grossner earned his Ph.D. at McGill University, and his MSC in Computer Science at Concordia University, winning national scholarships to support his graduate work. He holds over 10 patents in computer networking, network embedded security and telecommunications applications.

"Dr. Grossner adds significant fire-power and experience in the world of IT equipment, components, and the intelligence software running over it. The team is excited with the perspectives and wisdom a man of his caliber brings. He has an excellent track record of identifying emerging markets and developing theories on where they are headed. I am very pleased Dr. Grossner has joined us," Tam Dell'Oro, Founder and CEO said.

 "I am excited to join Dell'Oro Group to research IT ecosystems, innovation has never been higher, driven by digitization and consumer demands. Equipment markets are shifting due to new technology, new business models, and disruptive early stage companies. I look forward to being first to identify and quantify new trends, provide insight on markets changes, help with product and go to market strategies following the Dell'Oro tradition of providing timely, accurate, and insightful information," commented Grossner.

http://www.delloro.com

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Skyworks to acquire the Infrastructure & Automotive business of Silicon Labs

Skyworks Solutions will acquire the Infrastructure & Automotive business of Silicon Labs in an all-cash asset transaction valued at $2.75 billion. The acquisition encompasses the technology portfolios and related assets of Silicon Labs’ power/isolation, timing and broadcast product lines.

Skyworks said the acquisition will accelerate its expansion into the industry’s most important growth segments, including electric and hybrid vehicles, industrial and motor control, power supply, 5G wireless infrastructure, optical data communication, data center, automotive, smart home and several other applications. Skyworks will be uniquely positioned to address a combined market opportunity approaching $20 billion annually.

Mark Thompson, senior vice president of Silicon Labs and general manager of the Infrastructure & Automotive business, will join Skyworks as part of the transaction, reporting directly to Liam K. Griffin, president and chief executive officer of Skyworks. In addition, approximately 350 employees, including the senior management team of the business, are expected to join Skyworks upon completion of the transaction.

“We are pleased to welcome the Infrastructure & Automotive team to Skyworks when this transaction is completed,” said Mr. Griffin. “This acquisition will broadly expand our capabilities across high-growth end markets including automotive, communications and industrial, creating new and highly compelling opportunities for Skyworks. By leveraging our global sales channels, operational scale and deep customer relationships, Skyworks is well positioned to drive above-market growth, while diversifying revenues, expanding margins and delivering strong returns in earnings and cash generation.”

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Alphawave IP files for IPO

Alphawave IP, a start-up offering DSP-based silicon IP building blocks, has filed registration statements for a planned listing on the London Stock Exchange.

Recently, Alphawave announced the successful silicon bring up of its TSMC N6 1-112Gbps AlphaCORE100 IP, which is a multi-standard DSP PHY that supports 100G Ethernet, PCIe, CXL and Base Station standards.

In November 2020, Alphawave announced the successful silicon bring up of its TSMC N5 1-112Gbps AlphaCORE100 IP, which a multi-standard DSP PHY that supports the 100G Ethernet, PCIe, CXL and Base Station standards.

The company, which was founded in 2017, is based in Canada and the UK.

https://www.awaveip.com/

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Comcast tests Broadcom's 10G Full Duplex DOCSIS 4.0 chip

Comcast has conducted the first-ever lab test of a Full Duplex DOCSIS system-on-chip (SOC) device from Broadcom that is expected to become the world’s first production silicon to be developed using the DOCSIS 4.0 Full Duplex standard.

“We are always pushing the envelope to stay ahead of our customers’ growing needs,” said Charlie Herrin, President of Technology, Product, Xperience at Comcast Cable. “This milestone is particularly exciting, because this technology is an important step forward toward unlocking multigigabit upload and download speeds for hundreds of millions of people worldwide, not just a select few.”

Comcast technologists in Philadelphia and Denver conducted the test by installing the Broadcom SOC in a simulated network environment to track the performance of its Full Duplex DOCSIS features – including echo cancellation and overlapping spectrum – which combine to support substantial improvements in network throughput. In the test environment, the research team demonstrated the ability of the SOC to deliver upstream and downstream throughputs of greater than 4 gigabits per second (Gbps). Future optimization is expected to drive even greater capacity.

Elad Nafshi, Senior Vice President of Next Generation Access Networks at Comcast Cable, said that the performance of the Broadcom SOC in Comcast’s simulated network environment exceeded expectations, and sets the stage for expanded testing later this year.

“With this test we gain a powerful new tool to support our mission of delivering the best possible connected experiences to our customers,” Nafshi said.

The Full Duplex DOCSIS test is the latest milestone on Comcast’s path to 10G. Last October, Comcast technologists were able to deliver 1.25 Gig symmetrical speeds over a live, all-digital network by leveraging advances in Distributed Access Architecture, Remote PHY digital nodes, and a cloud-based virtualized cable modem termination system platform (vCMTS). Even as Comcast works to test and deploy Full Duplex DOCSIS to enable multigigabit upload and download speeds in the future, the company is leveraging the technologies from the October trial, along with DOCSIS 3.1 in the upstream, to increase speed and capacity in the near term.

https://corporate.comcast.com/press/releases/comcast-conducts-ull-duplex-chip-multi-gigabit-symmetrical-speeds

CableLabs releases DOCSIS 4.0 spec for 10G downlinks

Thursday, March 26, 2020  10G, Cable Labs  

CableLabs released the DOCSIS 4.0 specification, which incorporates both full-duplex and extended spectrum capabilities enabling a downstream speed of up to 10 Gbps (doubling the maximum download speed available with DOCSIS 3.1 technology) and an upstream speed of up to 6 Gbps - quadrupling what DOCSIS 3.1

Work on DOCSIS 4.0 has been underway since August 2016.

In a blog post, Doug Jones, Principal Architect, says the DOCSIS 4.0 specification reflects the four pillars of the 10G platform initiative: speed, lower latency, increased security, and higher reliability.

https://www.cablelabs.com/on-the-path-to-10g-cablelabs-publishes-docsis-4-0-specification

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Bell Canada activates 400G wavelength service

 Bell Canada launched a commercial 400G wavelength service powered by Ciena's WaveLogic 5 Extreme technology.

The 400G service is now deployed across major spans of Bell's 17,000 km fiber infrastructure. Bell plans to expand the service across Canada in the coming months.

"Bell 400G wavelength service efficiently delivers the speed and capacity necessary to meet the fast-growing demand of bandwidth-intensive operators moving massive amounts of data and content to the cloud," said Ivan Mihaljevic, Senior Vice President, Wholesale at Bell Canada. "Bell's unparalleled network infrastructure and customer support, coupled with Ciena's market-leading optical wavelength technology, offers major operators here in Canada and internationally the opportunity to scale up easily, efficiently and sustainably with our highly energy efficient 400G capabilities."

"The global shift to 400G is happening and Bell Canada is leading the way by evolving its network to support the insatiable and often unpredictable network demand driven by the cloud, streaming video and more," said Bruce Hembree, Vice President and General Manager for the Americas at Ciena. "With WaveLogic 5 Extreme, Bell can offer new, high bandwidth 400G services to carrier and content provider customers between key points of presence across Canada and into the US."

https://www.bce.ca/news-and-media/releases/show/Bell-Canada-rolls-out-commercial-400G-wavelength-on-fibre-optic-backbone

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EPFL develops ultralow-loss integrated photonic circuits

Researchers at the École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) are developing ultralow-loss integrated photonic circuits based on silicon nitride (Si3N4), whose exceptionally low optical loss are orders of magnitude lower than that of silicon.

The work, which is led by Professor Tobias J. Kippenberg at EPFL’s School of Basic Sciences, has just been published in Nature Communications.

"Combining nanofabrication and material science, the technology is based on the photonic Damascene process developed at EPFL. Using this process, the team made integrated circuits of optical losses of only 1 dB/m, a record value for any nonlinear integrated photonic material. Such low loss significantly reduces the power budget for building chip-scale optical frequency combs (“microcombs”), used in applications like coherent optical transceivers, low-noise microwave synthesizers, LiDAR, neuromorphic computing, and even optical atomic clocks. The team used the new technology to develop meter-long waveguides on 5x5 mm2 chips and high-quality-factor microresonators. They also report high fabrication yield, which is essential for scaling up to industrial production."

“These chip devices have already been used for parametric optical amplifiers, narrow-linewidth lasers and chip-scale frequency combs”, says Dr Junqiu Liu who led the fabrication at EPFL’s Center of MicroNanoTechnology (CMi). “We are also looking forward to seeing our technology being used for emerging applications such as coherent LiDAR, photonic neural networks, and quantum computing.”

https://news.epfl.ch/news/new-tech-builds-ultralow-loss-integrated-photonic-/

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Intel posts rise in EPS, dip in data center sales

 Intel reported Q1 revenue of $19.7 billion (GAAP), down 1 percent year over year (YoY), and non-GAAP revenue of $18.6 billion, flat YoY, which exceeded January guidance by $1.1 billion. First-quarter GAAP earnings-per-share (EPS) was $0.82; non-GAAP EPS was $1.39, which exceeded January guidance by $0.29.

“Intel delivered strong first-quarter results driven by exceptional demand for our leadership products and outstanding execution by our team. The response to our new IDM 2.0 strategy has been extraordinary, our product roadmap is gaining momentum, and we’re rapidly progressing our plans with re-invigorated focus on innovation and execution,” said Pat Gelsinger, Intel CEO. “This is a pivotal year for Intel. We are setting our strategic foundation and investing to accelerate our trajectory and capitalize on the explosive growth in semiconductors that power our increasingly digital world.”

First-quarter revenue exceeded January guidance by $1.1 billion led by continued, 

Intel said its results were driven by strong PC demand. PC unit volumes were up 38 percent YoY, and notebook volumes set a new Intel record. The company also saw initial recovery of Enterprise and Government sales in the Data Center Group (DCG). 

Intel also achieved better-than-expected revenue in Internet of Things Group (IOTG) and Mobileye, and Mobileye set a new revenue record in the quarter.

https://www.intc.com/financial-info

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Infovista acquires Empirix, adding monitoring, assurance, analytics

Infovista has acquired Empirix, a Thoma Bravo portfolio company. Financial terms were not disclosed. As part of the operation, Thoma Bravo becomes a minority shareholder of Infovista, with Apax Partners remaining the major shareholder.

Empirix is a leader in network and service testing, performance monitoring, assurance and analytics. It serves Tier 1 CSPs and large Contact Centers of Fortune Global 500 companies. Empirix has invested heavily since 2017 to develop KLERITY, which is a cloud-native monitoring, assurance and analytics solution for 5G and IoT. Empirix is headquartered in Billerica, Massachusetts, and employs approximately 300 people worldwide.

Infovista said the acquisition extends its ability to serve CSPs globally and expands the capabilities of its cloud-native, open platform which manages the entire network lifecycle. This enables the digital transformation of CSPs and the acceleration of 5G deployments while delivering unprecedented efficiency and productivity levels in managing both 5G and legacy networks. It also enables CSPs to deploy new revenue generating services from digital services, IoT, network slicing and monetization of data and network assets.

“The union of Infovista and Empirix gives all our clients a unique opportunity to reap the benefits of 5G, IoT and private networks, and to move fast towards a software-based and cloud-native future. By bringing network lifecycle automation to a strategic level, we provide CSPs with new ways to improve their productivity, customer experience and time-to-market,” commented José Duarte, CEO of Infovista. “With this acquisition, we also increase our presence in North America and Europe to expand our global footprint and strengthen our ability to help clients accelerate their network and business transformation.”

“Telco CTOs today face a complex technology landscape with a large number of vendors. They are looking to support innovation and increase efficiency of operations through automation,” noted James Crawshaw, Principal Analyst at Omdia. “Empirix’s cloud-native assurance and analytics solutions should round out Infovista’s existing portfolio of solutions that span the network lifecycle. Better network visibility and increased automation are key to supporting the business goals of CSPs in the 5G era.”

“The industry is looking at 5G standalone and network slicing as the next major engines for business growth especially around IoT and private network opportunities. Empirix helps deliver the promise and full benefits of these exciting technologies with its cloud-native and automated customer experience assurance and analytics,” added John D’Anna, CEO of Empirix. “This is the perfect time for Empirix to join Infovista, expand the market for KLERITY and take it to the next level.”

 http://www.infovista.com

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Spirent intros subscription-based Automated 5G Core Test Suite

Spirent Communications introduced a subscription-based, automated 5G core test platform designed to accelerate time to market for service providers and significantly reduce costs associated with 5G core validation.

The Spirent Landslide 5GC Automation Package provides access to a managed library of hundreds of prebuilt test cases covering compliance, capacity, and performance testing for nodal, adjacency and end-to-end assessment, including the largest nodal coverage in the industry. It is built around a number of award-winning products and solutions such as Spirent Landslide core emulation, Spirent Velocity test automation, and the company’s world-class professional services.

“This is a true automation pipeline approach for service providers that need to accelerate their 5G deployment while managing tight budgets and resources,” said Doug Roberts, general manager of Spirent’s Lifecycle Service Assurance business. “The value extends well beyond initial deployment, helping validate network changes and, as standards evolve, eliminating the need to resource for ongoing test development.”

“Customers will not only benefit from significant time and cost savings, they can also be confident that they are relying on Spirent’s extensive 5G expertise and proven test methodologies to minimize risk and ensure their 5G rollouts are a success,” added Roberts.

http://www.spirent.com/Landslide5GCAP

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Druva raises $147 million for cloud data protection

Druva, a start-up based in Sunnyvale, California, announced $147 million new funding for its Cloud Data Protection and Management solutions.

The Druva Cloud Platform, which the company describes as the largest cloud-native SaaS platform operating at scale, enables organizations to centrally protect data, including cloud environments and leading SaaS applications such as Microsoft 365, Google Workspace and Salesforce.

The funding round was led by Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ), a global investment group, with a significant investment by Neuberger Berman. The round, which raises the company’s valuation above $2 billion, also included participation from existing investors Viking Global Investors and Atreides Management. 

“Rising volumes of stored data, rapid adoption of cloud and deployment of SaaS applications, regulatory frameworks and cybersecurity concerns have accelerated the demand for data protection and management solutions for businesses,” said Alexandre Synnett, Executive Vice President and Chief Technology Officer, CDPQ. “The working-from-home dynamic experienced globally has further accentuated the need for cloud-based data protection solutions and we believe Druva is in an excellent position to seize opportunities and enhance its clients’ agility and data compliance.”

Druva Cloud Platform’s customer base has expanded substantially during 2020, while the adoption of multiple Druva Cloud Platform products has increased by 50 percent in the same time period. In the last year, the company’s data under management has grown by more than 40 percent as Druva supports industry leaders, disruptors, and pioneers including GameStop, Marriott, NASA, National Cancer Institute, Pfizer, Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, and Zoom.

“The unprecedented events of 2020 have ushered in a generational cloud transformation for businesses, and data‘s increasing value is at the very heart of it,” said Jaspreet Singh, founder and CEO, Druva. “Druva pioneered the cloud data protection category almost a decade ago and has led the way in defining the architecture, business model, and user experience our customers now expect. This investment and our continued, rapid growth is further validation of our vision for a simple, open, and unified data protection and management platform.”

http://www.druva.com

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Expedera develops deep-learning accelerator (DLA) for AI silicon

Expedera, a start-up based in Santa Clara, California, emerged from stealth to unveil its Origin neural engine intellectual property (IP) for edge system silicon.

Expedera, which plans to license its deep-learning accelerator (DLA) technology to SoC designers, is targetting low-power edge devices like smartphones, tablets, computers, edge servers, and automotive. The company says its deep-learning accelerator (DLA) provides up to 18 TOPS/W at 7nm, which is up to ten times more than competitive offerings while minimizing memory requirements. Origin accelerates the performance of neural network models such as object detection, recognition, segmentation, super-resolution, and natural language processing. 

Expedera's co-founders include Da Chuang (CEO), who previously was cofounder and COO of Memoir Systems (an optimized memory IP startup acquired by Cisco); Siyad Ma (VP Engineering), who previously led Algorithmic TCAM ASIC and IP teams for Cisco Nexus7k, MDS, Cat4k/6k; and Sharad Chole (Chief Scientist), who previously was an architect at Cisco, Memoir Systems (Cisco), and Microsoft. 

https://www.expedera.com/

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DISH builds its 5G core in AWS

DISH Network will construct its 5G Open Radio Access Network (O-RAN) network on AWS.

DISH, which is partnering exclusively with vendors offering cloud-native technology, plans to begin deploying the network in Las Vegas later this year.  All hardware and network management resources will be connected through AWS, including DISH’s fully automated Operation and Business Support Systems (OSS and BSS) for 5G services.

DISH said its groundbreaking, cloud-native strategy will help to simplify the process for developers to create new 5G applications.

• 
  To support real-time workloads at the network edge and quickly process inbound and outbound data from its O-RAN infrastructure, DISH will leverage AWS Local Zones and AWS Outposts. AWS Local Zones are an infrastructure deployment that places AWS compute, storage, database, and other select services close to large population, industry, and IT centers for applications requiring single-digit millisecond latency, while AWS Outposts extend AWS infrastructure, services, APIs, and tools to virtually any on-premises facility, such as the factory floor or a 5G base station. With this combination of AWS infrastructure, DISH can push its 5G Core to the edge and achieve consistently high performance across its service area, while also enabling developers to take full advantage of 5G speeds when building new applications and services.
• In addition, DISH will use AWS capabilities such as compute, containers, IoT, machine learning, and security to process 5G data and run its 5G Core, BSS, and OSS at scale while optimizing costs. DISH will use AWS Graviton2-based instances to power its compute workloads (AWS’s custom-designed Graviton2 processors with 64-bit Arm Neoverse cores provide up to 40% better price-performance over comparable current-generation x86-based instances) and Amazon Elastic Kubernetes Service (Amazon EKS) to run containerized workloads, helping it deliver high availability during periods of peak network use. Running its 5G network over AWS will allow DISH to further reduce costs by bypassing the capital expenditure investments typically associated with building and operating network infrastructure hardware. DISH will also apply AWS machine learning capabilities at the network edge to help improve service by predicting network congestion at specific locations, as well as recognizing anomalies in network function, and then automatically taking corrective actions to optimize performance.

“Through this collaboration with AWS, we will operate not just as a communications services provider, but as a digital services provider harnessing the combined power of 5G connectivity and the cloud. Together, we will enable our customers to take full advantage of the potential of 5G. Our approach will revolutionize wireless connectivity by giving customers the ability to customize and scale their network experience on-demand,” said Charlie Ergen, DISH co-founder and chairman. “As a new carrier, leveraging AWS and its extensive network of partners enables us to differentiate ourselves by operating our 5G network with a high degree of automation, utilizing the talent of AWS-trained developers and helping our customers bring new 5G applications to market faster than ever before.”

“DISH’s cloud-native and truly virtualized 5G network is a clear example of how AWS customers can use our proven infrastructure and unparalleled portfolio of services to reinvent industries,” said Andy Jassy, CEO of Amazon Web Services, Inc. “This collaboration means DISH and its customers can bring new consumer- and enterprise-centric services to the market as quickly as they’re created to deliver on the promise of 5G. Together, we’re opening the door to new technologies that will transform factories, workplaces, entertainment, and transportation in ways people have only dreamed.”

https://aws.amazon.com

DISH picks Nokia for security automation and orchestration

Wednesday, April 07, 2021  Dish, Nokia  

DISH has selected Nokia’s NetGuard solution to assist with securing its Open RAN-based 5G network. This partnership will enable DISH to safeguard 5G network slices, which will be provisioned to support enterprise and wholesale customers.DISH is deploying NetGuard to support the security orchestration, automation and response capabilities needed to rapidly scale its network and intelligently assess and resolve cyber incidents with minimal manual intervention.DISH...

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DISH picks Allot to protect its OpenRAN-based 5G network

Wednesday, April 07, 2021  #5G, Allot, Dish  

DISH Network has selected Allot Ltd. to provide end-to-end User Plane Protection (UPP) against DDoS and botnet attacks for its forthcoming cloud-native, OpenRAN-based 5G network. In addition, DISH will partner with Allot to provide cybersecurity threat protection services for its consumer, MVNO and SMB customers. This protection will cover DISH’s 5G network and off-network activities against cyberattacks such as malware, viruses, ransomware...

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DISH picks Palo Alto Networks to help secure 5G network

Monday, April 05, 2021  Dish, Palo Alto Networks  

DISH Network has selected Palo Alto Networks to help secure its upcoming cloud-native, OpenRAN-based 5G wireless network.DISH will leverage Palo Alto Networks for container security, secure network slicing, real-time threat correlation and dynamic security enforcement. DISH will use Palo Alto Networks' industry-first, cloud-native security offering, including the VM-series and CN-series Next-Generation Firewalls, as well as Prisma Cloud. Financial...

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DISH Network enters long term lease with American Tower

Monday, March 15, 2021    

DISH Network entered into a master lease agreement for space on up to 20,000 American Tower communications sites across the United States as it deploys its new nationwide 5G network. Cash lease payments will commence in 2022 and grow over time as DISH’s network deployment progresses. In addition, DISH may lease shared generators from American Tower on select sites and will have the ability to utilize American Tower’s zoning, permitting and other...

DISH picks Amdocs’ for 5G billing

Thursday, March 04, 2021  Amdocs  

DISH Network has chosen Amdocs’ cloud-based billing system, Optima, to support enterprise and wholesale customers on its upcoming 5G network."Amdocs Optima is a cloud-based platform that has the flexibility to support our 5G needs and can scale to support enterprise and wholesale customers," said Atilla Tinic, Chief Information Officer, DISH. "This containerized component within our greater 5G billing architecture will offer us multi-cloud - public...

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Mavenir lands a $500 million investment from Koch

Mavenir announced a $500 million minority equity investment from Koch Strategic Platforms (“KSP”), a subsidiary of Koch Investments Group. Affiliates of Siris Capital Group, LLC (“Siris”), a leading technology-focused private equity firm, will remain majority equity holders.

“We have built a next-generation software platform that has driven, and will continue to drive, the digital transformation of mission-critical networks. Together with KSP and our service provider customers, we expect to bring innovation and 5G to revolutionize industries such as energy, industrial automation, and health care,” said Pardeep Kohli, President and Chief Executive Officer of Mavenir. “Not only do we have the only end-to-end, cloud-native, 5G software platform in the world, but we also have strong and extensive relationships with CSPs and proven deployments of our technology around the globe. With 5G here, Mavenir is well-positioned to build the future of networks.”

“We are extremely proud of what Mavenir has achieved to date and excited about partnering with KSP to drive continued innovation,” said Hubert de Pesquidoux, Siris Executive Partner and Executive Chairman of Mavenir. “The combination of Mavenir’s 5G software platform and Koch Industries presence in relevant industry verticals will accelerate the Company’s participation in the massive digital transformation opportunity.”

David Park, President of KSP, said, “We’re taking material minority equity positions in innovative, disruptive companies with strong management teams that operate in industries with significant tailwinds. We want to partner with companies that can transform Koch Industries for the future. Mavenir checks all the boxes.”

https://mavenir.com/press-releases/mavenir-announces-500-million-private-placement-with-koch-strategic-platforms/

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