Service Assurance: Why is my Network Performance Inconsistent?

Our 2021 Service Assurance Report, which looks at top CSP service initiatives (5G, fiber build-out, edge, SD-WAN, SASE) and examines the importance of service assurance to the success of these initiatives. We provide strategies on building future-ready service assurance for business and technology leaders at CSPs, networking vendors, and system integrators.

In this video, Jim Carroll and Roy Chua discuss highlights of the report.

https://youtu.be/i6VTokSwPVs

Download the 2021 Service Assurance Report here: https://ngi.how/sa-2021

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Dell'Oro: Disaggregated DWDM equipment market up 36% in Q2

Disaggregated DWDM systems revenue outperformed the broader optical transport market in 2Q 2021, growing 36 percent year-over-year while the total WDM market was nearly unchanged from the year-ago quarter, according to a new report from Dell'Oro Group. As a result of the strong quarter, the forecast for disaggregated DWDM systems was further raised.

"Disaggregated DWDM systems outperformed the broader market, demonstrating the growing adoption of this platform type," said Jimmy Yu, Vice President at Dell'Oro Group. "Really what we see is that this type of platform architecture, where transponder units are independent of the line systems, is being more widely embraced beyond the Internet content providers. Also, it is no longer just for metro applications. Recently, the highest growth rates have been from long-haul applications," added Yu.

Highlights from 2Q 2021 Quarterly Report:

• The top manufacturers by revenue share for disaggregated transponder units were Ciena, Infinera, and Cisco.
• The immediate need to migrate to higher speed, better performing transponder technology has been one of the main drivers for using disaggregated transponder units. As a result, 400+ Gbps wavelengths were the fastest-growing line speeds on these systems.
• The outlook for disaggregated transponder units was raised due to the higher rate of adoption outside of hyperscalers. We now forecast revenue for this equipment type to surpass $2 billion this year.

https://www.delloro.com/news/disaggregated-dwdm-equipment-market-up-36-percent-in-2q-2021/

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Telia Carrier adds PoP in Flexential data center in Hillsboro, OR

Telia Carrier activated a new Point of Presence (PoP) in the Flexential Hillsboro 2 data center in Oregon. 

Telia Carrier notes that the Portland/Hillsboro area has the second-highest growth rate for data center development in North America, according to real estate services and investment firm CBRE Group, due to terabit traffic demands in the region and the abundance of sustainable, low cost hydro power, as well as tax incentives and green power sources.

The Flexential data center cluster in Hillsboro, OR is one of the fastest growing in the market, with a third building opening this fall to increase the campus to 700,000 square feet. Telia Carrier is entering Hillsboro 2 with a fully diverse Terabit Scale IP PoP deployment providing diverse connectivity to Flexential’s subsea cable system operators with multiple cables landing in the facility, serving the Pacific Northwest and Asia Pacific destinations including Hawaii, Australia, New Zealand, China, South Korea, Taiwan and Japan.

“Adding a new PoP in the Hillsboro 2 data center is part of Telia Carrier’s overall growth initiative helping to expand our reach to support new cloud regions, applications and content on the West Coast,” said Stephen Hartman, Head of North America Sales, Telia Carrier. “Fulfilling demand from the subsea cables coming into the Flexential facility in Hillsboro from Asia Pacific regions, we support the needs of current and future customers, and enhance the ecosystem as one of the strategic sites servicing the region.”

“With our Portland-Hillsboro data center campus expanding this fall to include a third facility, we are reinforcing our 20-year commitment to building and operating a highly-connected data center footprint in the Pacific Northwest,” said Ryan Mallory, Chief Operating Officer, Colocation Services, Flexential, “With the addition of the Telia Carrier PoP at this location we are better able to support our growing customer base by offering them additional carrier choice and connectivity to one of the worlds largest global IP backbones.”

http://www.Teliacarrier.com

Telia Carrier opens PoP in Denver

Thursday, April 08, 2021  Telia Carrier  

Telia Carrier launched a a new Point of Presence (PoP) at Flexential’s data center in Aurora, Colorado. The partnership will allow Flexential’s customers to take advantage of Telia Carrier’s fiber backbone and connectivity providing cloud, application, content providers and Enterprise customers with new diverse routes and capacity at Terabit scale.   The partnership and expansion allow existing Flexential customers in the region access...

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Telia Carrier opens PoP at MDC Data Centers in El Paso

Thursday, February 04, 2021  Telia Carrier  

Telia Carrier launched a new PoP at MDC Data Centers' (Formerly McAllen Data Center) El Paso facility. The new PoP in El Paso provides scalable multi-terabit capacity and connectivity, enhancing the local availability of high-speed IP Transit, Cloud Connect, Ethernet and IPX services for operators, content providers and enterprises alike.With data centers in McAllen, Laredo, Nogales and El Paso; MDC focuses on interconnecting the world with Mexico...

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Telia Carrier opens POP near MAREA’s cable landing station in Bilbao

Thursday, January 28, 2021  Marea, Subsea, Telia Carrier  

Telia Carrier launched a new Point-of-Presence at Telxius’ interconnection rich Derio Communications Hub located near Bilbao, Spain, only a few kilometers from MAREA’s submarine cable landing station.The Derio Communications Hub is a  combination of an expanded cable landing station and a fully-fledged PoP, the first of its kind in EMEA.  The 2,000 sqm carrier-neutral TIER III facility offers up to 4 MW of power and is specially designed...

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Dell'Oro upgrades 2021 outlook for RAN market

Preliminary findings suggest the RAN market continued to operate at elevated levels in the second quarter, showing remarkable resilience in the face of various risks including the on-going pandemic, supply chain shortages, and export restrictions, according to a new report from Dell'Oro Group.

“The underlying long-term growth drivers have not changed and continue reflect the shift from 4G to 5G, new FWA and enterprise capex, and the transitions towards active antenna systems,” said Stefan Pongratz, Vice President and analyst with the Dell’Oro Group. “At the same time, a string of indicators suggest this output acceleration is still largely driven by the shift from 4G to 5G, which continued at a torrid pace in the quarter, even as LTE surprised on the upside,” continued Pongratz.

Additional highlights from the 2Q 2021 RAN report:

• RAN rankings did not change – Huawei and ZTE were the No.1 and No.2 suppliers in China while Ericsson and Nokia maintained their No.1 and No.2 positions outside of China.
• Revenue shares changed slightly – preliminary estimates suggest Ericsson and Samsung recorded revenue share gains outside of China, while Huawei and ZTE improved their positions in China.
• The RAN market remains on track for a fourth consecutive year of growth. The short-term outlook has been revised upward – total RAN is now projected to advance 10 percent to 15 percent in 2021.

https://www.delloro.com/news/2021-outlook-upgraded-for-ran-market/

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Join our series - O-RAN and Mobile Access Revolution

Join our series - O-RAN and Mobile Access Revolution

Our series will collect and curate the best ideas driving the O-RAN revolution.

Hear from the leading carriers, network equipment providers, silicon vendors, standards organizations and start-ups.

https://youtu.be/GpAsIY03hoo

To join our series, please contact sales@avidthink.com

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Marvell reports revenue growth in cloud infrastructure

Marvell reported net revenue for the second quarter of its fiscal 2022 of $1.076 billion. GAAP net loss for the second quarter of fiscal 2022 was $(276) million, or $(0.34) per diluted share. Non-GAAP net income for the second quarter of fiscal 2022 was $284 million, or $0.34 per diluted share. Cash flow from operations for the second quarter was $222 million.

"Marvell delivered record revenue of $1.076 billion in the fiscal second quarter, above the midpoint of guidance, growing 29 percent sequentially and 48 percent year over year. Growth was driven by the data center, which now represents Marvell's largest end market at 40 percent of total revenue, benefiting from our growing momentum in the fast-growing cloud infrastructure market," said Matt Murphy, Marvell's President and CEO. "I am pleased that stand-alone Marvell and the acquired Inphi businesses both contributed to our strong year-over-year revenue growth. We expect year-over-year revenue growth will accelerate in the third quarter, led by substantial contributions from the cloud data center market. In addition, we expect our 5G business to continue to grow with strong sequential revenue growth in the third quarter, and a significant step up projected in the fourth quarter."

An investor presentation is online.

https://investor.marvell.com/

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EXFO completes going-private transaction

EXFO completed its previously-announced going-private transaction and subordinate voting shares of EXFO will be voluntarily and imminently de-listed from the Toronto Stock Exchange and the NASDAQ.

A corporation controlled by Germain Lamonde acquired all the issued and outstanding subordinate voting shares of EXFO, other than the subordinate voting shares held by the purchaser, for US $6.25 per subordinate voting share in cash.

"As we're about to write a new chapter in EXFO's 36-year history, I would like to express my heartfelt appreciation to shareholders, customers and employees around the world as we heard you loud and clear with your overwhelming support and confidence in our going-private transaction," said Germain Lamonde, EXFO's founder and majority shareholder. "EXFO has built a tremendous reputation as a disruptive innovator and partner of choice with best-of-class support and service on a global basis. Although a competitor created unnecessary noise during this privatization process to reduce the competitive environment, I can assure all customers that EXFO is emerging stronger and more determined than ever to continue making a difference in your networks while expanding our leadership in the telecom test and service assurance industry."

https://www.exfo.com/en/

 

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Sparkle to build Panama Digital Gateway

Sparkle and Trans Ocean Network, a Panamanian telecommunications company, will form a  joint venture in Panama for the construction of an open landing and connectivity center that aims to become the digital hub for all Central America, the Andean region and the Caribbean.

Panama Digital Gateway, which will be located in Panama City, will offer 3,200 square meters of colocation space for over 600 racks and 5 MW of power. The new building targets a Power Usage Effectiveness (PUE) of 1.4.

The hub will be integrated with Sparkle’s global backbone - more than 600,000 km of fiber spanning from Europe to Africa, the Americas and Asia - and will also be the landing point of existing and upcoming submarine cables looking for a diversified entry way to Central America, thus strengthening the role of Panama as the strategic digital hub between North and South America.

“The development of infrastructures in the Americas represents a pillar of Sparkle's strategic plan to consolidate its positioning in the telecommunications wholesale market while reinforcing its offering of digital solutions to enterprises.”, explained Elisabetta Romano, CEO of Sparkle. “The construction of the hub in Panama, a natural crossroad of Central America and a bridge between the Atlantic and the Pacific as well as a strategic hub between North and South America, is a project of fundamental importance for the landing of new submarine cables and the creation of an ecosystem of interconnected players.”

“Panama Digital Gateway consolidates and positions Panama as the digital hub of the region, strengthening the connectivity of our country, and becoming a strategic interconnection offer for OTTs, carriers and enterprises”, stated Joaquín Victoria Díaz, General Manager of Trans Ocean Network. “We are very pleased to be participating in the construction and operation of this open hub in conjunction with a partner of experience and global scale such as Sparkle.”

https://www.tisparkle.com

Sparkle powers Curie subsea cable with Ciena’s WaveLogic 5 Extreme

Monday, July 13, 2020  800G, Ciena, Sparkle, Subsea  

Sparkle is enhancing its fibers on the Curie submarine cable with Ciena’s WaveLogic 5 Extreme (WL5e) technology, enabling a total transmission capacity of up to 450Gbps per channel – which is two times faster than previously available technology - across the 10,476km cable. This will result in an ultimate capacity of up to 19Tbps and a 30 percent increase in the network’s ability, giving end-users the possibility to enjoy more HD video and cloud computing applications.

Sparkle will also have direct connectivity between data centers in the U.S. and Chile using Ciena’s GeoMesh Extreme Submarine Network Solution powered by WL5e. In addition, through Ciena’s Manage, Control and Plan (MCP) domain controller, Sparkle will be provided with real-time intelligence and visibility to help its network proactively identify connectivity issues.

“Curie is a major addition for Sparkle, as it expands our American backbone with direct Chile to U.S. connectivity. WaveLogic 5 pushes the envelope and helps us execute on our network evolution plans to continue supporting next-generation applications that require endless bandwidth,” commented Enrico Bagnasco, Sparkle’s Chief Technology Officer.

“Ciena’s coherent optical innovations are the industry gold standard. With WaveLogic 5, Sparkle can boost network scalability and forge a path to support the digital economy,” added Fabio Medina, Ciena’s General Manager and Vice President of Sales in Latin America. “Sparkle’s upgraded network opens a new connectivity route to Chile and enables its customers to have faster, more reliable bandwidth as they stream content and use the cloud.”

Sparkle adds fiber pair on Google’s Curie US-Chile cable

Wednesday, May 06, 2020  Chile, Google, Subsea, TI Sparkle  

TI Sparkle will gain access to a fiber pair on Google's new Curie submarine cable system connecting Los Angeles to Valparaiso, Chile.

The new fiber pair on Curie will be fully integrated with Sparkle’s global backbone, increasing redundancy and offering a fourth diversified route to directly connect South and North America, complementing its 2017 addition of the Seabras-1 cable in the Atlantic.

Sparkle said its newest highways, Curie in the Pacific and Seabras-1 in the Atlantic, position it as the best-in-class choice for OTTs, ISPs, enterprises, Content/Application Providers and Asian players looking for global connectivity through its City2City transport service and its global Tier-1, Seabone IP transit service.

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LINX and Telehouse NYIIX interconnection goes live in U.S.

TELEHOUSE NYIIX and the London Internet Exchange (LINX) activated their new joint U.S. interconnection service, bringing together two major Internet Exchange Points (IXP). The route between NYIIX in New York and LINX NoVA — a fast-growing interconnection platform based out of Ashburn, Manassas and Reston in Northern Virginia — is now officially live.

The new service interconnects the entities’ mutual ecosystems, empowering members of each IXP with expanded peering opportunities. The partnership also provides member networks with a redundant and resilient route from New York to Northern Virginia.

Akio Sugeno, VP of Engineering for TELEHOUSE NYIIX, says “This partnership combines the robust resources of two advantageous peering fabrics, making the whole even greater than the sum of its parts. Empowering data and IT is about getting data where it needs to go as efficiently as possible, and we’re proud to be architecting the solution that achieves that for our growing array of members. We look forward to seeing how this service helps customers thrive in the digital economy.”

https://www.linx.net/news/nyiix-nova-goes-live/

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Windstream Enterprise offers unlimited Cellular Broadband

Windstream Enterprise (WE) introduced new unlimited plans for Cellular Broadband for providing a primary connection method for customer locations that have limited access options available, while also acting as a secondary SD-WAN connection that offers seamless failover in a standby configuration by providing redundancy to other network connections. The solution offers visibility and reporting via WE Connect portal from Windstream Enterprise.

Unlimited Cellular Broadband is now available in three data plan options.

“Keeping your network up and running is critical for every business and ensuring rapid connectivity to remote locations is essential,” said Mike Flannery, chief marketing officer of Windstream Enterprise. “Unlimited Cellular Broadband is a reliable and cost-effective strategy that will contribute to an effective business continuity plan.”

http://www.windstreamenterprise.com

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AT&T's 5G network now support IoT powered by Cisco

AT&T and Cisco have introduced 5G network capabilities to boost performance for Internet of Things (IoT) applications across the US.

The AT&T 5G network is now ready to deliver lower latency and faster speeds for enterprise customer IoT deployments using 5G certified devices. The service is powered by Cisco.

AT&T and Cisco currently manage millions of connected devices spanning manufacturing, utilities, transportation, public sector, retail, and healthcare industries as well as public safety on FirstNet, built with AT&T, through AT&T’s 4G LTE and low-power IoT cellular networks.

AT&T Control Center powered by Cisco gives businesses near real-time visibility of all the IoT devices on their network and helps mitigate security risks, identifies anomalies in data usage and optimizes traffic classification reporting.

https://about.att.com/story/2021/att_cisco_launch_5g.html

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Analog Devices completes acquisition of Maxim

Analog Devices completed its previously announced acquisition of Maxim Integrated Products in an all-stock transaction that values the combined enterprise at over $68 billion. The deal was first announced on July 13th.

The combined company will have trailing twelve-month revenue of over $9 billion and free cash flow of over $3 billion on a pro forma basis.

“Today is a tremendous milestone for ADI and I’m delighted to welcome the Maxim team, who share our passion for solving our customers’ most complex technology problems,” said Vincent Roche, President and CEO. “With more than 10,000 engineers and the increased breadth and depth of our best-in-class technologies, we are well-positioned to develop even more complete, cutting-edge solutions for our customers. Together, we will drive the next waves of analog semiconductor innovation, while engineering a healthier, safer and more sustainable future for all.”

https://investor.analog.com/static-files/52340411-401f-4554-ad4e-a7b4299501b9

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Rockley Photonics looks to SkyWater for wafer processing

SkyWater Technology and Rockley Photonics have broadened their engagement to include wafer back-end-of-line processing for Rockley’s spectrophotometer-on-a-chip health monitoring solution. The expanded relationship with SkyWater, which is part of the multi-sourcing efforts at Rockley, will enhance Rockley’s manufacturing network reliability and scalability.

Specifically, Rockley utilized SkyWater’s Advanced Technology Services through the development phase, transitioned to production Wafer Services for front-end processing, and now utilizes back-end-of-line assembly capabilities at SkyWater’s advanced packaging facility in Florida. 

Rockley’s recently announced “clinic-on-the-wrist” digital health sensor system has the potential to provide wearable devices with a new range of sensing capabilities that includes continuous, non-invasive monitoring of multiple biomarkers: core body temperature, blood pressure, body hydration, alcohol level, lactate, and glucose, among others. 

SkyWater’s Technology as a Service (TaaS) model combines process R&D, wafer fabrication, and advanced packaging technology services to provide customers with powerful competitive advantages, including supply chain transparency, robust IP protection, and an accelerated time to market.

“SkyWater provides us with a domestic U.S. source for advanced wafer-level components which is a critical part of our multi-source supply chain strategy. As we target high-volume consumer and industrial applications, deepening our connection with SkyWater is an important step in expanding our manufacturing ecosystem,” said Dr. Andrew Rickman, chief executive officer and founder of Rockley Photonics.

“This is an excellent example of the value our TaaS model brings to our customers to develop customized manufacturing solutions that enable their differentiated technologies,” said Thomas Sonderman, SkyWater president and CEO. “Rockley’s innovative silicon photonics platform is an important breakthrough in the fast-growing health wearables market and aligns with SkyWater’s market strategy, extending our value chain for this application space. We’re excited to be Rockley’s strategic supplier in the U.S. to provide them with both front-end and back-end-of-line solutions to help Rockley bring its transformational technology to market.”

http://www.rockleyphotonics.com

http://www.skywatertechnology.com

Rockley Photonics to begin trading on NYSE as RKLY

Thursday, August 12, 2021  IPO, Rockley  

Rockley Photonics, a leading global silicon photonics firm, completed its business combination with SC Health Corp. The combined company will retain the Rockley Photonics, Ltd. name as a subsidiary of Rockley Photonics Holdings, Ltd., which will commence trading on the NYSE under the new ticker symbol “RKLY” on August 12. The approximately $167.8 million in gross proceeds available to Rockley following the combination is expected to enable the...

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Rockley Photonics unveils spectrophotometer-on-a-chip module

Wednesday, July 14, 2021    

Rockley Photonics revealed its complete full-stack, “clinic-on-the-wrist” digital health sensor system based on its own spectroscopy technology. Rockley’s sensor module generates a large number of discrete laser outputs from a single silicon chip covering a broad optical band. The sensor non-invasively probes beneath the skin to analyze blood, interstitial fluids, and various layers of the dermis for constituents and physical phenomena of interest....

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Hengtong Rockley demos 800G QSFP-DD800 DR8 pluggable

Sunday, June 13, 2021  #OFC21, 800G, QSFP-DD  

Hengtong Rockley Technology Co. announced an 800G QSFP-DD800 DR8 optical module based on EML technology.There are two main form factors for 800G MSA: OSFP and QSFP-DD800. Because of the tight space, QSFP-DD800 module design has been considered as the most challenging, in term of layout, signal integrity and thermal management. Hengtong Rockley is adapting 7nm DSP with built-in drivers, and COB structure to achieve this 800G QSFP-DD800 DR8 design,...

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VMware posts Q2 revenue of $3.14 billion, up 9% yoy

VMware reported revenue of $3.14 billion for the second quarter of its fiscal year, an increase of 9% from the second quarter of fiscal 2021. Non-GAAP net income for the second quarter was $739 million, or $1.75 per diluted share, down 3% per diluted share compared to $766 million, or $1.81 per diluted share, for the second quarter of fiscal 2021.

• The combination of subscription and SaaS and license revenue was $1.51 billion, an increase of 12% from the second quarter of fiscal 2021.
• Subscription and SaaS revenue for the second quarter was $776 million, an increase of 23% year-over-year.
• Subscription and SaaS ARR for the second quarter was $3.15 billion, an increase of 26% year-over-year.
• Q2 Cloud Management product bookings were up over 30% YoY.
• Compute growth was strong for both on-prem and cloud deployments, benefitting from an
• improved economic backdrop, strength in our commercial business, and continued growth in multi-cloud Subscription and SaaS offerings.
• EUC and NSX product bookings were both up in the strong double-digits versus Q2 last year.
• vSAN product bookings grew in the low-single-digits YoY in Q2.

“Our customers are evolving their strategies from a ‘cloud first’ to a ‘cloud smart’ philosophy where they are picking the right clouds and cloud services for the right workload, and turning to a multi-cloud environment,” said Raghu Raghuram, VMware CEO. “We are delivering the multi-cloud platform for all applications, enabling the digital innovation and enterprise control that our customers need to accelerate their businesses today and in the future.”

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UK's Vilicom deploys Mavenir for private LTE on windfarm

UK based wireless telecommunications provider, Vilicom is using the Mavenir's MAVair solution as a critical component in delivering UK’s first off-shore private LTE network for windfarm communications and connectivity.

The Vilicom network provides advanced communications and connectivity to sea vessels and workers operating inside the boundaries of the windfarm off the coast of Scotland. The connectivity also allows 

Mavenir's MAVair family includes the flexible Open Virtualised RAN (Open vRAN) where the evolved RAN architecture, designed with cloud-native virtualisation techniques, enables the RAN to flex and adapt based on usage and coverage.

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Comcast Business accelerates software-defined services with Masergy

Comcast Business agreed to acquire Masergy, which offers managed SD-WAN, UCaaS, CCaaS, and security services for global enterprises. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Comcast Business said the acquisition accelerates its increasing growth serving large and mid-size companies, particularly U.S.-based organizations with multi-site global operations.

Masergy, which is based in Plano, Texas, has more than 1,400 customers in nearly 100 countries.

“Masergy provides a perfect complement to our portfolio of enterprise services and solutions and will allow us to instantly and dramatically amplify our growth in the global enterprise market,” said Bill Stemper, President, Comcast Business. “We’re excited to welcome Masergy’s employees and leadership to Comcast Business as we bring continued innovation and superior experience to our customers.”

“On behalf of everyone at Masergy, we are thrilled to join the Comcast Business family and are extremely excited for the next chapter of Masergy. We are confident that together we can significantly enhance our service offerings to businesses of all sizes in their journey to the cloud,” said Chris MacFarland, Chairman and CEO, Masergy.

https://www.masergy.com/

Masergy Performance Edge boosts SD-WAN + SASE

Tuesday, July 20, 2021  #SD-WAN  

Masergy introduced a new SD-WAN and SASE capability designed to minimize packet loss over public broadband connections, making them perform more like a private Ethernet circuit.

Masergy Performance Edge is available with Masergy’s Managed SD-WAN Secure and SASE offerings and uses proprietary network architecture along with industry standard and compatible routing algorithms. The company says it is able to minimize packet loss over public broadband connections for more predictable application experiences.

https://www.masergy.com/sd-wan/performance-edge

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Calix expands XGS-PON and 100G transport capabilities

Calix introduced new line cards to simplify the deployment of software-defined XGS-PON networks and 100G transport, even in temperature-hardened environments like cabinets. 

The two new AXOS E7-2 Intelligent Modular System line cards, the XG801 and the CE201, along with the latest 10G Outdoor GigaPoint ONT, the GP4200XH, enable BSPs to deliver 10 Gbps XGS-PON services, high-density aggregation, and 100G temperature hardened transport capabilities while simplifying the addition of more capacity and scale to their networks.

Both the XG801 and CE201 support the use of widely available commercial temperature (C-Temp) 100G optics to be used in outside plant cabinets (i.e., industrial temperature applications), simplifying the addition of capacity throughout the access network.

The cards enable L2 FTTH/FTTB residential and business 10-gigabit XGS-PON/GPON services, providing high-density aggregation and 100G transport flexibility, as well as 10GE point-to-point. 

“Broadband service providers need XGS-PON networks to support applications like HD and 4K content streaming, video surveillance services, and cloud-enabled interactive gaming,” said Michel Langlois, chief development officer at Calix. “The new line cards and optical solutions for the Intelligent Access EDGE, which is powered by the Network Innovation Platform (AXOS), radically simplifies the path to XGS-PON and 100G transport—ushering in unprecedented scale, capacity, and cost-per-bit economics. The new solutions and the Network Innovation Platform are already making it easier than ever for BSPs to build future proof 10G networks as shown by the number of service providers that installed the cards and instantly moved subscribers over.”

https://www.calix.com/solutions/intelligent_access_edge.html

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NTIA receives $2.5 billion in funding requests

The U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) received more than 230 applications for the Broadband Infrastructure Program, for a total of more than $2.5 billion in funding requests across 49 states and U.S. territories.

NTIA has begun reviewing the applications as part of the $288 million grant program, which was funded by the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (the Act). Grants will be awarded to covered partnerships between a state, or political subdivisions of a state, and providers of fixed broadband service. The program’s 90-day application window closed on Tuesday, August 17.

“The intense demand for this program across the country demonstrates the widespread need for better broadband connectivity in unserved communities,” said U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina M. Raimondo. “These investments are critical, but there is more to be done. The bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, recently passed by the Senate, will expand upon the groundwork being laid by this program to advance digital equity and get us one step closer to every American having access to high-speed, affordable, and reliable Internet.” 

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HPE builds exascale supercomputer for Argonne National Lab

The U.S. Department of Energy’s Argonne National Laboratory has selected Hewlett Packard Enterprise to build a new testbed supercomputer to prepare critical workloads for future exascale systems that will deliver up to four times faster performance than Argonne’s current supercomputers.

The new system, which Argonne has named Polaris, will deliver approximately 44 petaflops of peak double precision performance and nearly 1.4 exaflops of theoretical AI performance, which is based on mixed-precision compute capabilities.

Polaris uses 280 HPE Apollo Gen10 Plus systems, which are HPC and AI architectures built for the exascale era and customized to include the following:

• 560 2nd and 3rd Gen AMD EPYC processors
• 2240 NVIDIA A100 Tensor Core GPUs, making it ALCF’s largest GPU-based system to date.
• HPE Slingshot, a high performance Ethernet fabric designed for HPC and AI solutions. HPE Slingshot will also be featured in Argonne’s Aurora exascale system.
• HPE Performance Cluster Manager, a system management software solution.

 “As we approach the exascale era, which will power a new age of insight and innovation, high performance computing (HPC) will play a critical role in harnessing data to take on the world’s most pressing challenges. Increasingly, the computational power and scale required to process artificial intelligence and machine learning data sets can only be delivered through HPC systems, and HPE uniquely provides a powerful, software-driven platform capable of tackling complex scientific data and simulations,” said Justin Hotard, senior vice president and general manager, HPC and Mission Critical Solutions at HPE. 

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AWS announces two cyber security initiatives

Amazon announced two cyber security initiatives that will be offered to the public in October:

• Cybersecurity training materials it has developed to keep its employees and sensitive information safe from cyberattack. 
  
  
• A free multi-factor authentication (MFA) device for AWS customers designed to further secure their environments. The free MFA token adds a layer of security to protect customers’ AWS accounts against phishing, session hijacking, man-in-the-middle, and malware attacks. Customers can also use their MFA devices to safely access multiple AWS accounts, as well as other token-enabled applications, such as GitHub, Gmail, and Dropbox.

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