Microsoft to acquire Metaswitch, extending its reach into telco cloud

Microsoft agreed to acquire Metaswitch Networks, a long-time leader in providing high-performance software to the communications industry. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Metaswitch has been a pioneer in cloud-native solutions for telecom operators. Its range of solutions include:

• VoIP softswitches and gateways
• VoLTE/VoWiFi
• Voice and VoLTE interconnect
• IMS core deployments
• Session Border Control
• Robocall blocking
• Converged voice and data messaging
• Group Communications and Collaboration
• Cloud contact centers

Metaswitch (formerly Data Connection Ltd) was founded in 1981 and is based in London. The company is privately held.

Yousef Khalidi,Corporate Vice President, Azure Networking, states: "This announcement builds on our recent acquisition of Affirmed Networks, which closed on April 23, 2020. Metaswitch’s complementary portfolio of ultra-high-performance, cloud-native communications software will expand our range of offerings available for the telecommunications industry. Microsoft intends to leverage the talent and technology of these two organizations, extending the Azure platform to both deploy and grow these capabilities at scale in a way that is secure, efficient and creates a sustainable ecosystem. As the industry moves to 5G, operators will have opportunities to advance the virtualization of their core networks and move forward on a path to an increasingly cloud-native future. Microsoft will continue to meet customers where they are, working together with the industry as operators and network equipment providers evolve their own operations."

https://blogs.microsoft.com/blog/2020/05/14/microsoft-announces-definitive-agreement-to-acquire-metaswitch-networks-expanding-approach-to-empower-operators-and-partner-with-network-equipment-providers-to-deliver-on-promise-of-5g/

Microsoft Azure Edge Zones previews with carriers

Sunday, April 05, 2020  5G, Azure, Cloud, Edge, Microsoft  

Microsoft has begun previewing Azure Edge Zones, which are 5G customer scenarios that can leverage its cloud capabilities.

Microsoft said Azure Edge Zones and Azure Private Edge Zones will enable:

• Development of distributed applications across cloud, on-premises, and edge using the same Azure Portal, APIs, development, and security tools.
• Local data processing for latency critical industrial IoT and media services workloads.
• Acceleration of IoT, artificial intelligence (AI), and real-time analytics by optimizing, building, and innovating for robotics, automation, and mixed reality.
• New frontiers for developers working with high-density graphics and real-time operations in industries such as gaming.
• An evolving platform built with customers, carriers, and industry partners to allow seamless integration and operation of a wide selection of Virtual Network Functions, including 5G software and SD-WAN and firewalls from technology partners such as Affirmed, Mavenir, Nuage Networks from Nokia, Metaswitch, Palo Alto Networks, and VeloCloud By VMware.

Microsoft, which has already announced an Azure Edge Zone partnership with AT&T, is now expanding the program to the following carriers: Etisalat, NTT Communications, Proximus, Rogers, SK Telecom, Telefonica, Telstra, SK Telecom, and Vodafone Business.

By connecting Azure services directly to 5G networks inside the carrier's data centers, applications will benefit from significantly reduced latency,

“This is a uniquely challenging time across the globe as we rethink how to help organizations serve their customers and stakeholders,” said Anne Chow, chief executive officer, AT&T Business. “Fast and intelligent mobile networks will be increasingly central to all of our lives. Combining our network knowledge and experience with Microsoft’s cloud expertise will give businesses a critical head start.”

In addition, Microsoft announced the preview of Azure Private Edge Zones, a private 5G/LTE network combined with Azure Stack Edge on-premises delivering an ultra-low latency, secure, and high bandwidth solution for organizations to enable scenarios, like with Attabotics, accelerating e-commerce delivery times by using 3D robotic goods-to-person storage, retrieval, and real-time order fulfillment solutions. This solution leverages Azure Edge Zones and IoT technologies such as Azure IoT Central and Azure Sphere.

https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/blog/microsoft-partners-with-the-industry-to-unlock-new-5g-scenarios-with-azure-edge-zones/

Metaswitch demos packet core for private LTE on Azure

Tuesday, November 05, 2019  Metaswitch  

Metaswitch demonstrated its microservices-based, high-performance Packet Core as part of Microsoft Azure capabilities for private LTE during Microsoft Ignite.

Metaswitch said its Fusion Core is tightly integrated with Microsoft’s networking and edge connectivity solutions for a seamless configuration and provisioning experience.  It can be integrated with the Ruckus CBRS-based RAN solution, and the Attabotics 3D robotic goods-to-person storage, retrieval and real-time order fulfillment system. It offers a programmable User Plane Function (UPF) that delivers very high bandwidth capacity in edge deployments while conserving space and power requirements.

“Cloud native and IoT applications are shaking the entirety of large and high-growth communications and data processing industries,” said Shriraj Gaglani, EVP of Business and Corporate Development at Metaswitch. “With deep integration of enhanced Fusion Core features with the Azure cloud and edge platforms, the combined Private LTEaaS solution hits a sweet spot in the heart of this megatrend.”

“The Microsoft Azure-based private LTE solution builds on decades of Microsoft enterprise success stories,” said Ross Ortega, Partner PM, Azure Networking. “In collaborating with Metaswitch and Ruckus, we see opportunity to enable IoT applications and take advantage of the security, latency and bitrates provided by private LTE networks for our mutual customers.”

http://www.metaswitch.com

Microsoft to acquire Affirmed Networks for telco cloud vEPC

Thursday, March 26, 2020  Affirmed Networks, Mergers And Acquisitions, Microsoft  

Microsoft agreed to acquire Affirmed Networks. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Affirmed Networks, which is based in Acton, Massachusetts, supplies virtualized Evolved Packet Core (vEPC) solutions for mobile operators. Affirmed’s virtualized evolved packet solution capabilities include CUPS, 5G NSA, network slicing, integrated virtual probe, virtualized DPI, GiLAN, analytics and security services, virtualized Wi-Fi, and service automation platform. The company claims 76 deployments, including announced projects with AT&T, Etisalat, and Vodafone.

Microsoft said the acquisition will boost its efforts "to work with the telecommunications industry, building on our secure and trusted cloud platform for operators. With Affirmed Networks, we will be able to offer new and innovative solutions tailored to the unique needs of operators, including managing their network workloads in the cloud."

https://www.affirmednetworks.com/

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2Africa subsea cable boasts design capacity up to 180 Tbps

2Africa, a new subsea cable to serve the African continent and Middle East region, promises to deliver  more than the total combined capacity of all subsea cables serving Africa today, with a design capacity of up to 180Tbps on key parts of the system.

Consortium partners include China Mobile International, Facebook, MTN GlobalConnect, Orange, stc, Telecom Egypt, Vodafone and WIOCC.

Alcatel Submarine Networks (ASN) has been selected to build the fully-funded cable. The project will leverage SDM1 (space division multiplexing) technology from ASN, allowing deployment of up to 16 fiber pairs instead of the eight fiber pairs supported by older technologies. The cable will incorporate optical switching technology to enable flexible management of bandwidth. Cable burial depth has also been increased by 50% compared to older systems, and cable routing will avoid locations of known subsea disturbance, all helping to ensure the highest levels of availability.

The 2Africa subsea cable will span 37,000km long, interconnect Europe (eastward via Egypt), the Middle East (via Saudi Arabia), and 21 landings in 16 countries in Africa. The system is expected to go live in 2023/4. Each of the cable landing sites will offer carrier-neutral data centers or open-access cable landing stations on a fair and equitable basis.

In addition, the 2Africa parties and Airtel have signed an agreement with Telecom Egypt to provide a completely new crossing linking the Red Sea and the Mediterranean, the first in over a decade. This includes new cable landing stations and deployment of next-generation fiber on two new, diverse terrestrial routes parallel to the Suez Canal from Ras Ghareb to Port Said, and a new subsea link that will provide a third path between Ras Ghareb and Suez. 

"The launch of 2Africa enables us to offer our customers seamless connection between Africa and Europe, together with our SEA-ME-WE 5 and AAE-1 subsea cable resources to further extend to Asia, which is an important milestone of our global development strategy," said Jessica Gu, Director & Chief Technology Officer of China Mobile International. "The utmost capacity and faster transmission allows us to satisfy the needs of African nations today and in the future, reflecting our firm commitment to building a global digital life."

"We're excited to be collaborating with our 2Africa partners on the most comprehensive subsea cable that will serve the continent," said Najam Ahmad, Vice President, Network Infrastructure at Facebook. "2Africa is a major element of our ongoing investment in Africa to bring more people online to a faster internet.  We've seen first-hand the positive impact that increased connectivity has on communities, from education to healthcare. We know that economies flourish when there is widely accessible internet for businesses. 2Africa is a key pillar supporting this tremendous internet expansion as part of Africa's surging digital economy."

According to Frédéric Schepens, CEO of MTN Group's wholesale operation, MTN GlobalConnect, "MTN GlobalConnect is delighted to participate in this bold 2Africa subsea cable project. This initiative complements MTN GlobalConnect's terrestrial fibre strategy to connect African countries to each other and to the rest of the world. We are proud to be playing a key role in providing the benefits of a modern connected life – a core MTN belief."

Alioune Ndiaye, CEO of Orange Middle East and Africa, said, "As one of the world's leading multi-service telecommunications operators and present in 18 countries in Africa and the Middle East, it was natural for Orange to be part of the 2Africa project. This major investment will complete our existing submarine and pan-African terrestrial infrastructures to provide access to international connectivity in a redundant fashion throughout the west coast of Africa. It will enable Orange to securely meet the demand for increased bandwidth necessary for the continued digital development of regions throughout the 2Africa system."

Mohammed A. Alabbadi, Wholesale VP in stc commented, "stc is delighted to be a Partner in 2Africa. The 2Africa cable will be integrated into stc's MENA Gateway (MG1) datacentre in Jeddah, enabling customers to access our extensive international content and extend their regional connectivity through stc terrestrial geo-mesh network that extends to all neighboring countries. This will undoubtedly play a significant role in enhancing stc's international network capabilities, whilst also positioning stc as a leading regional digital player in the MENA region. The partnership demonstrates stc's commitment, in line with Saudi Vision 2030, to deliver meaningful digital transformation and build a digital society for all."

Adel Hamed, Telecom Egypt's Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, commented, "Telecom Egypt's contribution to 2Africa marks an important milestone in our endeavor to contribute to digital transformation in Africa. Egypt's relationship with African states has and will always be one of Egypt's top priorities, it extends here to align with Egypt's strategy to contribute in the current development in Africa. We are honored to be part of such a revolutionary project alongside renowned global and African partners. For years, we have accomplished tangible steps in revamping our international infrastructure and increasing our assets' geodiversity in order to keep pace with the rising global demand for large bandwidth and global reach. We trust that 2Africa will be a rich addition to our diversified investments in the subsea cable industry." 

http://www.2AfricaCable.com

Alcatel Submarine Networks develops 3D WSS ROADM

Wednesday, January 29, 2020  ASN, ROADM, Submarine, Subsea, WSS  

Alcatel Submarine Networks introduced a new 3 Degree WSS ROADM unit designed to reduce the number of fiber pairs in the branch, leading to significant cost savings in subsea networks. The new ASN 3D WSS ROADM provides full WSS device flexibility maintaining East+West connectivity between trunk and branch. This simplifies the topology of complex networks and facilitates the implementation of branches on branches.

Key features:

• Full flexibility in traffic routing thanks to WSS component
• Submarine grade reliability thanks to WSS redundancy
• Fully configurable through active supervisory commands
• Embedded management of noise loading and traffic confidentiality
• Fully managed by ASN SN10 Network Management

Alain Biston, President and CEO of Alcatel Submarine Networks said: “The introduction of innovation 3D design as part of ASN WSS ROADM product family addresses the market demand for more connectivity and flexibility at a reasonable cost, keeping the same level of quality and reliability. It effectively complements the SDM1 by ASN product portfolio to support all traffic demands and decrease cost per bit. ASN is strongly supporting its customer initiatives to provide a reliable internet infrastructure to all communities around the world and will continue to innovate to support this common goal.”

ASN confirmed that its new 3D WSS ROADM has already been selected for a major submarine cable system project.

https://web.asn.com/en/press-room/alcatel-submarine-networks-to-launch-a-new-wss-roadm-unit.html

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Openreach picks ADTRAN's OLTs and Cloud Platform

Openreach, the wholesale infrastructure arm of BT, has selected ADTRAN’s SDX Series of OLTs and Mosaic Cloud Platform to help it achieve its ambition of making gigabit and multi-gigabit services available to 20 million homes across the UK by the mid-to-late 2020s with its Full Fibre network.

ADTRAN said its SDX platform will enable Openreach to economically scale its GPON and XGS-PON network with a level of flexibility that could not be realized with traditional access solutions.

Peter Bell, Network Technologies Director, Openreach said: “We’re already making our new ultrafast, ultra-reliable broadband network available to around 32,000 UK homes and businesses every week – and we’re on track to reach our target of reaching four and a half million premises with ‘Full Fibre’ by the end of March 2021.”

“But we don’t want to stop there. Our new network will support the UK’s economy for decades to come and help it bounce back from the COVID-19 pandemic, so we’ll be accelerating our Full Fibre build throughout the year. ADTRAN’s solutions will play a key role in helping us achieve that as we’re continually searching for innovative technologies that can help us build the network better, broader and faster for our customers.”

More than 600 retail carriers across the United Kingdom rely on Openreach to deliver the wholesale capacity to support a broad portfolio of services to enterprise, small-to-medium businesses and residential customers.

“ADTRAN is thrilled to be part of Openreach’s plan to upgrade the UK’s broadband infrastructure and the selection is a proof point that ADTRAN’s open, disaggregated approach to service creation and delivery is a blueprint for the telecommunications industry,” said Dan Whalen, ADTRAN’s Chief Product Officer. “Given the breadth of Openreach’s Full Fibre network, having the ability to deliver GPON and XGS-PON services from the same OLT port streamlines service delivery and reduces the complexity of network design. We make it possible for any service provider, based anywhere in the country, to have the service options they require to fit their customer’s needs.”

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Deutsche Telekom Global Carrier activates 800G with Ciena

Deutsche Telekom Global Carrier has activated the first European 800G network connecting its data centers in Vienna, Austria.

The 800Gbps transmission has been validated for stability and error rates in a live environment.

The deployment will allow Deutsche Telekom to transport eight 100G of data traffic in less than 100Ghz of spectrum and is optimized for high-capacity 100GE and 400GE customer interface connectivity. Ciena said its solution is the first to transport 2x400GE across a single 800G wavelength.

In the next phase, Deutsche Telekom intends to implement Ciena’s WL5e with its 6500 and Waveserver 5 platforms, managed by Ciena’s Manage, Control and Plan (MCP)  domain controller, in Public Telehouse Exchange points.

“We pride ourselves on always being a step ahead and this move will push us over the threshold. It will help us achieve a significant industry milestone by delivering the first 800G network in Europe. With it, we will increase network capacity and efficiency, and create a more adaptive network that can meet our customer’s needs now and into the future,” said Rolf Nafziger, Senior Vice President, Deutsche Telekom Global Carrier.

https://www.ciena.com/about/newsroom/press-releases/deutsche-telekom-global-carrier--first-800g-network-in-europe.html

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NVIDIA unveils 8th-gen Ampere GPU architecture

NVIDIA unveiled its Ampere architecture, described as the "greatest generational performance leap of NVIDIA’s eight generations of GPUs."

In a keynote recorded at hi home kitchen, NVIDIA's CEO Jensen Huang said the Ampere architecture will boost performance by up to 20x over its predecessors. More specifically, 6x higher performance than NVIDIA’s previous generation Volta architecture for training and 7x higher performance for inference.

Key features of A100:

• More than 54 billion transistors, making it the world’s largest 7-nanometer processor.
• Third-generation Tensor Cores with TF32, a new math format that accelerates single-precision AI training out of the box. NVIDIA’s widely used Tensor Cores are now more flexible, faster and easier to use, Huang explained.
• Structural sparsity acceleration, a new efficiency technique harnessing the inherently sparse nature of AI math for higher performance.
• Multi-instance GPU, or MIG, allowing a single A100 to be partitioned into as many as seven independent GPUs, each with its own resources.
• Third-generation NVLink technology, doubling high-speed connectivity between GPUs, allowing A100 servers to act as one giant GPU.

The NVIDIA DGX A100 will power the third generation of the NVIDIA DGX AI server, boasting 5-petaflops of performance.

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Deutsche Telekom: Limited impact from pandemic

Deutsche Telekom's revenue increased 2.3 percent year-on-year to 19.9 billion euros in the first quarter. Adjusted EBITDA AL rose by 10.2 percent, reaching 6.5 billion euros.

“Deutsche Telekom is an anchor of stability in a global crisis,” said CEO Tim Höttges. “Our networks are working reliably as digital lifelines for society.”

The company said its expects the pandemic to have limited impact on revenue, due to, for example, the closure of shops, lower roaming revenues, and companies postponing or canceling IT projects. On the other hand, voice telephony revenue is increasing, for instance, and the mobile churn rate is falling.

"Taking the offsetting effects and measures into account, the impact on adjusted EBITDA AL is likely to be comparatively low. As such, taking into account all foreseeable consequences of the pandemic, the Group confirms its guidance for the current financial year."

Free cash flow AL decreased by around 0.7 billion euros due to the reduction in factoring. This decision accounted for the decline to 1.3 billion euros. Adjusted net profit increased by 8.5 percent to 1.3 billion euros, unadjusted it increased by 1.8 percent to 916 million euros.

Some highlights

Germany – strong performance in fixed-line and mobile communications

• 83,000 new broadband customers - the best result in two years in Germany. 
• The number of TV customers increased significantly, with 60,000 new users of MagentaTV. 
• The number of fiber-optic lines (VDSL/vectoring, FTTH) grew by 389,000 between January and March, bringing the total to around 14.8 million at the end of the first quarter, 1.9 million more than a year earlier.
• Mobile service revenues increased 1.7 percent YoY. 
• Mobile branded contract customer additions amounted to 141,000 in the first quarter.
• The Germany segment also posted positive trends in its financials. 

United States – continued growth in financial figures

• T-Mobile US completed its business combination with Sprint on April 1, 2020.
• Adjusted EBITDA AL grew by 14.5 percent to 3.5 billion U.S. dollars, while revenue grew 0.7 percent against the prior-year level to 11.2 billion U.S. dollars, with mobile service revenues increasing by 5.5 percent. 
• The number of branded postpaid customers increased by 777,000 in the first three months to 47.8 million. T-Mobile US now has a total of 68.5 million branded customers. In line with other companies in the industry in the United States, the company no longer reports any wholesale customers as of this quarter.

Europe – still on course

• Driven primarily by growing fixed-network and mobile service revenues, revenue in the Europe operating segment grew by 2.0 percent in organic terms year-on-year in the first quarter to 2.9 billion euros. 
• Adjusted EBITDA AL rose by 3.4 percent in organic terms to 1.0 billion euros. 
• Between January and March, the European national companies acquired 110,000 new mobile contract customers, 65,000 new broadband customers, and 238,000 new users of product packages combining fixed network and mobile communications. More than half of all broadband households now use these convergent offers.

Systems Solutions – earnings up thanks to growth areas

• T-Systems managed to offset the expected fall in revenue from traditional IT business with gains in growth areas. 
• The areas of public cloud and security performed particularly well. 
• At 1.6 billion euros, revenue across the whole segment remained at the prior-year level.
• The positive trend in the growth areas and the ongoing transformation strengthened profitability. 
• Adjusted EBITDA AL increased by 8.7 percent compared with the first quarter of 2019 to 100 million euros. Order entry declined by 13.4 percent against the strong prior-year quarter to 1.4 billion euros.

https://www.telekom.com/en/media/media-information/archive/first-quarter-report-2020-599844

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Türk Telekom deploys ADVA's Oscilloquartz network timing

Türk Telekom has deployed ADVA's Oscilloquartz network timing technology, bringing accurate, robust frequency synchronization to its national transport network.

The compact and flexible OSA 3230B Series cesium clocks enable high levels of frequency stability across Türk Telekom’s timing and sync network and their extended holdover performance protects against GNSS outages. The solution was implemented by ADVA and Türk Telekom’s partner Netaş, which will also provide continuous maintenance and support.

“The ADVA OSA 3230B Series maximizes the synchronization performance and continuity of our transmission network. It empowers us to optimize availability and deliver even more value to our customers,” said Yusuf Kıraç, CTO, Türk Telekom. “Accurate frequency and stable timing have become essential. Our residential and mobile customers will be demanding more access to streaming and gaming applications and enterprises across Turkey and will be looking to leverage long-distance collaborative tools. That will require precise and stable frequency and timing information at all times. With the OSA 3230B Series delivering vital immunity against loss of satellite signal, we can meet strict accuracy and stability needs.”

“With intentional GNSS impairments such as spoofing and jamming on the increase, as well as the threat of unintentional disturbances, it’s vital for decision-makers of mission-critical infrastructure to mitigate against GNSS vulnerabilities. Our OSA 3230B Series provides Türk Telekom with a primary reference clock that enables it to operate a highly accurate and stable time and frequency sync network resistant to GNSS outages,” commented Jörg Urban, senior director, business development, Oscilloquartz, ADVA. “Together with our business partner Netaş, we’ve worked closely to achieve true synergy with Türk Telekom. Our teams share a drive to continuously meet and exceed customer expectations. With the support of our engineers and our comprehensive technology portfolio, we’ll be able to meet their frequency and timing requirements for many years to come.”

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FCC opens some 900 MHz spectrum

The FCC will make six megahertz of 900 MHz band spectrum available for wireless broadband technologies and services.  The 900 MHz band is currently designated for narrowband land mobile radio communications and primarily used by land transportation, utility, manufacturing, and petrochemical companies. 

The six megahertz will be available for broadband licenses on a county-by-county basis while reserving the remaining four megahertz of spectrum for continued narrowband operations.
provide crucial services to the American public.

Specifically, the Commission approved a Report and Order, an Order of Proposed Modification, and two Orders that realign the band and establish a transition mechanism based primarily on negotiations between prospective broadband licensees and existing narrowband incumbent licensees.  The item also establishes rules to prevent broadband applicants from receiving windfalls and includes application requirements and operating and technical rules applicable to the new 900 MHz broadband licenses.

In addition, the item would modify the Association of American Railroads’ existing nationwide ribbon license in the 900 MHz band to facilitate the transition of the band without disruptions to railroads’ operations, and to enable significant railroad safety upgrades.

As part of today’s action, the Commission also announces a partial lifting of the 900 MHz application freeze to permit existing licensees to file applications to relocate their narrowband operations as part of a transition plan.

FCC Chairman Ajit Pai writes: "900 MHz users are enthusiastic about the possibilities that reliable broadband will open for them.  Broadband access will enable industries to leverage technologies for applications like private LTE networks—next-generation networks that can enable Voice over LTE, grid resiliency and monitoring, wildfire mitigation, enhanced cybersecurity, and more.  Utilities are eager to use broadband to modernize the electric grid.  Southern California Edison, a utility in a state hard-hit by fires in recent years, predicts that broadband will enable innovative monitoring technologies that will help utilities detect and extinguish fires caused by downed power lines." 

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Trump extends export restrictions on Huawei

President Trump extended for 1 year the national emergency declared in May 2019 (Executive Order 13873) with respect to securing the information and communications technology and services supply chain.

The order pertains to the export of U.S. technology to Huawei.

The White House statement reads: "The unrestricted acquisition or use in the United States of information and communications technology or services designed, developed, manufactured, or supplied by persons owned by, controlled by, or subject to the jurisdiction or direction of foreign adversaries augments the ability of these foreign adversaries to create and exploit vulnerabilities in information and communications technology or services, with potentially catastrophic effects. This threat continues to pose an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security, foreign policy, and economy of the United States."

https://www.whitehouse.gov/

Department of Commerce extends export license to Huawei

Wednesday, March 11, 2020  Huawei  

The U.S. Department of Commerce has extended export licenses to Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. and its non-United States affiliates (Huawei) for U.S. suppliers through May 15, 2020.

At the same time, the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) announced it is seeking public comments on the continuing need for, and scope of, possible future extensions of the Temporary General License (TGL) for Huawei.  The Department notes that its initial TGL from May 2019 and the three extensions that followed were intended to allow time for companies and persons to shift to alternative sources of equipment, software, and technology (e.g. those not produced by Huawei or one of its listed affiliates).

U.S. Dept of Commerce: Huawei restrictions 

Thursday, May 16, 2019    

Wilbur Ross, U.S. Secretary of Commerce, announced that restrictions on the export of U.S. technology to Huawei begin on Friday.

Earlier, the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) of the U.S. Department of Commerce, confirmed that Huawei and its affiliates have been added to the Bureau’s Entity List. The reason given is that "Huawei is engaged in activities that are contrary to U.S. national security or foreign policy interest."

For companies on the Entity List, a license must be issued by BIS for the sale or transfer of U.S. technology. A license may be denied if the sale or transfer would harm U.S. national security or foreign policy interests.

“This action by the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security, with the support of the President of the United States, places Huawei, a Chinese owned company that is the largest telecommunications equipment producer in the world, on the Entity List. This will prevent American technology from being used by foreign owned entities in ways that potentially undermine U.S. national security or foreign policy interests,” said Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross. “President Trump has directed the Commerce Department to be vigilant in its protection of national security activities. Since the beginning of the Administration, the Department has added 190 persons or organizations to the Entity List, as well as instituted five investigations of the effect of imports on national security under Section 232 of the Trade Act of 1962.”

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Cisco posts revenue of $12.0 billion, down 8% YoY

Cisco reported revenue of $12.0 billion for its third fiscal quarter ended April 25, 2020, down 8% compared to a year earlier.  Net income (GAAP) was $2.8 billion or $0.65 per share, down 9% compared to a year earlier, and non-GAAP net income was $3.4 billion or $0.79 per share.

"During this extraordinary time, our priority has been supporting our employees, customers, partners and communities, while positioning Cisco for the future," said Chuck Robbins, chairman and CEO of Cisco.  "The pandemic has driven organizations across the globe to digitize their operations and support remote workforces at a faster speed and greater scale than ever before.  We remain focused on providing the technology and solutions our customers need to accelerate their digital organizations."

"We executed well in Q3 in a very challenging environment, delivering strong margins and non-GAAP EPS growth," said Kelly Kramer, CFO of Cisco.  "The resiliency that we have been building into our business model is paying off, with software subscriptions now at 74% of our software revenue, up 9 points year over year.  We are focused on driving long-term profitable growth while delivering shareholder value."

Highlights:

• Product revenue down 12% and service revenue up 5%, compared to a year earlier.
• Revenue by geographic segment was: Americas down 8%, EMEA down 7%, and APJC down 9%. 
• Product revenue was led by growth in Security, up 6%.  Infrastructure Platforms was down 15% and Applications was down 5%.
• On a GAAP basis, total gross margin, product gross margin, and service gross margin were 64.9%, 63.7%, and 67.7%, respectively, as compared with 63.1%, 62.0%, and 66.3%, respectively, in the third quarter of fiscal 2019.

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Colt trims latencies on key financial routes with Arista switches

Colt Technology Services has reduced latency on critical routes of its PrizmNet infrastructure in Europe. PrizmNet serves the high-frequency trading (HFT) sector and the Capital Markets community, including financial brokers, investment funds and banks, and FX-related applications.

Colt PrizmNet is underpinned by the Colt IQ Network, a 100Gbps optimised intelligent network that’s distributed to more than 29,000 on net buildings, 900 data centres and hundreds of data network connection points around the world.

Following recent investment in its ultra-low latency PrizmNet infrastructure in Asia, Colt has now implemented next-generation Arista 7130 Layer 1 switches (also known as Metamako Metamux) within the PrizmNet European core to provide even lower latency connectivity between the following key liquidity hubs and exchanges:

Equinix London (LD4) and London Stock Exchange (LSE)
Equinix London (LD4) and Interxion London (IXL)
Equinix London (LD4) and Equinix Frankfurt (FR2)
Interxion London (IXL) and Equinix Frankfurt (FR2)
Interxion London (IXL) and Equinix Zurich (ZH4)
Interxion London (IXL) and Bolsa de Madrid Colocation (BME)

Colt said customers connected to these hubs and exchanges via PrizmNet, and service providers using PrizmNet to connect to away markets or to execute to brokers or market data services, will automatically benefit from the latency reductions and performance enhancements on these routes.

“We know that every microsecond counts for Capital Markets participants. The latency reductions on these important European routes will help our PrizmNet customers improve their trading performance and execution success rates,” says Matthew Reinholds, Colt’s Head of Capital Markets for the US and Europe. “Colt will continue to monitor the market and make infrastructure investments to ensure we keep delivering the best possible latencies and performance for the Capital Markets community.”

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Ekinops confirms major OTN switch customer

EKINOPS announced its first OTN switch customer, finalizing a deal with a major provider of telecommunication and digital solutions in EMEA. The customer was not disclosed.

Specifically, the EKINOPS Transport Switch (ETS) is being used to upgrade an existing optical transport network from 10G to 100G using a two-phase approach by first optimizing and simplifying the operations of existing 10G services before migrating the network to 100G. EKINOPS said its customer’s existing fiber optic network is used to transport sub-1Gbps to 10Gbps services between Europe and Asia primarily connecting global financial centers.  Extending from the Chinese border to Russia and Europe and using diverse routes across its service territory, the network provides highly reliable and resilient connectivity between the two continents.  High demand across this network has made the providers current operational model, largely dependent on manual reconfiguration of circuits and fiber connections, obsolete and has resulted in large amounts of stranded capacity. During the first phase of the project, the service provider will create a mesh architecture that will interconnect all of its 10G interfaces to support traffic without any physical change in the core network.  Phase two will entail deploying the 100G interfaces already available on the same line cards giving the service provider the control to upgrade on an as-needed basis and avoid having to make a full capital commitment upfront.

“This is a significant win and represents a major milestone in the evolution of EKINOPS as a company,” said Francois Xavier Ollivier, Ekinops’ co-founder and Chief Operating Officer for optical transport. “It demonstrates our ability to bring new technologies to market quickly as well as the value we add for our customers through acquisitions.”

https://www.ekinops.com/products/ekinops360-portfolio/otn-line-of-products/ets-chassis-products

Ekinops acquires OTN tech fom Padtec

Wednesday, May 29, 2019  Ekinops, Padtec  

Ekinops agreed to acquire an OTN switching platform developed by Padtec, an optical communications system manufacturer based in Brazil, for €10 million in cash. The deal brings an experienced R&D team comprised of 25 engineers based in Campinas, near Sao Paulo (Brazil). Brazilian operations will be overseen by Jean-Luc Pamart, co-founder of Ekinops and VP of R&D for optical transport.

With this acquisition, Ekinops expects to be able to offer a complete OTN/DWDM solution for optical networks from early 2020, enabling flexible data traffic and support for the evolution of data speeds and protocols transmitted over 200-400G modulated optical wavelengths, eventually reaching 1 Tbps.

Ekinops plans to carry out a capital increase by private placement over the coming weeks, for an amount capped at 10% of the capital stock.

Padtec CEO Manuel Andrade said:

"The acquisition of the OTN-Switch Platform by a globally recognized company such as Ekinops is a validation of the capability of Padtec's engineers to develop state-of-the-art technologies deployable worldwide. Additionally, we are happy to enter into commercial agreements with Ekinops that will enable Padtec to offer the OTN-Switch on an OEM basis to our customer base in Latin America. This is a clear win-win agreement for both companies."

Didier Brédy, Chairman & CEO of Ekinops, made the following comments:

"The OTN technology developed by Padtec is particularly innovative and will enable Ekinops to take a major technological and commercial leap forward in order to advance its position with leading telecom operators. The agreements with Padtec, the leading Latin American manufacturer and supplier of optical networking equipment, will also allow Padtec to source the OTN products it needs from Ekinops. This major strategic acquisition means that Ekinops can target to triple its sales of optical transport products within 5 years."

http://www.padtec.com.br/en/
https://www.ekinops.com/

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Rakuten to acquire Innoeye for cloud-native expertise

Rakuten Mobile agreed to acquire Innoeye, a privately-held company specializing in cloud technologies. The company has offices in Herndon, Virginia and Indore (MP), India. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Rakuten Mobile has already deployed Innoeye’s converged OSS, an end-to-end platform process automation solution, to support the 4G/5G cloud platform for its network launch in Japan. Plans are also underway to rollout this technology and expertise as part of the new Rakuten Communications Platform (RCP) offering to be made available to telecom companies and other enterprise customers around the world.

Rakuten Mobile has pursued a cloud-native architecture. The Rakuten Communications Platform contains all the elements of the Rakuten Mobile network, including telco applications and software from multiple vendors, OSS and BSS systems handling customer billing and activation systems, in addition to edge computing and virtual network management functions. Rakuten Communications Platform will be made available with an app-store-like interface where customers can tailor the platform to their local requirements.

“Since we first envisioned the launch of Rakuten Mobile two years ago, we have also planned to bring to market our own expertise and technology stack as a unique service that will enable operators around the world to deploy fully cloud-native telco networks of the future,” said Tareq Amin, Representative Director, Executive Vice President and CTO of Rakuten Mobile. “With the planned acquisition of Innoeye, we are one step closer to closing the circle in bringing to market a carrier grade telco cloud product that is as simple as click, purchase and deploy.”

“Innoeye is delighted by the opportunity to become part of the Rakuten Mobile family,” said Rajeev Gupta, CEO of Innoeye. “Joining hands with Rakuten Mobile will provide us with unique ability to contribute towards this large industry movement and create a highly innovative cloud-based communication platform that is open, scalable and highly secure. Rakuten Communications Platform will disrupt the industry and pave the way for the next level of innovation. We look forward to being a part of this journey.”

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II-VI posts revenue of $627 million

Earlier this week,  II-VI reported revenue of $627 million for its fiscal 2020 third quarter ended March 31, 2020. Quarterly GAAP Operating Income was $69.0 million.

"In this second full quarter of II-VI operations with Finisar included, we successfully continued our integration activities amid the COVID-19 pandemic," said Dr. Vincent D. (Chuck) Mattera, Jr., Chief Executive Officer. "Our mandate and priorities during the pandemic have been clear with respect to our response to this crisis:

Ensure the safety of the II-VI workforce;
Ensure the hygiene and security of our worldwide facilities; and
Maintain full compliance with all government laws, orders and policies that apply to us."

"Our focus on these priorities mitigated the impact of COVID-19 and delivered a great quarter. Despite significant operating challenges, the extraordinary commitment of our employees allowed us to address the steep ramps requested by our customers, and to exceed the high end of our revenue and EPS guidance with record bookings at 22% above our forecast."

"Our global business continuity team supported our operations to deliver these results, and they are a testament to the professionalism and dedication of our global workforce of over 22,000 employees. Our substantial progress at integrating the Finisar acquisition after only two quarters is a result of our experience in assessing markets and acquiring complementary companies with great technology and potential."

Dr. Mattera continued, "Demand in the communications market accelerated considerably throughout the quarter. It was strong across all aspects of our telecom and datacom offerings driven by the acceleration of the build out of the 5G deployments and network infrastructure upgrades. This was most evident in our Transceiver business where bookings far exceeded our expectations during the quarter and customer enthusiasm remained high. We had a second consecutive quarter of record 3D sensing shipments from our Warren, NJ and Easton, PA, operations. We also successfully completed the qualification of our Sherman, TX facility as planned, and we have begun to ship production units as we continue our manufacturing ramp. We look forward to completing the year on a strong note."

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CommScope names Jeff White as Chief Commercial Officer

CommScope has appointed Jeff White as Chief Commercial Officer. He will be responsible for the development and growth of CommScope’s sales and marketing operations to meet strategic business initiatives.

White joins CommScope from Here Technologies, a location services platform company, where he served as chief customer officer in Amsterdam and oversaw a complete go-to-market transformation. Previously, he was chief revenue officer for Syniverse and Extreme Networks and held several leadership roles with Cisco Systems including senior vice president/president of India - Bangalore. Mr. White has nearly 30 years of experience in network technology industries, the majority in sales leadership roles of increasing responsibility.

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Samsung unveils "ruler form factor" NVMe SSDs for OCP

Samsung announced a solid state drive with an E1.S form factor and full PCIe Gen 4 support.

The new drive, which leverages the production efficiencies of the company’s sixth-generation (1xx-layer), three-bit V-NAND, uses the new form factor to maximize the number of drives possible in a 1-RU chassis.

“Offering the most 1U server-optimized form-factor, the PM9A3 will improve space utilization, add PCIe Gen4 speeds, enable increased capacity and more,” said Mr. Jongyoul Lee, senior vice president of Samsung’s Memory Software Development Team at the Open Compute Project Virtual Global Summit. “We see it eventually becoming the most sought-after storage solution on the market for tier one and tier two cloud datacenter servers, and one of the more cost-effective,” he added.

The newly announced PM9A3 drive, to be available in three versions, is expected to feature a PCIe Gen 4 (x4) interface for more than twice the sequential read performance of PCIe Gen 3 (3200MB/s), and include dedicated hardware accelerators for nearly twice the random writes (180,000 IOPs) of the previous generation. Capacities will range from 960 GB to 7.68 TB.

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Wiwynn unveils liquid-cooled Open Rack for OCP

Taiwan-based Wiwynn unveiled a standalone rack-level, liquid cooling solution for next-generation Open Compute Project (OCP) servers.

Wiwynn’s advanced liquid cooling solution supports up to 36kW per rack and enables high power component usage at L10 level. The system utilizes the rear door heat exchanger (RDHx) to cool the liquid which transferred the heat of high-power components (CPU, GPU or ASIC) from cold plates.

Wiwynn says its. design enables a standalone system that requires no extra facility coolant and infrastructure changes.

The rack-level cooling solution design will support the Open Compute Project (OCP) Open Rack Standard V3 (ORV3) spec and is backward compatible with OCP ORV2. Both existing and future OCP systems can benefit from this high efficiency cooling system. The blind mate quick disconnect (QD), easy assembling cold plate designs plus the independent rack level cooling control system enhance serviceability and management.

“We have witnessed the power consumption of data center IT systems surging year over year for the flourish of cloud and AI applications,” said Dr. Sunlai Chang, Senior Vice President and CTO of Wiwynn. “We are proud to introduce our innovative standalone rack level liquid cooling solution. It assists data centers to face the challenge of increasing power density while requiring no infrastructure changes as well as providing enhanced serviceability and management.”

“It’s great to work with our partner—Wiwynn to bring this novel liquid cooling solution into data centers with high cooling efficiency," said Steve Mills, Mechanical Engineer at Facebook. “By leveraging Wiwynn’s development experience in OCP, the design will help expand ORV3 to higher power density applications and accelerate the adoption of liquid cooling in the open community.”

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Taiwan-based MediaTek announces 800G MACsec PHY

MediaTek announced its MT3729 800G (400G dual port) MACsec retimer PHY for data centers and cloud infrastructure.

The new device, which integrates MediaTek’s 56G PAM4 SerDes technology, is available as a standalone application-specific standard part (ASSP) or it can be integrated into a network controller chip.  The MT3729 800G PHY is ideal for line cards or switch fabrics in conjunction with network controller application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs) to build multi-terabit network servers, switches and routers. It enables secure data links and highly accurate precision time protocol (PTP) timestamping.

“With our broad portfolio of networking solutions, MediaTek is meeting the growing bandwidth and security needs of modern network infrastructure, including hyper-scale, cloud, service provider and enterprise networks,” said Jerry Yu, MediaTek Corporate Vice President. “Our MT3729 PHY integrates advanced MACsec-based encryption for secure communications and highly accurate PTP timestamping for the latest 5G synchronization requirements, while also giving our customers different integration options for added flexibility.”

The MT3729 packs four different operation modes:

• Retimer Mode: Built-in signal enforcement technology extends the SerDes connection distance and transmission to the edge for more precise timestamping. 
• Forward/Reverse Gearbox Mode: Support for bitrate translation between 56G and 28G links enables next generation switches to seamlessly connect with existing infrastructure.
• MUX/DeMUX Mode: Hitless MUX and broadcast switching meets networking redundancy requirements. 
• MACsec Mode: IEEE 802.1AE MACsec support enables secure communications with AES-128 and AES-256 encryption from 1G to 400G per port.

The MT3729 PHY supports up to 16 bi-directional links at 56G PAM4, up to 28G NRZ SerDes and 1G SGMII. To meet the stringent 5G infrastructure timing requirements, the MT3729 supports IEEE 1588v2 and SyncE up to Class-C for greater accuracy and more flexibility with timestamping formats.

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ONF Launches Continuous Certification Program

The Open Networking Foundation (ONF) introduced a Continuous Certification Program, enabling supply chain vendors to embed their products for ongoing test and compliance certification with ONF’s open source software projects. 

The aim is to reimagine certification testing in the age of Continuous Integration (CI)/Continuous Deployment (CD) and cloud software development.

The ONF said its projects already incorporate a continuous testing framework that keeps pace with enhancements to the platform in order to facilitate CI/CD - thus enabling rapid agile software development. ONF’s new Continuous Certification (CC) Program leverages the ever evolving testing framework for each project, and inserts participant products into the CI/CD/CC pipeline such that the systems are continuously retested and certified on an hourly or daily basis.  When a formal release of the project is declared, all systems currently validated as conformant in the CI/CD/CC pipeline will be officially certified as part of the release package bill-of-materials.

Product certification in ONF’s CI/CD/CC process is not a one-time activity. Vendors provide hardware or software products for indefinite installation into the development pipeline, and their products are continually tested throughout the development process. Rather than simply publishing static and outdated results, the real time status is made available via a public dashboard highlighting each product’s current compatibility with the most recent in-development version of ONF open source software.  This is, in essence, cloud era certification.

The testing and certification process requires considerable resources. ONF is unique in that it is the only open source networking organization with a full-time engineering team, thus making implementation of this new program possible. With this program, ONF will be publishing certified hardware and software BOMs (bill-of-materials) to smooth adoption of ONF platforms and broaden the ecosystem of hardware and software components compatible with ONF software distributions.


The ONF also announced a collaboration with the Open Compute Project (OCP) to promote the use of OCP-recognized open hardware in ONF solutions. Together, this collaboration will make clear for end users how best to assemble world-class solutions leveraging both open hardware and open software components, thus driving wider adoption of comprehensive open networking solutions

“The increasing speed at which operator-driven open source and SDN network deployments has been moving over the past few years mandates a certification program that is designed to run several times faster than conventional certification processes,” said Timon Sloane, Vice President of Marketing & Ecosystem for the ONF. “The ONF is in a singular position to offer this testing, and our Continuous Certification Program is further enhanced when testing is performed by engineers who have hands-on familiarity with the ONF’s Reference Design platforms. Our Continuous Certification program is also consistent with the industry migration to cloud native testing and automation, and increases the velocity of innovation and value provided to our members.“

https://www.opennetworking.org/

2-min video: https://youtu.be/eWeMGR110Yg

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ADVA supports Quantum-Secure VPN (QuaSiModO) project

ADVA is playing a key role in a unique research initiative extending post-quantum security to VPN networks.

The company has supplied its ADVA FSP 150 with ConnectGuard Ethernet encryption for the Quantum-Secure VPN Modules and Operation Modes (QuaSiModO) project, which is being conducted by the Fraunhofer Institute of Applied and Integrated Security, the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich and genua GmbH. Funding is provided by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research.

The QuaSiModO project is testing new quantum-resistant algorithms in the packet domain. The goal is to develop viable security solutions that can protect Layer 2 and 3 data against all forms of cyberattack, including those from quantum computers.

“As part of the QuaSiModO project, we’re continuing to drive innovation in future-proof cryptography. This initiative extends comprehensive post-quantum security to VPNs and enables businesses and government institutions to protect their data from tomorrow’s attacks,” said Jörg-Peter Elbers, SVP, advanced technology, ADVA. “Together with our partners, we’re ensuring that network security technology doesn’t fall behind in the computing power race. Our role in the project combines our experience with transport layer post-quantum security and our proven expertise when it comes to encrypting Carrier Ethernet connectivity. We’re helping to create a solution able to protect packet services today and ready to be upgraded later to comply with emerging specifications from standards bodies such as the USA’s National Institute of Standards and Technology.”

“When quantum computers emerge, they’ll be able to quickly crack complex problems that would take today’s most powerful supercomputers many years to solve. That’s why enterprises, governments and communication service providers are looking to leverage security technology built on quantum-safe algorithms,” commented Alexander von Gernler, head of research, genua GmbH. “For a decade, we’ve been focused on the threat posed by large quantum computers, and much of our work in recent years has been about developing practical quantum-resistant signatures and key establishment protocols. Now, we’re leading the QuaSiModO consortium, working with ADVA and the other partners to bring post-quantum security to network Layers 2 and 3, and deliver the robust future-proof protection that classical encryption technologies simply can’t.”

https://www.adva.com/en/newsroom/press-releases/20200512-adva-brings-post-quantum-security-to-packet-networks

https://www.genua.de/en/news/insights/2019/new-quasimodo-research-project-launched.html

Europe's OPENQKD uses ADVA for quantum key distribution

Tuesday, January 28, 2020  ADVA  

The OPENQKD project, whose mission is to create and trial a secure communication network across Europe based on quantum key distribution (QKD), will leverage ADVA's FSP 3000 and FSP 150 platforms.

ADVA will provide optical and Ethernet encryptors as well as open line systems for multiple testbed locations.

OPENQKD, which is funded by the European Commission, seeks to accelerate the commercial adoption of QKD technology and to promote interoperability through an ecosystem of 38 partners, including academic institutions, network operators, and manufacturers of network and QKD equipment.

“By bringing our technology and expertise to the OPENQKD project, we’re helping to address vital security issues in critical communications. Whether in telecoms or government networks, quantum hacking puts the long-term security of sensitive data at risk,” said Helmut Grießer, director, advanced technology, ADVA. “Our ConnectGuard™ encryption technology has earned a strong reputation for protecting service provider and enterprise networks while ensuring highest capacity, lowest latency and maximum scale. In OPENQKD, we’ll demonstrate in practical use cases how our ConnectGuard™ technology can be augmented with QKD to make encrypted communication resistant against quantum computer attacks.”

https://www.adva.com/en/newsroom/press-releases/20200128-adva-to-play-key-role-in-openqkd-project

Quantum Network Link goes live in UK

Tuesday, March 26, 2019  ADVA, BT, Quantum, UK  

The world’s first commercial-grade quantum test network link is now operational between the BT Labs in Suffolk and the Cambridge node of the UK’s new Quantum Network, which is being built by the Quantum Communications Hub, a collaboration between research and industry, supported by the UK’s National Quantum Technologies Programme. The new connection stretches from BT’s Adastral Park research campus near Ipswich in the East of England, to Cambridge. The wider UKQN network then extends onward over the National Dark Fibre Infrastructure Service to Bristol in the South-West.

The link uses over 125km of standard BT optical fibre between Cambridge and Adastral Park, with BT Exchanges acting as ‘trusted nodes’ along the route. The link will carry both quantum and non-quantum traffic; the QKD technique shares data encryption keys via an ultra-secure quantum channel over the same fibre that carries the encrypted data itself.

ADVA confirmed that its FSP 3000 is playing a key role in the new UKQNtel transport network secured by quantum key distribution (QKD). As part of an initiative led by QComm Hub, and with partners BT, ID Quantique and the universities of Cambridge and York, ADVA has constructed a QKD link capable of carrying classical and quantum channels on the same standard, installed fiber.

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