Tuesday, November 6, 2018

MEF18: SD-WAN as a driver for digital transformation



MEF18 featured a lot of hot topics, especially network automation, SDN, NFV, and SD-WAN, says Roopa Honnachari, Industry Director, Business Communication Services & Cloud Services, Frost & Sullivan.

MEF's work in standardizing SD-WAN service specification, as well as its MEF 3.0 framework for orchestrated services, is helping to drive the digital transformation of enterprise customers.

https://youtu.be/N97TmHzcPjo

IDC: 5G network infrastructure market to grow at 118% CAGR

The worldwide 5G network infrastructure market is expected to grow from approximately $528 million in 2018 to $26 billion in 2022, according to IDC's inaugural forecast for this market segment, and representing a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 118%.

The 5G network infrastructure market includes 5G RAN, 5G NG core, NFVI, routing and optical backhaul.

IDC expects 5G RAN to be the largest market sub-segment through the forecast period, in line with prior mobile generations.

In addition to 5G NR and 5G NG core, procurement patterns indicate communications service providers (SPs) will need to invest in adjacent domains, including backhaul and NFVI, to support the continued push to cloud-native, software-led architectures.

"Early 5G adopters are laying the groundwork for long-term success by investing in 5G RAN, NFVI, optical underlays, and next-generation routers and switches. Many are also in the process of experimenting with the 5G NG core. The long-term benefit of making these investments now will be when the standards-compliant SA 5G core is combined with a fully virtualized, cloud-ready RAN in the early 2020s. This development will enable many communications SPs to expand their value proposition and offer customized services across a diverse set of enterprise verticals through the use of network slicing," says Patrick Filkins, senior research analyst, IoT and Mobile Network Infrastructure.

The report, Worldwide 5G Network Infrastructure Forecast, 2018-2022 (IDC #US44392218), presents IDC's inaugural forecast for the 5G network infrastructure market. Revenue is forecast for both the 5G RAN and 5G NG Core segments and each of the three related sub-segments (NFVI, Routing Backhaul, and Optical Backhaul). The report also provides a market overview, including drivers and challenges for communications service providers and advice for technology suppliers.

AWS launches AMD EPYC cloud instances at lower cost

Amazon Web Services (AWS) began offering cloud instances based on AMD EPYC processors.

The new general purpose (M5 and T3) and memory-optimized (R5) instance types with AMD EPYC processors that are 10% less expensive than the current M5, T3, and R5 instances.

AWS said the AMD-based instances provide additional options for customers who are looking to achieve cost savings on their Amazon EC2 compute environment for a variety of workloads, such as microservices, low-latency interactive applications, small and medium databases, virtual desktops, development and test environments, code repositories, and business applications.

https://aws.amazon.com/ec2/

NTT Com looks to data center construction and management

NTT Communications will establish a new NTT Global Data Centers Preparatory Corporation as the first step in creating a wholly owned subsidiary to comprehensively handle data center construction, asset management and wholesale services for NTT Group companies on a global basis.

NTT Global Data Centers Preparatory Corporation will respond to rapidly growing demands for data centers across countries worldwide and further strengthen data center-related business within the group. NTT Com will launch the preparatory company by the end of this December. Going forward, the envisioned data center “investment company” is expected to begin constructing data centers from April 2019. In particular, the preparatory company will integrate the NTT Group’s special expertise in data center-related real estate and finance, creating a new data center business structure for faster decision-making and more efficient investment in data center construction.

NTT Com also stated that it plans to accelerate its investment in data center business, especially in the U.S., Europe and APAC including Japan.

Eurofiber deploys ADVA FSP 150 for flexible business services

Eurofiber, which operates an extensive fiber network across The Netherlands and Belgium, is deploying the ADVA FSP 150 as the customer premise equipment of its new flexible business services.

The ADVA FSP 150 provides a single platform for MEF-certified Layer 2 and 3 services and easily scales from 1GbE to 10GbE. With zero touch provisioning, the device is simple to deploy and its comprehensive assurance services offer unparalleled support for SLA management.

ADVA said its intelligent, multi-layer demarcation and aggregation technology enables Eurofiber to respond to rapidly growing demand from enterprises across the Netherlands and Belgium for high-bandwidth, cost-effective SLA-based Carrier Ethernet connectivity.

“Our FSP 150 enables Eurofiber to meet ever-increasing demand for cloud services while also optimizing its infrastructure to support diverse network technologies. Now it can instantly increase bandwidth as soon as customers require it and address the emerging need for multi-layer networking,” commented Ed Zalmstra, sales director, Netherlands, ADVA. "Our FSP 150 delivers the flexibility to quickly transition from 1Gbit/s to 10Gbit/s Ethernet services without requiring extra space and power consumption. Having all that functionality in one compact platform is a real advantage. We’re proud that Eurofiber selected us for this project. It highlights the value not only of our innovation but also our people. To be chosen once again to take Eurofiber’s business services to the next stage shows their continuing faith in our experience and commitment to quality, as well as the strength of the relationship between our teams.”

ADVA’s partner Netways Europe also provided valuable support with the new solution.

http://www.advaoptical.com/

Broadcom completes acquisition of CA Technologies

Broadcom completed its previously announced acquisition of CA Technologies (NASDAQ: CA).

CA will operate as a wholly owned subsidiary of Broadcom.

"Today, we are pleased to complete this transaction, which strengthens Broadcom's position as a leading provider of semiconductor and infrastructure software solutions and enables us to better serve our customers," said Hock Tan, President and Chief Executive Officer of Broadcom. "Broadcom has a track record of successfully integrating and growing the businesses we acquire. We believe this transaction will enable us to offer customers a leading portfolio of best-in-class solutions across a diverse set of technologies. We intend to invest in and grow the CA business to further enhance its capabilities in mission-critical infrastructure software solutions."


Broadcom to acquire CA Technologies for $18.9 billion

Broadcom agreed to acquire CA Technologies (NASDAQ: CA) for $44.50 per share in cash, representing an enterprise value of $18.9 billion -- a premium of approximately 20% to the closing price of CA common stock on July 11, 2018.

CA, which was founded by Charles Wang and Russell Artzt in 1976 and formerly known as Computer Associates,  is one of the world's leading providers of information technology (IT) management software and solutions. The company is based in New York City and is primarily known for its B2B mainframe, distributed computing, and enterprise software.

Broadcom notes that CA benefits from predictable and recurring revenues with the average duration of bookings exceeding three years.

Hock Tan, President and Chief Executive Officer of Broadcom, said, "This transaction represents an important building block as we create one of the world's leading infrastructure technology companies. With its sizeable installed base of customers, CA is uniquely positioned across the growing and fragmented infrastructure software market, and its mainframe and enterprise software franchises will add to our portfolio of mission critical technology businesses. We intend to continue to strengthen these franchises to meet the growing demand for infrastructure software solutions."

"We are excited to have reached this definitive agreement with Broadcom," said Mike Gregoire, CA Technologies Chief Executive Officer. "This combination aligns our expertise in software with Broadcom's leadership in the semiconductor industry. The benefits of this agreement extend to our shareholders who will receive a significant and immediate premium for their shares, as well as our employees who will join an organization that shares our values of innovation, collaboration and engineering excellence. We look forward to completing the transaction and ensuring a smooth transition."


Broadcom sells its Veracode business for $950 million

Thoma Bravo, a leading private equity investment firm, will acquire Veracode, the leading provider in next-generation application security testing (AST), from Broadcom for $950 million in cash.

Veracode's SaaS platform and integrated solutions help security teams and software developers find and fix security-related defects at all points in the software development lifecycle. Veracode serves more than 2,000 customers across a wide range of industries, including nearly one-third of the Fortune 100, and more than 20 of Forbes' 100 Most Valuable Brands.

"Software security is one of the most consequential issues facing companies as they look to compete in the digital economy. We are proud that our SaaS security platform combines multiple application security testing solutions, helping our customers around the world secure the software powering their companies and enabling them to focus on their core business objectives," said Sam King, current Senior Vice President and General Manager of Veracode, who will become the CEO of Veracode following the close of the transaction. "Partnering with Thoma Bravo, a proven security software investor, is expected to extend our market reach and further fuel our innovation so that we can offer the broadest software security platform and empower us to accelerate growth — all to allow us to transform the way companies achieve their software security goals."

Thoma Bravo noted its extensive experience investing in the cybersecurity software sector. It has completed more than 30 total acquisitions of enterprise security companies to date, including SailPoint (NASDAQ: SAIL), Barracuda Networks, LogRhythm, Bomgar, BlueCoat Systems, SonicWall and Entrust.

Qualcomm advances its LTE-V2X in China

Qualcomm Technologies is expanding its efforts with China’s growing ecosystem of leading automakers and suppliers to commercialize LTE Vehicle-to-Everything (LTE-V2X) direct communication technology based on 3GPP Release 14 specifications.

LTE-V2X, which is also known as C-V2X, is designed to support improved automotive safety, traffic efficiency, and automated driving using high performance and reliable real-time direct communication between vehicles, as well as with roadside infrastructure, and is on an evolution path supporting additional functionality as part of 5G New Radio (5G NR).

Qualcomm Technologies is working alongside automakers including Audi China, BAIC, ChangAn, Geely and Great Wall and others, as well as China SAE ITS software stack providers Genvict, Nebula Link and Savari, Inc., to host China’s first large-scale multi-interoperability live demonstrations of LTE-V2X during the SAE China Congress Exhibition (SAECCE) event in Shanghai. 

Collectively, the seven V2V and V2I use cases that will be demonstrated include: Optimal Speed Advisory, Lane Change Alert / Blind Spot Alert, Emergency Brake Warning, Forward Collision Warning, Emergency Vehicle Warning, Intersection Collision Warning, and Slippery Road Alert.

LTE-V2X PC5-based direct communication operates in the 5.9 GHz spectrum that the China government recently designated for LTE-V2X ITS applications and works independently of cellular operator network involvement. Through these demonstrations, China is well-positioned to demonstrate leadership in LTE-V2X with commercial readiness for RSUs, onboard units and vehicle integration in 2019.

In addition, Qualcomm Technologies is working with Datang Telecom Group, a subsidiary of China Information and Communication Technologies Group Corp (CICT), to accelerate commercial deployment for LTE-V2X (also known as C-V2X across the globe) direct communication technology and applications based on 3GPP Release 14 specifications.

The companies are collaborating on demonstrations at the SAE China Congress Exhibition (SAECCE) event held this week in Shanghai.  The demos showcase Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X) and Vehicle-to-Infrastructure (V2I) use cases.

In August, Qualcomm Technologies and Datang announced they had successfully completed the world’s first chipset interoperability test utilizing the Qualcomm 9150 C-V2X chipset solution and CICT’s LTE-V2X module, the DMD31.

“The administrative regulation on using 5905-5925 MHz for direct communication among connected vehicles was announced on October 21 and marks the accelerated development of the intelligent, connected car industry,” said Dr. Yingmin Wang, chief engineer of Datang Telecom Group, a subsidiary of China Information and Communications Technology Group Corporation. “As an industry leader of Internet of Vehicles communications, Datang looks forward in continuing to work with Qualcomm Technologies to ensure the successful commercial deployment of V2X technologies domestically and globally, as well as further drive the evolution of LTE-V2X technology to 5G.”

Twilio hits Q3 sales of $168.9 million, up 68% yoy

Twilio reported total revenue of $168.9 million for the third quarter of 2018, up 68% from the third quarter of 2017 and 14% sequentially from the second quarter of 2018. GAAP net loss per share attributable to common stockholders of $0.28 based on 98.0 million weighted average shares outstanding in the third quarter of 2018, compared with GAAP net loss per share attributable to common stockholders of $0.25 based on 92.2 million weighted average shares outstanding in the third quarter of 2017.

“We’re thrilled to report yet another strong quarter for revenue growth, product innovation, and customer success in Q3,” said Jeff Lawson, Twilio’s Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer. “There are several key issues on the minds of many companies today – creating seamless omni-channel experiences, ensuring enterprise compliance, and utilizing Artificial Intelligence and bots to create better customer experiences. At our SIGNAL conference in October, we were proud to announce products aimed at helping our customers solve these pressing challenges.”

Key Metrics and Recent Business Highlights

  • 61,153 Active Customer Accounts as of September 30, 2018, compared to 46,489 Active Customer Accounts as of September 30, 2017.
  • Dollar-Based Net Expansion Rate was 145% for the third quarter of 2018, compared to 122% for the third quarter of 2017.
  • Signed a definitive agreement to acquire SendGrid, the leading email API platform, to further our vision of creating the world’s leading cloud communications platform spanning voice, messaging, video - and coming soon - email.
  • Acquired long-time partner, Ytica, to accelerate the Twlio Flex roadmap by adding highly customizable contact center reporting, speech analytics, and workforce optimization (WFO) software.
  • Announced the general availability of Twilio Flex, the first fully programmable cloud contact center platform that allows enterprises to build a customized experience that supports their business needs.
  • Launched Twilio , a new API that enables developers to easily process payments securely over the phone via automated Interactive Voice Response (IVR) interactions or in contact center environments.
  • Received Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) Level 1 certification for our Programmable Voice product, enabling our customers to use our platform to process payments securely without having to maintain PCI compliance themselves.
  • Announced Twilio Autopilot, a fully programmable, conversational AI platform for building customer bots, IVRs, and home assistant apps that can deliver omni-channel self-service capabilities to customers at scale.
  • Extended our partnership with T-Mobile by creating a new developer platform for the T-Mobile Narrowband IoT (NB-IoT) network, a new network technology for the Internet of Things (IoT) that has the potential to open up a substantial market for new categories of lower cost, battery efficient internet-connected devices that don’t exist today.
  • Launched the Twilio Super-SIM, expanding our efforts to provide global connectivity through a single API for our growing list of IoT customers by adding relationships with The Three Group, Singtel, and Telefonica.
  • Celebrated the five-year anniversary of Twilio.org by setting a new 10-year goal to have social impact organizations around the world using the Twilio platform to help 1 billion people every year.


Infinera reports Q3 revenue of $200.4 million

Infinera reported Q3 2018 GAAP revenue of $200.4 million compared to $208.2 million in the second quarter of 2018 and $192.6 million in the third quarter of 2017. GAAP gross margin for the quarter was 35.0% compared to 40.5% in the second quarter of 2018 and 35.2% in the third quarter of 2017. GAAP net loss for the quarter was $(32.6) million, or $(0.21) per share, compared to a net loss of $(21.9) million, or $(0.14) per share, in the second quarter of 2018, and net loss of $(37.2) million, or $(0.25) per share, in the third quarter of 2017. Non-GAAP net loss for the quarter was $(6.7) million, or $(0.04) per share, compared to a net loss of $(1.3) million, or $(0.01) per share, in the second quarter of 2018, and net loss of $(17.0) million, or $(0.11) per share, in the third quarter of 2017.

“In the third quarter we delivered financial results within our guidance ranges and now, with our acquisition of Coriant closed, are executing on our integration plan with intensity,” said Tom Fallon, Infinera CEO. “We remain committed to achieving substantial cost synergies, scaling our business by delivering compelling solutions to our extensive customer base of leading Tier-1s and ICPs, and driving vertical integration of our optical engine across our expanded end-to-end portfolio. While we have experienced a spending pause from certain customers as they evaluate the combined company, I believe this is temporary and that we will grow over the course of 2019. Newly armed with a breadth of significant customers and formidable scale, we are positioned to increasingly leverage our vertical integration advantage to drive profitability and a differentiated business model.”

Toshiba Memory targets deep learning processing

Toshiba Memory Corporation has developed a high-speed and high-energy-efficiency algorithm and hardware architecture for deep learning processing with less degradations of recognition accuracy. The company is developing a new processor for deep learning implemented on an FPGA.

In addition, Toshiba Memory is working on a new hardware architecture, called bit-parallel method, which is suitable for MAC operations with different bit precision. This method divides each various bit precision into a bit one by one and can execute 1-bit operation in numerous MAC units in parallel. It significantly improves utilization efficiency of the MAC units in the processor compared to conventional MAC architectures that execute in series.

Monday, November 5, 2018

MEF18: Spectrum Enterprise on the value of self-optimized networks



At MEF18, Spectrum Enterprise, which is the division of Charter Communications focused on wholesale carrier and enterprise services, presented a proof-of-concept demo of a self-optimized, application-aware network.

Gunnar Peters, Senior Director with Spectrum Enterprise, talks about dynamic service enablement.

https://youtu.be/tX1fVuZlRrw


MEF18: SES Networks offers MEF-certified Carrier Ethernet via MEO



SES Networks, a global satellite provider, is already offering a MEF-certified Carrier Ethernet service of its MEO fleet.

SES Networks is the only satellite provider currently offering this capability, says Eric Watko, Executive VP of Product Marketing and Strategy. The company is looking to make this service truly dynamic and seamless for terrestrial carriers worldwide.

https://youtu.be/0g4heqICD9o

MEF18: Amdocs' Service-driven Networks Vision



What is a service-driven network?

It is a set of capabilities that sit between a core network and the business support layers above, says Yogen Patel, Head of Products and Solutions Marketing, Amdocs Open Networks. Ultimately, this means that the network can automatically adjust to user demands.

https://youtu.be/Wdn05HDpIzo

MEF18: Telco Systems comments on service demarcation and NFV



At MEF18, Telco Systems presented its new 100GE T-Metro 8100 service demarcation and aggregation platform, as well as its NFVTime uCPE solution, which runs on either x86 or ARM-based processors.

Ariel Efrati, CEO of Telco Systems, comments on these recent launches and says the company is performing very well, having just recorded a 28% year-over-year growth in its business. 2019 is expected to be very big on NFV as service providers reinvent their business models.

https://youtu.be/Og6I9kj5vWM

MEF18: Clear Blockchain for Carrier Settlements



At MEF18, Clear Blockchain Technologies presented a proof of concept for the intercarrier orchestration and clearing of bandwidth on-demand services.

Gal Hochberg, the company's CEO, says a blockchain-enabled billing and settlement system is needed between carriers to keep up with networks as they become more agile and dynamic.

https://youtu.be/86OgnEFUMlQ

SiTime launches MEMS timing for 5G infrastructure

SiTime Corporation introduced a MEMS-based precision timing solution for 5G infrastructure equipment.

The SiTime Emerald Platform is the first MEMS oven controlled oscillator (OCXO) in the industry and offers performance benchmarks significantly better that quartz-based timing solutions, along with key programmability features for systems OEMs.

SiTime said its MEMS OCXO is measurably more reliable than quartz-based OCXOs, which are extremely sensitive to environmental stressors such as vibration, temperature changes and shock. These environmental stressors can degrade network performance, reduce uptime, and impact mission-critical services such as advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS).

“Timing is potentially the single biggest point of failure in 5G systems and can impact performance, reliability, and revenue. 5G timing is a complex challenge for system OEMs, and requires a new approach beyond traditional, component-level methods that are in use today. To solve this, SiTime pioneered a systems approach with Emerald to help our customers achieve their highest level of performance and capability. By combining our revolutionary MEMS with programmable analog, innovative packaging and high-performance algorithms, we have created a solution that is up to 20 times better than what is currently available,” said Rajesh Vashist, CEO of SiTime.

“Our unique systems approach is driving SiTime’s success in 200 applications at 10,000 customers,” continued Vashist. “For example, our products are always programmable, which ensures 100% availability with short lead times. Our innovative temperature compensation algorithms, in conjunction with our MEMS and analog components, ensure that 5G equipment can be deployed anywhere, in any environment. In the future, we will continue to use our systems expertise to expand our leadership in the $1.5 billion networking and telecommunications timing market.”

In addition, legacy quartz OCXOs are custom built, from the ground up. There are severe limitations on the availability of features, such as frequencies, output types, operating temperature, and in-system control. SiTime’s Emerald Platform MEMS OCXOs do not have these limitations. Using a programmable analog architecture, the Emerald OCXO offers any frequency between 1 and 220 MHz, ensuring that the customer can select the optimal frequency for their application. The device also offers two output types, LVCMOS and clipped sine-wave, for optimal board performance. In the near future, the Emerald OCXO will also offer extended temperature operation (-40 to +95C, -40 to +105C) and an I2C serial interface for in-system programmability.

Highlights of the new Emerald Platform SiT5711 & SiT5712 OCXOs
(All comparisons are with quartz-based Stratum 3E OCXOs)
  • 10 times better performance in the presence of airflow and thermal shock
     Î”F/ΔT dynamic stability: ±50 ppt/°C typical (ppt = parts per trillion)
    Allan deviation (ADEV): 2e-11 under airflow
  • Unmatched ease-of-use
    No restrictions on PCB placement
    No mechanical shielding is required for thermal isolation
    On-chip regulators, no need for external LDOs or ferrite beads
    Resistant to humidity
  • Size: 9 x 7 mm, 75% smaller. Adapter boards are available to match common OCXO footprints
    Height: 6.5 mm, 40% thinner, eliminates obstruction in a chassis-based system
  • 20 times better vibration resistance, ideal for outdoor pole mounted equipment
    Resistant to microphonic and/or board bending effects, ideal for large telecom PCBs
    Supports -40 to +85°C temperature range today, -40 to +95°C and -40 to +105°C support available in the near future
  • The only programmable OCXO platform, supports any frequency up to 220 MHz and LVCMOS / clipped sine-wave outputs
  • Semiconductor-level quality and reliability, batch to batch consistency
  • No activity dips
Sampling is underway and production quantities are expected in Q2 2019.

http://www.sitime.com

Verizon restructures for 5G

Verizon Communications announced a new corporate structure aimed at optimizing its operations for 5G. There are three customer-facing areas:


  • Verizon Consumer Group will include the consumer segment for both the company’s wireless and wireline businesses, including wireless wholesale. It will be led by Ronan Dunne, currently executive vice president and president of Verizon Wireless.
  • Verizon Business Group will include the wireless and wireline enterprise, small and medium business, and government businesses, as well as wireline wholesale and Verizon Connect, the company’s telematics business. It will be led by Tami Erwin, currently executive vice president - Wireless Operations.
  • Verizon Media Group / Oath sits at the intersection of media, advertising and technology, helping people access and receive media, entertainment, gaming, news, commerce and other services. It will be led by Guru Gowrappan, who was previously announced as Oath CEO.

There will also be a network and IT organization supporting all three groups, along with corporate-wide staff functions.

“This new structure reflects a clear strategy that starts with Verizon customers,” said CEO Hans Vestberg. “We’re building on our network transformation efforts and the Intelligent Edge architecture to deliver new customer experiences and optimize the growth opportunities we see as leaders in the 5G era. We’re focused on how our technology can benefit customers’ lives and society at large.”

Intel previews Cascade Lake CPUs and Optane DC persistent memory

Intel previewed two new Xeon processors:

  • Cascade Lake advanced performance, which is expected to be released the first half of 2019,  will focus on offering workload-optimized performance leadership by delivering both core CPU performance gains1 and leadership in memory bandwidth constrained workloads. Cascade Lake will offer up to 48 cores per CPU and 12 DDR4 memory channels per socket.
  • Xeon E-2100 offers up to six cores and is aimed at entry-level server and is now commercially shipping. 


In addition, beta testing has begun for Intel Optane DC persistent memory. OEMs and CSPs who have announced beta services and systems for early customer trials and deployments include Alibaba, Cisco, Dell EMC, Fujitsu, Google Cloud, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Huawei, Lenovo, Oracle and Tencent.

Intel Optane DC persistent memory provides two special operating modes – App Direct mode and Memory mode. App Direct mode enables applications to receive the full value of the product’s native persistence and larger capacity. In Memory mode, applications running in a supported operating system or virtual environment can use the product as volatile memory, taking advantage of the additional system capacity made possible from module sizes up to 512 GB without needing to rewrite software.


Cerberus completes acquisition of SubCom

Cerberus Capital Management completed its previously-announced acquisition of SubCom from TE Connectivity for $325 million in cash.

SubCom, which is based in Eatontown, New Jersey, designs, manufactures, deploys and maintains subsea fiber optic cable systems. To date, SubCom has completed more than 100 cable systems and deployed over 610,000 kilometers of cable through its eight cable ships. The division has 1,400 employees.

SubCom business was expected generate approximately $700 million in sales in fiscal year 2018 and was marginally profitable.

TE Connectivity said it will use the cash for share repurchases, and said the divestiture will improve its growth profile, reduce cyclicality, and result in higher margins and a greater return on investment.