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Devicescape Survey Finds a Willingness to Pay for Citywide Wi-Fi
Thursday, January 29, 2009 Wi-Fi
An overwhelming number of Wi-Fi users expect Wi-Fi while on the road (91%) and there is a willingness to pay for it, especially if it is bundled as part of a 3G subscription, according to a survey of more than 2,700 Wi-Fi users conducted by Decipher, Inc. on behalf of Devicescape and other Wi-Fi leaders. Some other key findings of the"Devicescape Wi-Fi Report": showed:
Most respondents want citywide Wi-Fi (84%) and, surprisingly, many are willing to pay for it (56%) as they would a utility;
When traveling, the most-often used device for accessing Wi-Fi was the smartphone, such as an iPhone (vs. laptops);
The overwhelming majority of smartphone users (81%) prefer using Wi-Fi over 3G for browsing Web sites, downloading data, Google searches and sending e-mail;
86% of respondents want OEMs to build Wi-Fi into their handsets;
82% of respondents want the service provider to provide an overall 3G/Wi-Fi data package
"Complicated login screens" was the most common frustration consumers had when attempting to connect to a Wi-Fi hotspot.
Many of the statistics within the UK and mainland Europe were similar to the US, but one significant difference is that Nokia is the most used device tapping into Wi-Fi, more than laptops and iPhone users.
"This data reflects the fact that people recognize that Wi-Fi -- a technology they know and love on PCs and home entertainment systems -- is also a great way to stay connected with their handsets," said Kelly Davis-Felner, marketing director of the Wi-Fi Alliance. "Wi-Fi delivers a terrific user experience for web surfing, downloading multimedia content, and doing voice calls, so it has become a must-have feature on all the coolest phones."http://www.devicescape.com
Norwegian railway Awards 20-Year Deal to NSN
Thursday, January 29, 2009 Service Providers
The Norwegian National Rail Administration (Jernbaneverket) awarded a 20-year support contract to Nokia Siemens Networks for the complete maintenance of the country's railway communications network. The contract which includes hardware services, spare-parts management, software support and upgrades will provide Norway's rail system with a high-performance, always-on communications system. It follows Nokia Siemens Networks' implementation of a new digital GSM-Railways (GSM-R) mobile network.
http://www.nsn.com
http://www.jernbaneverket.no/english/
mobilkom austria Picks Nortel and Kapsch CarrierCom
Thursday, January 29, 2009 PacketVoice
The mobilkom austria group, which serves nearly 15 million mobile customers in eight countries in Central and Eastern Europe., is using an enhanced network based on a IMS-ready Mobile Switching Center (MSC) solution supplied by Kapsch CarrierCom AG and Nortel. The companies have completed the first phase of the project in Austria and work has already begun on the Liechtenstein and Slovenia upgrades. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Nortel said the enhanced mobilkom austria network meets the standards defined by the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP). mobilkom austria's solution is founded on Nortel's Advanced Telecom Computing Architecture (ATCA)-based Mobile Switching Center (MSC) server. This is the first time MSC Servers based on the ATCA platform are being used in normal operation in Europe. As part of the migration project, Kapsch CarrierCom is also managing the system implementation and system integration for the countries of Slovenia, Liechtenstein and Austria.
http://www.nortel.com/news
Nortel Ends Joint Agreement with Alvarion for Mobile WiMAX
Thursday, January 29, 2009 BroadbandWireless
Nortel will discontinue its mobile WiMAX business and end its joint agreement with Alvarion. The agreement, announced in June 2008, outlined the integration of Alvarion's advanced radio access network technology with Nortel's core network solutions, backhaul solutions, and global services. It also covered the resale by Nortel of the Alvarion platform of WiMAX access products.
Nortel said its decision will allow it to narrow its focus, better manage its investments and strengthen its broader carrier business to better position itself for long-term competitiveness.
"We are taking rapid action to narrow our strategic focus to areas where we can drive maximum return on investment. We will work closely with Alvarion to transition our mobile WiMAX customers to them and assure customers that they will continue to benefit from leading-edge technology and high-quality service," said Richard Lowe, president of carrier networks, Nortel.
For its part, Alvarion is said it is analyzing Nortel's decision and will take action to mitigate the impact on its business, and expects to provide more information about these actions during its fourth quarter 2008 financial results conference call on Wednesday, February 4, 2009. Under the terms of the agreement, Nortel is obligated to pay Alvarion for certain research and development services beyond Q4; however, collection of these payments is uncertain and subject to Nortel's creditor protection proceedings.
As a result of the foregoing, Alvarion will not be able to recognize approximately $2.4 million of revenues from the sale of products to Nortel during the fourth quarter of 2008. Accordingly, total revenues for the fourth quarter ended December 31, 2008, are expected to be approximately $70 million, at the low end of the Company's revenue guidance of $70 to $78 million.
Tzvika Friedman, President and CEO of Alvarion, said,"We are obviously disappointed in the direction this has taken; however, Alvarion's industry position has never been stronger. In Q4, our WiMAX shipments, excluding Nortel, reached a record $54.4 million and WiMAX revenues were $42.3 million. Our book-to-bill remained well above 1, and we ended the year with over $140 million in cash on our balance sheet."http://www.nortel.com/http://www.alvarion.com
Verizon Wireless Stay Up Through Ice Storms in Ohio
Verizon Wireless noted that is network in Ohio continued to operate throughout last week's ice and snow storm thanks to permanent backup generators that have been installed at more than 90 percent of the company's cell sites across the state.
The company invested more than $258 million in 2008 to enhance its digital network in Ohio, and $1.4 billion since the company was formed in the year 2000.
"In 2008, Verizon Wireless completed the installation of generators at every cell site in Ohio where it was possible to put one," said Roger Tang, president-Ohio/Pennsylvania/West Virginia Region, Verizon Wireless. "We understand that, especially during storm conditions like those that have ripped through much of Ohio this week, our customers and emergency personnel need to rely on their wireless devices to keep in touch and stay connected."http://www.verizonwireless.com
Western Digital Debuts 2TB Hard Drive
Thursday, January 29, 2009 Packet Systems
Western Digital (WD) introduced the world's first 2 terabyte (TB) hard drive. Based on the company's WD Caviar Green product family, the new 3.5-inch platform uses 500 GB/platter technology (with 400 Gb/in2 areal density) with 32 MB cache. In addition, the drive incorporates "StableTrac" technology, which secures the motor shaft at both ends to reduce system-induced vibration and stabilize platters for accurate tracking during read and write operations. WD's "IntelliPower" technology fine-tunes the balance of spin speed. MSRP is US$299.
http://www.westerndigital.com
Samsung Announces 4Gb DDR3 Memory Chip
Thursday, January 29, 2009 Silicon
Samsung Electronics Co. announced the world's first four gigabit (Gb) DDR3 DRAM chip, using 50 nanometer (nm) process technology. The 4Gb DDR3 can be produced in 16 gigabyte (GB) registered dual in-line memory modules (RDIMM) for servers, as well as 8GB unbuffered DIMM (UDIMM) for workstations and desktop PCs, and 8GB small outline DIMM (SODIMM) for laptops. By applying dual-die package technology, this new device can deliver modules of up to 32GB -- offering twice as much capacity as memory modules based on the previous highest chip density of 2Gb.
Designed to be low-powered, the 4Gb DDR3 DRAM operates at 1.35 volts (V), therein improving its throughput by 20 percent over a 1.5V DDR3. Its maximum speed is 1.6 gigabits per second (Gbps). In 16GB module configurations, 4Gb DDR3 can consume 40 percent less power than 2Gb DDR3 because of its higher density and because it uses only half the DRAM (32 vs. 64 chips).
Samsung predicts the amount of memory per server doubling every two years and the development of high-density DRAM is expected to keep pace. Other applications include notebooks and desktop PCs.
http://www.samsung.com
In September 2008, Samsung announced its development of the world's first 50 nm-class 2Gb DDR3 DRAM.
Digital Britain Seeks Stimulus for the Digital Economy
The British government published a plan to boost the nation's digital economy by spurring investment in the telecom sector.
The Interim Report outlines Britain's progress in building a digital market-place, while also setting priorities for industry engagement. A final Digital Britain Report is due before the summer. Currently, the UK's digital economy accounts for around 8% of GDP.
The Digital Britain has five objectives:
Upgrading and modernizing digital networks -- wired, wireless and broadcast -- so that Britain has an infrastructure that enables it to remain globally competitive in the digital world;
Fostering a dynamic investment climate for UK digital content, applications and services, that makes the UK an attractive place for both domestic and inward investment in its digital economy;
Promoting UK content for UK users: content of quality and scale that serves the interests, experiences and needs of all UK citizens; in particular impartial news, comment and analysis;
Fairness and access for all: universal availability coupled with the skills and digital literacy to enable near-universal participation in the digital economy and digital society; and
Developing the infrastructure, skills and take-up to enable the widespread online delivery of public services and business interface with Government.
To achieve these aims, the "Digital Britain" contains more than 20 recommendations, including specific proposals on:
Next Generation Networks. A strategy group will be formed, by the time of the final Digital Britain Report, to assess the case for how far market-led investment by Virgin Media, BT Group plc and new network enterprises will take the UK in terms of roll-out and likely take-up; and whether any contingency measures are necessary.
Universal access to broadband. The government is developing plans for a digital Universal Service Commitment to be effective by 2012, delivered by a mixture of fixed and mobile, wired and wireless means. Subject to further study of the costs and benefits, we will set out our plans for the level of service which we believe should be universal. We anticipate this consideration will include options up to 2Mb/s.
the Creation of a second Public Service Provider of Scale
The Modernization of Wireless Radio Spectrum Holdings. This includes resolving the future of existing 2G radio spectrum through a structured framework, allowing existing operators to re-align their existing holdings, re-use the spectrum and start the move to next generation mobile services. The government will make available more radio spectrum suitable for next generation mobile services. The government and Ofcom will also consider further network sharing, spectrum or carrier-sharing proposals from the operators, particularly where these can lead to greater coverage and are part of the mobile operator's contribution to a broadband universal service commitment.
A Digital Future for Radio. Plans call for the creation a Digital Radio Delivery Group which includes the retailers, the Transmission Networks, the BBC, the Commercial Radio Companies, the Car Manufacturers, consumer representatives and the device manufacturers, whose role would be to increase the attractiveness, availability and affordability of DAB and to advise on the Digital Migration Plan.
A New Deal for Digital Content Rights
Enhancing the digital delivery of public services. This includes a commitment to ensure that public services online are designed for ease of use by the widest range of citizens, taking advantage of the widespread uptake of broadband to offer an improved customer experience and encourage the shift to online channels in delivery and service support.
http://www.culture.gov.uk/what_we_do/broadcasting/5631.aspxhttp://www.ofcom.org.uk/
Stanford University Researchers Develop Sub-atomic Scale Writing
Stanford University announced a breakthrough with the potential to vastly increase digital data storage. Researchers at the university demonstrated the ability to assemble subatomic sized bits as small as 0.3 nanometers, or roughly one third of a billionth of a meter. The team used a scanning tunneling microscope to drag single carbon monoxide molecules into a desired pattern on a copper chip the size of a fingernail.
A two-dimensional "molecular holograms" were created not by using laser light as in a traditional hologram but by the electrons that are already in the copper. The recorded information could be read by the scanning tunneling microscope.
A paper on this topic has been published online in the journal Nature Nanotechnology,
http://news-service.stanford.edu/news/2009/january28/small-012809.html
AT&T Moves 5,000 Outsourced Jobs Back In-House
Wednesday, January 28, 2009 Service Providers
AT&T announced a milestone in its program to move some 5,000 high-tech jobs that had previously been outsourced back to the payrolls of AT&T's U.S. operating companies. The vast majority of the jobs had been placed offshore by contract vendors.
AT&T said it has met its goal of bringing back on shore and in-house more than 3,000 jobs that previously had been outsourced by BellSouth outside the U.S., and it met its goal of completing this repatriation before the end of 2008. The bulk of these jobs are now located in broadband support centers in North Carolina, Louisiana, Alabama, Florida and Kentucky, with most of the others scattered across states in the Southeast.
Separately, the company is more than halfway toward its goal of bringing back another 2,000 outsourced jobs to locations in the former SBC territory; states where these jobs have been located include Indiana, Texas, Nevada, Michigan and Arkansas. Most of the jobs provide support for wired broadband customers.
"These are good jobs with good wages and benefits, and we are delighted to have them back in-house and on shore. We applaud our union partners in the Communications Workers of America who worked with us to create competitive cost structures that allow us to meet the demands of this competitive market while still providing good domestic jobs," said Bill Blase, senior executive vice president of Human Resources.
http://www.att.com
Charter Launches 60 Mbps DOCSIS 3 Service in St. Louis
Wednesday, January 28, 2009 Last Mille
Charter Communications announced the launch of 60 Mbps Internet service in the St. Louis metropolitan area. Additional markets will follow. Nationwide, the ompany will soon boost its Charter High-Speed Internet Max from 16 Mbps to 20 Mbps. http://www.charter.com
RAD's Megaplex-4100 Aggregates Ethernet and Legacy over Fiber and Copper
Wednesday, January 28, 2009 Packet Systems
RAD Data Communications introduced an all-in-one cross-generation platform for both legacy and next generation networks.
Version 2.0 of the modular Megaplex-4100, the company's modular central site solution for its widely deployed Multiservice Access Platform (MAP) and copper and fiber Last Mile products, aggregates both next generation Ethernet services over legacy networks and legacy services over packet switched networks (PSNs).
The Megaplex-4100 can terminate Ethernet traffic carried over a wide variety of transport media, including E1/T1, fiber, IDSL, and SHDSL or, using virtual concatenation, STM-1/OC-3 lines. In addition, apart from handling high-speed traffic, the versatile Megaplex-4100 also functions as a cross connect for low-speed data and analog voice.
RAD said the product is designed to meet the requirements of service providers, as well as utility, transportation and government applications. It can be used for separating Ethernet and TDM traffic carried over the same link while providing a variety of different services. For alternative carriers and corporate and campus environments, the device can be used for minimizing the number of trunks that have to be leased from the service provider. Alternative service providers can use the Megaplex-4100 to provision different services to different customers over different infrastructure. In addition, utilities can use it for creating SDH/SONET rings for carrying Ethernet voice and data.
http://www.rad.com
Broadcom Swings to Loss in Q4 2008
Wednesday, January 28, 2009 Financial
Broadcom reported Q4 net revenue of $1.127 billion, a decrease of 13.2% compared with the $1.298 billion reported for the third quarter of 2008 and an increase of 9.7% compared with the $1.027 billion reported for the fourth quarter of 2007.
There was a Q4 net loss (GAAP) of $159.2 million, or $.32 net loss per share (basic and diluted), compared with GAAP net income of $164.9 million, or $.31 per share (diluted), for the third quarter of 2008, and GAAP net income of $90.3 million, or $.16 per share (diluted), for the fourth quarter of 2007. The Q4 results reflect impairment charges of goodwill and certain tangible assets of its mobile platforms business group, as well as in-process R&D charges associated with its acquisition of the digital TV business of AMD. These charges represented cumulative reductions in net income of $0.40 per share (diluted).
"As we look into the first quarter of 2009, we believe the current economic slowdown will continue to negatively impact our business as demand continues to decrease and settle into new levels and channel inventory adjusts accordingly," said Scott A. McGregor, Broadcom's President and CEO. The company is planning cost cutting measures, including job cuts.
http://www.broadcom.com
Infinera Reports Q4 Financials, New Contract with Greece's OCE
Wednesday, January 28, 2009 Optical
Infinera reported Q4 2008 revenue (GAA) of $99.3 million compared to $120.5 million in the third quarter of 2008 and $76.1 million in the fourth quarter of 2007. GAAP gross margins were 38% in the fourth quarter of 2008 compared to 45% in the third quarter of 2008 and 36% in the fourth quarter of 2007. Infinera noted that its top 10 customers accounted for 72% of total revenue, the lowest concentration in the history of the company. The largest customer for the fourth quarter was an internet content provider at 23%. With the seven new customer additions, total customer count for the company is now at 56.
"In the fourth quarter we saw continued customer win momentum, with seven new customers added in the quarter, including OTE," said Jagdeep Singh, president and chief executive officer of Infinera. "This resulted in strong top-line performance; however the common equipment associated with these deployments and additional expected new customer shipments in Q1 put downward pressure on our gross margins in the quarter.
In a separate release, the company announced that OTEGLOBE, the international division of Greek incumbent national carrier OTE, has selected Infinera as its DWDM supplier for its Pan-European Network. Specifically, OTEGLOBE launched its 7,000-km Transbalkan Network (TBN) last year to connect Greece and the Balkans with central Europe and western Europe. The win at OTE represents Infinera's fourth win with Tier 1 incumbent carriers, joining Deutsche Telecom and two other incumbents.
http://www.infinera.com
Deutsche Telekom Posts Growth Numbers for DSL, Mobiles
Despite slower growth, Deutsche Telekom continues to substantially increase its customer numbers in the DSL and mobile communications.
The company credits its growth to special pricing, bundles and products, such as its Call&Surf all-in packages, the Max mobile flat rates or the community service MyFaves in the United States and products like Entertain, the Apple iPhone 3G or the Android-based T-Mobile G1, for its competitive differentiation. Some highlights:
With a DSL net add market share of around 45 percent in Germany and almost 1.6 million new customers, T-Home achieved the target it had set itself in 2008.
In the fourth quarter of 2008, for DSL T-Home 's new customer market share almost reached the 50-percent mark.
T-Home has consolidated its top position in the German DSL market with 10.6 million existing retail customers and a total market share of around 46 percent.
T-Home now has some 500,000 customers orders for its Entertain triple-play offer.
Deutsche Telekom's subsidiaries in Croatia, Slovakia, Hungary, Macedonia and Montenegro acquired a total of more than 220,000 IPTV customers by the end of 2008.
The number of line losses was at the lower end of the guidance of 2.5 to 3 million issued at the beginning of the year. In addition to losses caused by competitive and regulatory factors, this value includes, for the first time in 2008, line losses on technical grounds as a result of the migration of resale customers to the all-IP platform.
T-Mobile now has 128.3 million customer in all of its markets. This means that the number of customers increased organically by 7.6 million. The contract customer segment accounts for 5 million of this growth with a current customer base of 65.9 million.
T-Mobile Deutschland added over 950,000 new contract customers for the year.
T-Mobile USA had a customer base of 32.8 million at the end of the year, including SunCom, which was fully consolidated in February 2008. Organic customer growth -- excluding SunCom -- was thus almost 3 million compared with the end of 2007. Including SunCom, total customer growth was 4.1 million. At the end of the year, broadband 3G mobile services were available to around 107 million people in the United States. This figure is set to almost double following further network expansion in 2009.
http://www.telekom.de
Dell'Oro: Rapid Rise in 40 Gbps Wavelength Shipments Despite Market
The total worldwide Optical Transport equipment revenue is forecasted to decline 9 percent in 2009 and resume growth in 2010, reaching $14.5 billion in 2013, according to a newly released Optical 5-year forecast report by Dell'Oro Group. Shipments of 40 Gbps wavelengths are forecast to grow at least 50 percent in each of the next five years and contribute nearly one-third of the capacity shipped in DWDM Long Haul systems by 2013. The report also indicates that shipments of 100 Gbps wavelengths are expected in late 2011.
"The economy of most major countries is in a recession, and the consensus belief is that this recession may last through 2009," said Jimmy Yu, Director of Optical Transport research at Dell'Oro Group. "While the near term outlook is for the total optical market to contract 9 percent due to factors such as the economic downturn, there continues to be an opportunity for technologies that will help service providers reduce their capital expense while still expanding their network capacity. We think that 40 Gigabit is one of those technologies as the price per bit of a 40 Gbps wavelength starts to be lower than that of a 10 Gigabit wavelength in a DWDM Long Haul system," added Mr. Yu.
http://www.DellOro.com
ZTE and RadiSys Partner on Color Ring Back Tones
ZTE and RadiSys announced an integrated solution for color ring back tones that is already deployed and generating revenues for leading service providers in China. Color Ring Back Tone (CRBT) is a network-based service that plays a fragment of music, advertisement, or message predefined by the called party. When a caller makes a phone call to a called party with CRBT service, rather than hearing a generic ringing tone, the caller hears the personalized audio clip. CRBT services are similar to the popularity and appeal of today's downloadable ringtones for mobile devices; however, an important difference is that CRBT is delivered as a network-based service. The joint solution integrates RadiSys Convedia media servers with ZTE's Unified Service Platform.
http://www.zte.com.cnhttp://www.radisys.com
Ceragon Awarded a $3.5m Follow on Order in Indochina
Ceragon Networks announced follow-on orders for its advanced FibeAir all-indoor trunk solution from a leading mobile operator in one of Indochina's emerging markets. Contributing over $3.5 million in revenue in Q4, these orders follow previous successful deployment during 2008 and further expand the carrier's network.
http://www.ceragon.com
Level 3 Vyxx to Deliver Broadcast Feeds for Super Bowl XLIII
Level 3 Communications' Vyxx division will provide live standard and high-definition (HD) television broadcast video services for Super Bowl XLIII to multiple major broadcasters. This is the 20th consecutive year that the National Football League (NFL) has relied on Level 3 Vyvx services to deliver the live event broadcast.
For the Super Bowl, Level 3 Vyvx services will deliver a specialized solution that includes HD acquisition, encoding and transmission of the video broadcast signal from the game. In total, over 2,800 hours of video content will be acquired, encoded and transported across the Level 3 Vyvx services platform for Super Bowl coverage. The Super Bowl caps an NFL season during which Level 3 Vyvx services provided video transmission for every NFL regular season and playoff game, delivering more than 5,600 total feeds.
http://www.Level3.com
EXFO Releases Integrated IMS-HSS Emulator
EXFO Electro-Optical Engineering released an integrated Home Subscriber Servers (HSS) emulator for Internet Protocol Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) networks. The HSS, the master database in IMS architectures, plays a critical role in the authentication and authorization of subscribers. Without proper access to the HSS, subscribers cannot access network services, resulting in significant network downtime, customer churn and loss of revenue.
EXFO's said its new hssFlex can wrap around an IMS network to provide end-to-end testing, or simply characterize single network elements such as application servers or call session controllers. Key test features include the ability to simulate real-world interactions like subscribers updating their services, subscriber services being terminated due to non-payment of bills, and characterization of the impact of denial of service (DOS) attacks on the IMS network. Like EXFO's other IMS test suites, the hssFlex complies with industry standards, but also provides the flexibility to simulate proprietary and non-complaint IMS traffic.
http://www.exfo.com/
Verizon Business Wins GSA Contract Worth Up to $120.8 Million
Verizon Business will provide a range of local voice and data services to federal agencies in five Mid-Atlantic states under a new agreement, valued at as much as $120.8 million, with the U.S. General Services Administration. The agreement, known as the Mid-Atlantic Local Services Acquisition (LSA) contract, covers three years and four renewable option years. Under terms of the deal, the GSA and other federal agencies in the Mid-Atlantic region -- which covers Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, Virginia and West Virginia -- can immediately buy local voice and data services. They include Centrex, Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) services, network-based voice messaging, private line data services, and related managed
http://www.verizonbusiness.com/
PMC-Sierra Reports Q4 Revenue of $120.8 Million
PMC-Sierra reported Q4 2008 net revenue of $120.8 million, compared with $123.6 million in the fourth quarter of 2007 and $139.4 million reported in the third quarter of 2008. Revenues in the fourth quarter of 2008 declined two percent year over year and 13 percent sequentially. Net income was $13.7 million (GAAP diluted net income per share of $0.06). This compares with a GAAP net loss of $5.1 million (GAAP loss per share of $0.02) in the fourth quarter of 2007 and GAAP net income of $5.7 million (GAAP income per share of $0.03) in the third quarter of 2008.
"In 2008, our company's financial performance improved as total revenue increased 17 percent year over year, and our operating margin was 22 percent compared to 14 percent the prior year," said Greg Lang, president and chief executive officer of PMC-Sierra. "While we were impacted by the global macro-economic slowdown in the fourth quarter of 2008, we are pleased with the year-over-year progress we have made in revenue and operating income."http://www.pmc-sierra.com
Juniper Posts Preliminary Revenue of $923.5 Million, up 14% YoY
Juniper Networks reported preliminary net revenue for Q$ 2008 of $923.5 million, up 14% on a year-over-year basis. For the twelve months ended December 31, 2008, Juniper's revenue increased 26% on a year-over-year basis to $3.57 billion. Juniper posted GAAP net income of $132.5 million, or $0.25 per diluted share, and non-GAAP net income of $169.0 million, or $0.32 per diluted share for the fourth quarter of 2008.
"Even in this tough economy, we managed to grow year-over-year quarterly revenue by 14% and non-GAAP diluted earnings per share by 19%. We continue to play offense and grow market share while at the same time taking action to responsibly manage our cost structure. The long-term growth fundamentals of high performance networking remain strong and by strengthening our product portfolio and focusing on the customer, Juniper is positioned for accelerated growth once market conditions improve," stated Kevin Johnson, chief executive officer of Juniper Networks.
Juniper's operating margin for the fourth quarter of 2008 increased to 20.6% on a GAAP basis from 18.2% in the same quarter a year ago. Non-GAAP operating margin for the fourth quarter of 2008 increased to 24.5% from 23.5% in the fourth quarter of 2007. For the fiscal year 2008, Juniper's operating margin increased to 19.5% on a GAAP basis from 14.4% for the prior fiscal year. Non-GAAP operating margin for the fiscal year 2008, increased to 24.2% from 21.3% in the fiscal year 2007. Juniper said the improvement was achieved through continued cost discipline and improved operating efficiency.
http://www.juniper.net
Google Introduces Internet Measurement Lab
Google unveiled its Measurement Lab (M-Lab), an open platform that researchers can use to deploy Internet measurement tools.
Over the course of early 2009, Google will provide researchers with 36 servers in 12 locations in the U.S. and Europe. All data collected via M-Lab will be made publicly available for other researchers to build on.
Google said its M-Lab is intended to be a truly community-based effort. The idea for M-Lab was developed with the New America Foundation's Open Technology Institute, the PlanetLab Consortium, and academic researchers.
three tools running on servers near Google's headquarters are available to help users attempt to diagnose common problems that might impair their broadband speed, as well as determine whether BitTorrent is being blocked or throttled by their ISPs.
http://www.measurementlab.nethttp://www.google.com
European Commission Drops Telecom Cases Against Five Countries
Wednesday, January 28, 2009 Europe, Regulatory
The European Commission closed five infringement proceedings against EU Member States (Bulgaria, Romania, Slovakia, Luxembourg and Cyprus) after they took steps at national level to correct the problems.
The cases against Bulgaria, Romania and Slovakia concerned the adoption of the single European emergency number (112), which has now become available in those countries. Thcase against Luxembourg concerned the reorganization of the Media and Communications department which ensures structural separation of regulatory and management functions, as requested in the EU Telecoms rules. The case against Cyprus related to rights of way (e.g. the possibility for public authorities to grant a telecoms provider the right to install facilities such as ducts, cables and masts in public places). This too has also been closed since measures were taken by the Cypriot authorities to ensure a timely provision of rights of way for the roll-out of fixed networkshttp:www.europa.eu
RadiSys and Enea Team on Managed ATCA Platform
Tuesday, January 27, 2009 Packet Systems
RadiSys has teamed up with Enea, a supplier of network software, to offer a managed ATCA platform for telecom applications that provides configuration, monitoring, control and platform software upgrade capabilities. The solution, which is based on the Enea System Manager software and the RadiSys Promentum ATCA 10G platform, provides telecom equipment manufacturers with a commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) platform offering. The companies estimate that their integration will save equipment manufacturers up to 54 man-months in development time.
Key capabilities of the Enea System Manager include:
Centralized, simplified consistent and persistent management of the RadiSys Promentum ATCA platform, delivered with a hierarchical, extensible system model
Hardware monitoring, command and control with standard northbound interfaces (CLI, HTTP, SNMP) for immediate integration into an overall Element Management System
The industry's first centralized, automated in-service update of chassis-wide system software for ATCA systems
Alarm management support for standard Telco Alarm handling and notification
Complete X.731-conformant State Management infrastructure and services
http://www.enea.com
http://www.radisys.com
Qualcomm Announces Revenues of $2.5 Billion, up 3% YoY, Down 19% Sequentially
Tuesday, January 27, 2009 Financial
Qualcomm reported quarterly revenue of $2.52 billion, up 3 percent year-over-year and down 25 percent sequentially. Operating income came in at $745 million, down 2 percent year-over-year and 44 percent sequentially. Net income was $341 million, down 56 percent year-over-year and 61percent sequentially. Diluted earnings per share were $0.20, down 57 percent year-over-year and 62 percent sequentially.
Qualcomm noted that its revenues were at the high end of prior guidance and operating income exceeded prior guidance. However, net income and diluted EPS for the quarter were adversely impacted by other-than-temporary impairments to its marketable securities portfolio.
"Despite weak economic conditions, wireless subscribers continue to migrate from second-generation to third-generation CDMA networks around the world. Our first quarter revenues were at the high end of prior guidance and operating income exceeded our prior guidance driven primarily by the mix of higher-end chipsets, higher-priced data capable devices and improved expense management," said Dr. Paul E. Jacobs, chief executive officer of Qualcomm. "I am particularly pleased to see healthy demand for 3G as CDMA-based device shipments in the September quarter were at the high end of our prior expectations and reflect more than 30 percent year-over-year growth. While our operating performance was strong, the distress in the global financial markets continued, resulting in additional impairments of our marketable securities portfolio."
"The CDMA inventory channel has contracted as we expected, and the business environment continues to remain uncertain. Reduced visibility in the marketplace makes it difficult to forecast future inventory levels or predict when a recovery will begin. As a result, while we continue to estimate healthy growth in the CDMA-device market, we have lowered our shipment estimate for calendar year 2009. Although we are not providing earnings per share guidance due to the volatility of financial markets and the impact it has had and may have on our investment portfolio and net income, we are providing revenue, operating income and our other standard guidance. Qualcomm is very fortunate to have a strong balance sheet and operating cash flows in these difficult times and we are committed to supporting our partners and driving the market forward."http://www.qualcomm.com
Extreme Networks Posts Net Revenue of $87.5 Million
Extreme Networks reported quarterly net revenue of $87.5 million, compared to $92.5 million in the year-ago quarter. Net income on a GAAP basis was $2.5 million or $0.03 per diluted share. That compares to the year-ago net income of $4.1 million or $0.04 per diluted share. Excluding stock-based compensation charges, non-GAAP net income for the second fiscal quarter of 2009 was $3.5 million or $0.04 per diluted share, which compares to non-GAAP net income of $5.5 million or $0.05 per diluted share in the year-ago quarter.
For the second fiscal quarter of 2009, revenues in North America (U.S., Canada, and Central America) were $33.4 million, revenues in EMEA (Europe, Middle East, Africa, and South America) were $42.2 million, and revenues in APAC (Asia Pacific and Japan) were $11.9 million. That compares to the year-ago revenues of $40.5 million in North America, $35.7 million in EMEA, and $16.3 million in APAC.
http://www.extremenetworks.com
Alcatel-Lucent to De-List Shares from Frankfurt Stock Exchange
Alcatel-Lucent has submitted an application for the delisting of its ordinary shares from the Frankfurt Stock Exchange (FSE). The company cited small trading volumes, in recent years, of Alcatel-Lucent shares on the FSE compared to the total trading volumes of Alcatel-Lucent shares globally. The company's shares will continue to trade on major stock exchanges such as Euronext Paris, the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and the London Stock Exchange.
Alcatel-Lucent and Institut TELECOM inaugurate Joint Laboratory
Tuesday, January 27, 2009 Service Providers
Alcatel-Lucent and the Institut TELECOM have inaugurated a joint research laboratory, the aim of which is to work on future applications for digital media sector. This virtual laboratory comprises 64 researchers enjoying international recognition in the engineering sciences (networks, service architecture, security, semantics mining, etc.) and the social and human sciences, including one third of young researchers (doctoral research students, engineers and post-doctoral students), specifically hired for the project. The team is led by a scientific and operational joint management and has been set up for an initial 5-year period, with the aim of becoming one of the leaders in future applications and services. It is financed equally by the two partners.
The inauguration ceremony took place in the presence of Nathalie Kosciusko-Morizet, secretary of state for strategic studies and the digital economy, Jeong Kim, President of Alcatel-Lucent Bell Labs and Pascal Faure, Chairman of the Institut TELECOM.
http://www.institut-telecom.frhttp://www.alcatel-lucent.com
BroadSoft's Xtended Delivers Voice 2.0 and Telephony Mashups
Tuesday, January 27, 2009 PacketVoice
BroadSoft cited progress in the rollout of its Xtended framework, which brings together its carrier-grade BroadWorks voice applications with leading Web 2.0 solutions. Launched in March 2008, BroadSoft's Xtended program enables service providers to offer enhanced, productivity-improving applications that extend the value of their telephony service.
Several service providers, including Alteva, SimpleSignal, Telesphere, Unity, and WorldxChange Communications, have implemented the Xtended platform. Xtended developers promote their applications to more than 450 service providers and their customers via the Broadsoft Marketplace. Broadsoft said application development is occurring at a healthy rate amongst Xtended's growing community of approximately 1,500 developers. BroadSoft's Xtended Marketplace showcases third-party applications a number of companies, including Salesforce.com, PhoneTag, ACT!, Kakapo, and Litescape. New applications include:
Attache´ -- an Apple Mac OS X client that gives users complete control of BroadSoft's advanced calling features
Chumby -- a Web-enabled consumer electronic device that allows users to view their call history, click to return missed, placed or received calls, and set 'Do Not Disturb'
MobileSet -- a mobile Web application that provides users access to the services they use most
QuickSet -- a desktop application that runs on the Adobe Air platform, allowing access to several of your services from Windows or Mac
Xtended Dialer -- a native iPhone application that allows a user to originate calls from an iPhone through their service provider
http://www.BroadSoft.com
NetXen Ramps up Production of Dual Port 10GbE and Quad Port 1GbE Adapters
Tuesday, January 27, 2009 Silicon
NetXen announced high volume production of its new line of Dual Port 10GbE and Quad Port 1GbE adapters. The products, which are based on NetXen's third-generation Intelligent NIC silicon, support the PCI Express (PCIe) 2.0 standard and are offered with various cabling options: the NX3-20GxR supports pluggable SFP+ modules for SR and LR optics, whereas the NX3-20GCU uses direct attach twinax copper cabling. The 10GbE adapters have a starting price of sub-$300 per port for the twinax copper version.
http://www.netxen.com
IntelliNet Unveils Femtocell Gateway
IntelliNet Technologies introduced a femtocell gateway which combines a femtocell access point controller with a carrier grade security gateway in an AdvancedTCA platform. The security gateway was acquired by IntelliNet in 2008 from Azaire Networks and has subsequently been enhanced and is being integrated with the access point controller.
IntelliNet's platform provider network operators with the ability to manage thousands of femtocells simultaneously. The femtocell access point controller is a control plane, software solution. It consolidates the various elements of the Radio Network Controller (RNC) into a single unit, minimizing the complexity and much of the operating cost of a traditional network. Unlike existing Base Station Controllers (BSCs), it is designed to handle the many thousands of access points in the femtocell ecosystem. It is an Iu-based solution for 3G-UMTS networks supporting Iu-PS, Iu-CS and Gn network interfaces to the core network. It implements a pre-standards Iu-h based solution with RANAP and SCTP support and will comply with the final standards.
IntelliNet Technologies said its access point controller has been deployed in several technology trials in tier-1 operator networks through an OEM partner. The platform will be demonstrated at Mobile World Congresshttp://www.intellinet-tech.com
Juniper Networks Names Lauren Flaherty as CMO
Juniper Networks announced the appointment of Lauren Flaherty to the position of executive vice president and chief marketing officer. Flaherty will oversee the full breadth of the company's global marketing activities, and will report directly to company CEO, Kevin Johnson. Most recently, she served as CMO of Nortel Networks from 2006--2008. Prior to Nortel, Flaherty spent 26 years at IBM in a variety of product marketing leadership positions including software and servers.
Verizon Wireless Invested $6.5 Billion in Net Improvements in 2008
In 2008, Verizon Wireless invested $6.5 billion to enhance its nationwide digital network. The enhancements included building new and upgrading existing cell sites; adding new coverage areas and increasing capacity within existing coverage areas; and completing a high-speed wireless broadband network expansion.
Since the company was formed in 2000, Verizon Wireless has invested more than $50 billion -- an average of $5.5 billion each year -- on improvements to its network.
Verizon Wireless also noted that during 2008 its test engineers drove more than 1 million miles to test the company's and competitors' networks. Data collected by these test men and women helped the company direct its multi-billion dollar network capital expenditure program and is the basis for the company's "most reliable network" claim. According to the company, the voice reliability test results consistently show that the rate of ineffective attempts (a call that is blocked) for the Verizon Wireless national network is lower than any other national carrier. The test results also indicate that voice calls that connect on the Verizon Wireless network are more likely to stay connected for the duration of the call. Similarly, the data reliability test results establish that Verizon Wireless is able to set up data sessions and complete large file downloads and uploads at a greater rate of success than its national competitors.
http://www.verizonwireless.com/
Motorola Publishes Survey on Wireless Network Security
Tuesday, January 27, 2009 Wi-Fi
A new survey by Motorola's Enterprise Mobility business finds that 44 percent of the wireless devices used by retailers - such as laptops, mobile computers and barcode scanners - could be compromised. This significantly lower than results from the same retail shopping survey conducted in 2007 which showed security vulnerabilities in 85 percent of wireless devices.
Survey research included a review of wireless data security at more than 4,000 stores in some of the world's busiest shopping cities including Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, London, Los Angeles, New York City, San Francisco, Paris, Seoul and Sydney.
Other interesting survey findings include:
Retailers in Los Angeles and New York City were deploying some form of encryption on 77 percent of their wireless APs. Paris retailers ranked second with 76 percent. Retailers in London and Boston ranked the lowest with only 51 percent and 60 percent of APs, respectively, using some form of encryption.
12 percent of all APs monitored were using WiFi Protected Access (WPA) while another 27 percent were using WPA-PSK (pre shared key), which is only as strong as the shared password used to protect them. In total, only 7 percent of retailers were using WPA2, which is the strongest WiFi security protocol available today.
22 percent, or 1,740, of APs were mis-configured, an increase from 13 percent in the 2007 survey.
Some networks were deployed using default configurations and service set identification (SSID), such as "Retail Wireless," "Cash Register," "POS WiFi," or "store#1234," and "Default". This signals to hackers that nothing has been changed on these devices or the entire wireless network.
WiFi signage has become popular for retailers, advertising they offer wireless. However, advertising an open wireless network may tip hackers in targeting other customers, who may not be using effective data security tools.
32 percent of retail locations were leaking unencrypted traffic, with an additional 34 percent of retail locations leaking encrypted traffic, for a total of 66 percent. Data leakage is easily solved with simple configuration changes or modifications.
Motorola noted that security vulnerabilities in wireless networks typically are the result of weak encryption, data leakage, mis-configured access points and outdated access point (AP) firmware. One of the more overlooked issues with large retailers is a "cookie-cutter" approach to wireless technology. By using the same technology, configuration, security and/or naming conventions at all retail locations, vulnerabilities repeat themselves across the entire store chain, rendering them susceptible to attacks as well as Payment Card Industry (PCI) non-compliance.
http://www.motorola.com
NTT Com to Launch Data Center & e-VLAN POP in Shanghai
NTT Communications and China Telecom Shanghai announced the opening of a joint Yuanqu Data Center in Shanghai on February 2.
The facility will provide co-location, managed operation (monitoring, maintenance, security, etc.) and network, including NTT Com's Arcstar Global IP-VPN and Global e-VLAN services. Shanghai NTT Telecommunications Engineering Co., Ltd. will provide customer support in Japanese, Chinese and English on a 24/7 basis.
NTT Com also announced that the data center will introduce Global e-VLAN point of presence (POP) to provide international wide-area Ethernet service. Customers will be able to connect their servers and systems to a high-speed backbone network directly on the premises of the data center, thereby minimizing connection costs.
http://www.ntt.com/index-e.html
U.S. House Fails to Approve Delay in DTV Transition
Tuesday, January 27, 2009 Regulatory
The U.S. House of Representatives voted 258-168 in favor of delaying the mandatory transition to digital TV. However, the vote fell short of the two-thirds majority required to approve the measure on an expedited basis. Earlier in the week, the Senate voted to approve a DTV delay of four months. The deadline for the DTV switchover currently remains February 17, unless the issue is brought before the House for a second time and approved. The Obama administration had signaled that it is in favor or a delay.
http://www.house.gov
AT&T Reports Robust Wireless Data Growth, but Slows U-verse Rollout in Some Markets
Citing robust wireless data growth, accelerated take-up of its U-verse TV service and double digit IP growth, AT&T reported Q4 revenues of $31.1 billion, net income of $2.4 billion and cash from operating activities of $10.9 billion. Full-year revenues totaled $124.0 billion, net income was $12.9 billion and cash from operating activities totaled $33.7 billion. However, the company is trimming its Capex forecast by 10% to 15% compared with 2008, lowering its growth target for 2009 to the low single-digit range, and slowing its planned U-verse rollout in some markets. As the U-verse network currently passes 17 million, AT&T said it now has a large base to which it will market its service. As such, rollouts to some markets will be pushed back, and the goal of passing 30 million homes is expected to be reached one year later than originally planned.
"Despite the economic environment, we grew revenues in 2008, and I expect 2009 will be another year of overall revenue growth and solid progress for our company," said Randall Stephenson, AT&T chairman and chief executive officer.
Some highlights from Q4:
Wireless Operational Highlights
2.1 million Net Gain in Wireless Subscribers. AT&T posted a fourth-quarter net gain in wireless subscribers of 2.1 million to reach 77.0 million in service, up 7.0 million over the past year. Retail postpaid net adds topped 1.3 million, up 13.9 percent versus results in the year-earlier quarter. Total monthly subscriber churn in the fourth quarter was 1.6 percent, down from 1.7 percent for both the preceding quarter and the year-earlier fourth quarter. Postpaid churn was 1.2 percent, flat versus results for the preceding quarter and the fourth quarter of 2007.
1.9 million Apple iPhone 3G Activations. Postpaid subscriber growth reflects the dramatic success of iPhone 3G, which was launched in July 2008. AT&T's fourth-quarter iPhone 3G activations totaled 1.9 million, approximately 40 percent to customers who were new to AT&T, and the company's total iPhone activations over the last half of 2008 topped 4.3 million. AT&T's iPhone exclusive continues to deliver high-value subscribers with ARPU approximately 1.6 times higher and churn rates significantly lower than the company's overall postpaid subscriber base.
Integrated Devices. During the fourth quarter, nearly 60 percent of the company's postpaid net adds came from customers choosing an integrated device (such as the iPhone), and 24.9 percent of AT&T's postpaid wireless subscribers now have an integrated device, up from 13.0 percent one year earlier.
51.2 percent Wireless Data Revenue Growth. AT&T's wireless data revenues grew 51.2 percent versus the year-earlier fourth quarter to $3.1 billion. Wireless text messages on the AT&T network were nearly 80 billion in the fourth quarter, more than double the total for the year-earlier fourth quarter. Internet access revenues and multimedia message volumes also continued their robust growth. This marked AT&T's 12th consecutive quarter with wireless data revenue growth above 50 percent. Data represented 26.6 percent of AT&T's fourth-quarter wireless service revenues, up from 19.9 percent in the year-earlier quarter.
Retail Postpaid Subscriber ARPU Up 3.9 percent. For the fourth quarter, total postpaid ARPU was $59.59, up 3.9 percent versus the year-earlier quarter. Postpaid data ARPU was $16.30, up $4.29 or 35.7 percent versus the fourth quarter of 2007, and up $1.60 or 10.9 percent sequentially. Total wireless subscriber ARPU was up 1.1 percent versus the fourth quarter of 2007.
13.2 percent Total Wireless Revenue Growth. Driven by subscriber gains and data growth, AT&T's total wireless revenues increased 13.2 percent to $12.9 billion, and wireless service revenues, which exclude handset and accessory sales, grew 13.3 percent to $11.5 billion. For the full year 2008, total wireless revenues were $49.3 billion, up $6.7 billion or 15.6 percent versus 2007 results.
Sequential Wireless Margin Expansion. On a reported basis, fourth-quarter wireless operating expenses totaled $10.2 billion, operating income was $2.7 billion and AT&T's wireless operating income margin was 20.9 percent versus 17.0 percent in the year-earlier fourth quarter. On an adjusted basis, fourth-quarter wireless operating expenses totaled $9.7 billion, operating income was $3.2 billion and AT&T's wireless operating income margin was 24.6 percent versus 25.7 percent in the year-earlier fourth quarter.
Wireline Operational Highlights
AT&T U-verse. AT&T reported a net gain of 264,000 subscribers in the fourth quarter, up from 232,000 added in the third quarter of 2008, to reach more than 1 million in service. AT&T U-verse network deployment more than doubled during 2008 and now passes 17 million living units.
14.2 percent Growth in Wireline IP Data Revenues. AT&T posted its fifth consecutive quarter of mid-teens growth in total wireline IP data revenues, driven by expansion in AT&T U-verse services and growth in business products such as VPNs and managed Internet services. Consumer IP data revenues, which include broadband and AT&T U-verse services, grew 21.4 percent, and retail business IP data revenues grew 11.4 percent. IP services now account for 45.2 percent of AT&T's total wireline data revenues, up from 41.5 percent in the year-earlier fourth quarter and 37.2 percent two years ago.
Growth in Consumer ARPU. Reflecting growth in AT&T U-verse services and broadband, AT&T's revenues per consumer household served increased 3.4 percent versus the year-earlier quarter. Regional consumer revenue connections (retail voice, high speed Internet and video) totaled 47.0 million at the end of the quarter versus 49.4 million at the end of the fourth quarter of 2007 and 47.5 million at the end of the third quarter of 2008. Total wireline consumer broadband and TV connections over the past year increased by 1.8 million. Total regional consumer revenues were $5.3 billion, down 5.3 percent, as voice declines more than offset growth in data and video.
Broadband Growth. AT&T's total broadband connections, which include wireline subscribers and wireless customers with 3G LaptopConnect cards, increased by 357,000 in the fourth quarter to reach 16.3 million in service, up 1.5 million or 10.3 percent over the past year. The number of 3G LaptopConnect cards in service nearly doubled over the past year. AT&T U-verse TV continues to have a high attach rate for broadband, more than 90 percent in the fourth quarter, and sales of bundles that combine wireless with wired broadband service continue to be strong. Both wired and wireless broadband subscribers benefit from access to AT&T's industry-leading Wi-Fi footprint, with nearly 20,000 hotspots in the United States and access to more than 80,000 hotspots around the world.
Wholesale. AT&T extended its major turnaround in wholesale revenues, which grew 1.0 percent versus the year-earlier fourth quarter. This marks AT&T's second consecutive quarter of year-over-year growth in this category and compares with a year-over-year decline of 8.5 percent reported in the year-ago fourth quarter. The turnaround reflects solid demand for data services, offsetting expected declines in local voice. In addition, revenues from AT&T's global network alliance with IBM continue to ramp.
Retail Business IP Data Growth. AT&T enterprise and regional business operations continued to generate double-digit growth in IP data revenues, offsetting in large part expected economic pressures on usage-based legacy revenues, primarily in voice. Regional business revenues declined 0.9 percent versus the year-earlier quarter to $3.2 billion. Regional business data revenues grew 7.0 percent, consistent with results in recent quarters, led by Ethernet and IP data services, which made up 55.4 percent of AT&T's regional business data revenues and grew 18.3 percent versus the year-earlier fourth quarter. Enterprise revenues totaled $4.5 billion, down 3.7 percent versus the year-earlier quarter, reflecting pressures on voice and legacy data transport volumes. Enterprise sales flow and new service adoption remain solid.
Global Connectivity Scorecard 2009 Measures Infrastructure + Usage
The key to improving the economic and productivity performance of every country in the world lies with the greater and better-focused use of Information and Communications Technology, according to the Connectivity Scorecard 2009, a unique study by Professor Leonard Waverman, Fellow of the London Business School, and commissioned by Nokia Siemens Networks.
The study measured the extent to which governments, businesses and consumers in 50 countries make use of connectivity technologies to enhance economic and social prosperity. Connectivity is defined as the bundle of infrastructure, complementary skills, software and informed usage that makes communications networks the key driver of productivity and economic growth.
"At a time when governments around the world are looking to jump start their economies with a variety of stimuli packages, the Connectivity Scorecard shows that every single one of them, even the United States, has plenty of room to develop their ICT infrastructure and improve the actual use of it to the benefit of both the economy and society," said Professor Waverman. "Communications networks are the infrastructure of the 21st century and these networks are very large construction programs. There is great potential for them in using ICT to stimulate growth."
The Connectivity Scorecard 2009 ranks the United States first in the group of 25 innovation-driven economies, while Malaysia leads a table of 25 resource and efficiency-driven economies. The rankings are determined by the measurement of each country against two criteria -- infrastructure and usage plus skills -- in the realms of business, government and consumer, with weightings of each of the three tailored to each country. Low scores reflect gaps in a country's infrastructure, usage or both.
Detailed results for each country is posted online.
http://www.connectivityscorecard.orghttp://www.nsn.com
IBM Examines Social Networking Impact on Telecom Providers
Social Networks have become primary destinations for a rapidly expanding universe of online users to manage and enrich their digital lifestyles both personally and professionally. This rapid rise in traffic to social networking sites will have a major impact on telecom service providers, according to a new report from IBM on "The Changing Face of Communications."
Social networking has moved beyond being a fad. In June 2008, unique monthly visitors to social networks represented approximately two-thirds of the world's Internet audience. Based on the projected growth of the global Internet audience, IBM estimates that by 2012, the number of unique monthly visitors to online social networking sites will surpass 800 million.
Not only have social networking sites become a primary communication platform, but these sites are also increasingly being used as distribution channels for digital content which leverages the "viral" nature of an individual's network of relationships. While first gaining a foothold among individual online users, companies are now more actively recognizing the potential benefits of a social media strategy to build brand loyalty by involving these networks of consumers. Depending on the brand and its goals, establishing a social network site dedicated to its clients can attract a better-targeted audience, more actively engage them, and allow them to exchange information among a community that is most suitable for the user.
According to the IBM study, the rise of social networking is changing the fundamentals of the telecom industry and creating a future that is being shaped by two key trends:
Communication patterns are shifting from point-to-point and two-way conversations, to many-to-many, collaborative communications; sharing videos, photos and other multimedia content that substantially enrich the user experience.
Control of communications is shifting away from the proprietary domain of Telecom providers to open Internet platform service providers.
"The option of doing nothing is not a luxury many providers can afford, as a new ecosystem is emerging from these long-term shifts in communication patterns and trends that will require bold, significant changes by existing providers" said Gary Cohen, General Manager of IBM's Communications Sector. "By adapting new capabilities like social networking, communication service providers can develop new forms of communications and spark interactions that breed collaboration and innovation across all businesses and thereby, improve efficiency, reduce cost, increase productivity and enhance the quality of life."
IBM argues that the evolving communications marketplace represents both a window of opportunity and a challenge for telecom providers. Over the long-term, communication service providers (CSPs )should broaden the scope of their traditional "voice" business to more actively encompass both point-to-point communication and many-to-many collaborative models that include "voice, internet-based communications and content", and align their organizations and industry partnerships accordingly. This has strategic and transformational implications for the business, impacting areas such as product and services offerings, skills, platforms, revenue models and markets, among others.
http://www.ibm.com/telecom
Cisco Unveils Nexus & Catalyst Products for Data Centers
Monday, January 26, 2009 Packet Systems
Cisco unveiled a number of additions to its Nexus family of switches along with several enhancements to its Catalyst product line. These include:
The new Cisco Nexus 7018 joins the Nexus 7000 Series with an 18-Slot Chassis that provides up to 16 I/O module slots supporting up to 512 10Gigabit Ethernet ports to meet the demands of the largest data center deployments. The Cisco Nexus 7000 Series supports end-to-end data center connectivity, consolidating IP, storage, and interprocess communication (IPC) networks onto a single Ethernet fabric.
A new 48-port Gigabit Ethernet fiber line card also joins the Nexus family to support mixed Gigabit and 10 Gigabit Ethernet environments. Virtual Port Channels (VPC) also enable higher availability, large-scale virtual machine mobility, and higher bandwidth.
Improved data center energy efficiency - the Cisco Nexus 7000 Series uses power supplies with up to 90 percent efficiency. Fan modules in the chassis adjust to compensate for changing thermal characteristics, meaning less power is wasted as heat and more power is available for the system to use.
The new Cisco Nexus 5010 28-port switch is a one rack unit (RU) switch supporting 10 Gigabit Ethernet, Cisco Data Center Ethernet (DCE), Fibre Channel over Ethernet (FCoE), and Fibre Channel, able to consolidate traffic from local area networks, storage area networks and server cluster onto a single unified fabric.
The new Cisco Nexus 2000 Series Fabric Extender helps IT managers cope with two key data center factors: increasing numbers of servers and increased demand for bandwidth from each server. The Cisco Nexus 2148T Fabric Extenders connected to dual Cisco Nexus 5020 Switches can support up to 2,496 Gigabit Ethernet servers, greatly improving scalability of the access layer without increasing management points within the network. The Cisco Nexus 2000 switches can be combined with the Cisco Nexus 5000 Series Switches provides as an access-layer strategy for Gigabit Ethernet and mixed Gigabit and 10 Gigabit Ethernet server environments.
Cisco Catalyst 6500 enhancements enable customers to use the Catalyst 6500 as a virtualized service node together with a Nexus core to secure and accelerate applications cost effectively. Other software enhancements include an In-Service-Software-Upgrade and support for long range integrated 10GbE optics reduce the time needed for planned network maintenance and facilitate virtual machine mobility across data centers.
ADC Supplies Broadcast Gear for Super Bowl
Monday, January 26, 2009 TTP
ADC's connectivity broadcast gear has been deployed in Corplex Inc.'s mobile HD production units, which will support the upcoming Super Bowl in Tampa Florida this week. Specifically, ADC's ProPatch Miniature (PPM) System is deployed in Corplex's Iridium and Zinc HD mobile production vehicles.
ADC also announced that its InterReach Fusion in-building cellular solution has been deployed at Tampa's 65,000-seat Raymond James Stadium to support mobile services for capacity crowds at football games and other events. The system will provide coverage throughout the stadium, including the inner bowl, all seating levels, luxury boxes, offices and locker rooms, and the stadium parking area.
"As the broadcast market changes and the demand for higher bandwidth gear increases, the space on our mobile production units is still limited to 53 feet and 80,000 pounds, so we are constantly looking for new advancements and products that can help us utilize this same space in better ways," said Dave Greany, vice president and partner at Corplex. "ADC's ProPatch Series frees up valuable space in the mobile unit by providing 30 percent more density. This translates into a third less space and half the weight of a normal patch bay so I can get more equipment in the truck. And ADC's PPM patching systems work the first time, every time."http://www.adc.com/broadcast
Yankee Group Predicts $1 Trillion Global Connectivity Market by 2012
Monday, January 26, 2009 Service Providers
Despite the overall turmoil in the global economy, the Yankee Group predicts that consumer demand for broadband connectivity experiences will drive a $1 trillion market worldwide in the next five years. Specifically, Yankee Group analysts believe the emergence of the Anywhere Consumer -- a consumer who's able to connect to personalized, interactive content, communities and commerce at any time from anywhere -- will be among the most significant global trends in the next decade. Yankee Group data reveals:
The 3.9 billion network connections worldwide generated almost $800 billion in revenue in 2008 for network operators.
Connections will grow another 21 percent to nearly $1 trillion dollars by 2012.
Globally, consumers will add broadband lines, both wired and wireless, at a compound annual growth rate of 23 percent. In China, the growth will be almost double, at 40 percent, while the U.S. mirrors the global rate at 23 percent. Broadband connections will grow to become nearly 2 billion of the 4.9 billion total consumer lines in 2012.
http://www.yankeegroup.com
Barracuda Acquires Yosemite Technologies for Backup Software
Monday, January 26, 2009 Mergers and Acquisitions, Start-ups
Barracuda Networks, which supplies email and Web security appliances, has acquired Yosemite Technologies, a provider of data backup and disaster recovery solutions. Barracuda has incorporated the Yosemite Backup technology in its Barracuda Backup Service providing complete Microsoft Exchange, Microsoft SQL, and Microsoft Windows state backup at no additional charge.
In addition to the immediate availability of Barracuda Backup Service with Yosemite Backup, Barracuda Networks has also acquired the full Yosemite Technologies product portfolio, including Yosemite Backup and Yosemite FileKeeper. Barracuda Networks will continue to sell and support the Yosemite products as part of its new BarracudaWare software group.
http://www.barracudanetworks.com
France's RTE Deploys ECI Telecom's Broadgate Platform
Monday, January 26, 2009 France, Packet Systems
RTE, the electrical transport utility in France, has selected ECI Telecom for a multi-million dollar project to transport mission-critical applications in the carrier's high-voltage power environment.
Specifically, ECI's BroadGate platform will contribute to support the RTE's nationwide utility network, Europe's largest, addressing the carrier's unique requirements for high quality of service and carrier-class capabilities in the provisioning of real-time and mission-critical services throughout the network. Financial terms were not disclosed.
http://www.ecitele.com
http://www.rte-france.com
BigBand Delivers 1 GHz Capabilities in BEQ6000 Edge QAM
BigBand Network introduced new capabilities for its BEQ 6000 Edge QAM platform for deep digital transport services delivery. The enhanced edge QAM supports the delivery of switched video (SDV), video on demand (VOD), and broadcast services and can be rapidly deployed in virtually any network frequency range.
The enhanced BEQ6000 RF Module covers the entire RF frequency range from 54 MHz to 1GHz, enabling service providers to quickly leverage their extended RF spectrum for SDV, VOD, and broadcast services. To ensure maximum flexibility, the enhanced RF module can be used in existing BEQ6000 chassis in parallel to other BigBand RF modules, thereby reducing capital expense when upgrading to 1 GHz.
http://www.bigbandnet.com
PMC-Sierra Supplies 6Gb/s SAS RAID-on-Chip for HP Smart Array
PMC-Sierra is supplying its PM8011 SRC 8x6G 6Gb/s SAS RAID-on-Chip (RoC) for the new high-performance Smart Array RAID controller cards from HP. The PMC-Sierra's SRC RoC enables the next-generation 6Gb/s SAS RAID platform to more than double the performance of existing RAID solutions. The device's RoCstar architecture efficiently interconnects all device subsystems, eliminating internal bottlenecks and resource contentions.
PMC-Sierra said data center demands for higher computing power, networking bandwidth and support for virtualization applications are driving system requirements for improved host bus interface, input-output, and RAID performance.
http://www.pmc-sierra.com
EMBARQ Selects Alcatel-Lucent for Multivendor Network Maintenance
EMBARQ has selected Alcatel-Lucent as the single point of contact for network maintenance, including Remote Technical Support (RTS) for most of EMBARQ's equipment across the company's 18-state serving area. Total implementation of the service should be completed in the first quarter of this year. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Alcatel-Lucent's Multivendor Maintenance solution provides streamlined operations associated with managing different network platforms and service levels, enabling EMBARQ to use its own resources more efficiently and reduce operating expenses.
"As we migrate toward newer technologies such as all-IP networks and voice-data integrated infrastructures, our support services also must evolve," said Jim Hansen, senior vice president of Network Services for EMBARQ. "Our goal is to be innovative in everything we do, and Alcatel-Lucent helps us achieve this by providing a comprehensive maintenance services portfolio, global delivery capability, and strong multivendor technical skills we need to help us deliver enhanced services more reliably to our customers."http://www.alcatel-lucent.com/http://www.embarq.com
Aricent Develops User Interface for Sprint
Monday, January 26, 2009 BroadbandWireless
Aricent's global innovation arm frog design, along with its communications applications and mobile device practice, partnered closely with Sprint to integrate strategic planning, front-end design, software development and engineering into one concurrent end-to-end process that brought One Click to market in less than 10 months.
The Brew-based interface provides a consistent user experience across a range of Sprint's consumer mobile phones.
The customizable carousel design enables one-touch access to commonly used functions, including text messages, Email, navigation, Web access Google, music, entertainment, etc.
One Click is available initially on the Samsung Rant, Samsung Highnote, LG Lotus and Sanyo Eclipse.
CenturyTel and EMBARQ Shareholders Approve Merger
Shareholders of CenturyTel and EMBARQ approved all proposals related to the CenturyTel/EMBARQ merger.
Combined, CenturyTel and EMBARQ will have an operating presence in 33 states, nearly eight million access lines, approximately two million broadband customers and more than 400,000 video subscribers, based on data as of Sept. 30, 2008. The merger, announced Oct. 27, 2008, is expected to close during the second quarter of 2009 after federal and state regulatory approvals are received.
http://www.centurytelembarqmerger.com
Nokia to Acquire bit-side GmbH for Mobile Map Developers
has acquired bit-side GmbH, a privately owned Berlin-based professional services and software company with 39 employees. Nokia said the bit-side team will strengthen and accelerate its mobile development for Nokia Maps.
Cisco and Dell to Partner on Data Center Solutions
Cisco and Dell have agreed to collaborate on next-generation data center infrastructure solutions. According to the agreement, Dell will add Cisco's Nexus 5020 switches that support both 10 Gigabit Ethernet and Fibre Channel over Ethernet (FCoE) to its Dell Power Edge server and Dell EqualLogic, PowerVault, and Dell/EMC storage solutions. The Cisco and Dell combined solutions offers a unified networking fabric that consolidates LAN, SAN and server cluster network environments into a single high speed 10 Gigabit Ethernet fabric and supports protocols such as Fibre Channel, FCoE, and Internet Small Computer Storage Interface(iSCSI).
In addition, Dell has qualified the Catalyst 4900 Top-of-Rack Switches (ToR) for its EqualLogic Storage Area Networks (SAN) arrays. The Catalyst 4900 ToR switches are now a supported switching platform for the EqualLogic SAN arrays.
http://www.dell.com
Tellabs Posts Q4 Revenue of $408 Million, Down 13%
Monday, January 26, 2009 Financial
Tellabs reported Q4 2008 revenue of $408 million, down 13% from $469 million in the fourth quarter of 2007. For the year 2008, Tellabs revenue totaled $1.7 billion, down 10% from $1.9 billion in 2007. On a GAAP basis, Tellabs earned 3 cents per share in the fourth quarter of 2008, up from 1 cent per share in the fourth quarter of 2007. GAAP earnings in the fourth quarter of 2008 were $13 million, up 103% from $6 million in the year-ago quarter. Fourth-quarter 2008 earnings were positively impacted by a tax benefit.
"Customers continued to choose Tellabs this quarter. BT placed orders for the Tellabs 8600 system, marking our 96th customer for this product. A new cable TV multiple system operator (MSO) customer selected Tellabs 7100 system for optical networking," said Rob Pullen, Tellabs president and chief executive officer. "In these tough times, Tellabs is focused on improving profitability -- both for our customers and for our company -- and investing for the future to emerge stronger after the downturn. We help customers succeed by enabling new service revenue, reducing capital expenses and cutting operating expenses."
Broadband -- Fourth-quarter 2008 revenue from the broadband segment totaled $227 million, down 17% from $274 million in the fourth quarter of 2007. Full-year 2008 revenue from the broadband segment was $920 million, down 10% from $1,018 million in 2007. Within the broadband segment, for the fourth quarter of 2008:
Data revenue was $60 million, up 49% from $40 million in the year-ago quarter.
Access revenue was $98 million, down 36% from $154 million in the year-ago quarter.
Managed access revenue was $69 million, down 14% from $80 million in the year-ago quarter.
Transport -- Fourth-quarter 2008 revenue from the transport segment totaled $124 million, down 9% from $136 million in the fourth quarter of 2007. Full-year 2008 revenue from the transport segment was $580 million, down 14% from $673 million in 2007.
Services -- Fourth-quarter 2008 services revenue was $57 million, down 3% from $59 million in the fourth quarter of 2007. Full-year 2008 revenue from the services segment was $229 million, up 3% from $222 million in 2007.
http://www.tellabs.com
Cisco Debuts EnergyWise for Catalyst Switches
Monday, January 26, 2009 Green
Cisco unveiled its EnergyWise technology for enabling Cisco Catalyst switches to play a key role in measuring, reporting and reducing electricity consumption across an entire organization, including IP-enabled devices such as phones, laptops and access points along with entire building systems such as lights, elevators, and air conditioning and heating.
Cisco EnergyWise will roll out in three phases to improve IT and building system energy utilization:
In the first phase (February 2009), Network Control, Cisco EnergyWise will be supported on Catalyst switches and manage the energy consumption of IP devices such as phones, video surveillance cameras and wireless access points. Initially, this includes devices connected by Power-over-Ethernet
In the next phase (Summer 2009), IT Control, there will be expanded industry support of EnergyWise on devices such as personal computers (PCs), laptops and printers.
In the final phase (Early 2010), Building Control, Cisco EnergyWise will be extended to the management of building system assets such as heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC), elevators, lights, employee badge access systems, fire alarm systems and security systems.
To enable interoperability and integration between building infrastructure, IT applications and Cisco EnergyWise, Cisco has acquired a middleware platform from Richards-Zeta, a privately-held company based in Santa Barbara, California.
Cisco also introduced adaptive power management functionality in the Cisco Wireless Control System to save power by enabling customers to turn off redundant radios during off hours.
Cisco is working with Schneider Electric for building utility management, SolarWinds for network monitoring, and Verdiem for monitoring PC power in order to extend EnergyWise as a platform for power management across IT and the building systems of an organization by early 2010.
"Cisco believes that information technology has the power to transform the way the world manages its environmental and energy challenges. With EnergyWise, Cisco is uniquely positioned to help our customers gain a network wide view of energy consumption that encompasses not only device-level power, but in the future entire network efficiency, building operations and business practices across an entire organization," said Judy Lin, senior vice president of the Ethernet Switching technology group for Cisco.
http://www.cisco.com/en/US/products/ps10195/index.html
Bookham and Avanex to Merge
Monday, January 26, 2009 Optical
Bookham and Avanex, both leading suppliers of optical networking components, agreed to merge in an all- stock transaction. Avanex shareholders will receive 5.426 shares of Bookham common stock for every share of Avanex common stock and will own approximately 46.75% of the combined company.
The combined company, which will offer an extensive portfolio of terminal and line products for the metro and long haul markets, will be led by Alain Couder who will serve as President and CEO. The company is expected to have two telecom divisions and one non-telecom division. The board of directors will be composed of Alain Couder and three additional directors from the Bookham board, and Giovanni Barbarossa and two additional directors from the Avanex board.
A new name for the combined company will be announced at closing. Together, the new company will have annualized revenue of about $447 million ($181 million for Avanex and $226 million for Bookham).
"The combination of Bookham and Avanex creates synergies that we expect will significantly improve financial performance faster than either of the two companies could accomplish on a stand-alone basis," said Alain Couder, president and CEO of Bookham. "There is minimal product overlap between our businesses allowing us to quickly expand sales opportunities and improve service to our customers. In addition, both companies have strong technology platforms and the best engineering teams that we expect will allow us to drive innovation and expansion for both existing and new growth areas."
Separately, Bookham reported revenue for its second quarter of fiscal 2009 (ended 27-Dec-09) was $50.2 million, compared with $66.5 million in the first quarter of fiscal 2009, and $59.0 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2008. Revenues for the second quarter of fiscal 2009 excluded (i) $4.1 million for products that were shipped to Nortel Networks, a major customer, but for which
payment was not received prior to its bankruptcy filing on January 14, 2009, and (ii) $1.3 million for products that were shipped to a contract manufacturer for which payment may not be received as a result of the Nortel Networks bankruptcy filing.
http://www.bookham.com
http://www.avanex.com
Verizon Posts Strong Results, Q4 Revenue up 3.4%
Defying the general economic trends, Verizon Communications reported growing sales of broadband, wireless and strategic business services in the fourth quarter 2008. Strong customer and revenue growth contributed to 43 cents in diluted earnings per share (EPS) in the quarter, compared with 37 cents per share in the fourth quarter 2007. On an adjusted basis (non-GAAP), fourth-quarter 2008 EPS was 61 cents, compared with 62 cents in the fourth quarter 2007. On an annual basis, Verizon reported $2.26 in 2008 EPS from continuing operations, compared with $1.90 in 2007. On an adjusted annual basis, 2008 EPS from continuing operations was $2.54, a 7.6 percent increase, compared with 2007 EPS of $2.36.
Verizon's total operating revenues grew 3.4 percent in the fourth quarter 2008, increasing to $24.6 billion from $23.8 billion in the fourth quarter 2007. After adjusting for the spinoff of non-strategic local exchange and related Wireline business assets early in 2008 (non-GAAP), this represents an increase of 4.6 percent.
"Verizon has shown that it is able to compete effectively in this economic environment," said Chairman and CEO Ivan Seidenberg. "We grew profits and maintained strong cash flows throughout 2008. In the fourth quarter, we continued to produce top-line growth, fueled by strong sales volumes for broadband, wireless and strategic business services."
1.4 million organic (non-acquisition-related) net customer additions, almost all retail; 1.2 million total net customer additions, including a net customer loss under a previously announced exchange agreement related to the 3Q 2008 acquisition of Rural Cellular.
72.1 million total customers; 70.0 million retail customers, up 9.9 percent, not including customers added with the Jan. 9, 2009, acquisition of Alltel.
12.3 percent increase in total revenues; data revenues up 41.4 percent; ARPU growth for 11th consecutive quarter; strong 47.2 percent EBITDA margin on service revenues (non-GAAP).
Verizon Wireless continued to have low churn -- 1.35 percent churn among all customers, and 1.05 percent among the company's retail post-paid customers.
Verizon Wireless continued its double-digit revenue growth, with total quarterly revenues of $12.8 billion, up 12.3 percent year over year. Full-year revenues were $49.3 billion, up 12.4 percent. Service revenues in the fourth quarter were $11.1 billion, up 12.0 percent year over year, and $42.6 billion for the full year, up 12.2 percent.
Revenue growth was driven by accretion in ARPU (average monthly revenue per customer), which increased year over year for the 11th consecutive quarter. Total service ARPU of $51.72 was up 1.4 percent year over year, reflecting strong growth in total data ARPU, which was up 27.9 percent over the same period.
Wireless operating income margin reached 29.7 percent, up 350 basis points on a year- over-year basis. EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) margin on service revenues reached 47.2 percent.
Wireline total operating revenues were $11.9 billion. Verizon Telecom, which serves domestic consumer and small-business customers, and Verizon Business, which serves large-business and government customers worldwide, each had 2.3 percent year-over-year quarterly revenue declines. At Verizon Telecom, this was the smallest decrease in 12 quarters. Wireline total operating expenses were $11.2 billion, a 1.3 percent increase compared with the fourth quarter 2007.
Broadband and TV products now account for more than 31 percent of consumer ARPU in legacy markets, compared with 22.7 percent in the fourth quarter 2007. The ARPU among FiOS customers continues to grow and is more than $133 per month.
Verizon added 303,000 net new FiOS TV customers, compared with 226,000 in the fourth quarter 2007. The company had 1.9 million FiOS TV customers at year-end 2008, adding nearly 1 million FiOS TV customers since year-end 2007.
FiOS TV sales penetration (sales as a percentage of potential customers) increased to 20.8 percent, compared with 16.0 percent in the fourth quarter 2007. FiOS TV service was available for sale to 9.2 million premises by year-end 2008. This represented a 57 percent increase in the availability of FiOS TV -- and, by extension, of "triple play" bundles of FiOS TV, Internet and voice services -- since year-end 2007.
Verizon added 282,000 net new FiOS Internet customers, compared with 244,000 in the fourth quarter 2007. The company had nearly 2.5 million FiOS Internet customers at year-end 2008, adding nearly 1 million FiOS Internet customers since year-end 2007.
FiOS Internet sales penetration increased to 24.9 percent, compared with 20.7 percent in the fourth quarter 2007. FiOS Internet was available for sale to nearly 10 million premises by year-end 2008.
Broadband and video revenues from consumer customers totaled nearly $1.2 billion in the fourth quarter 2008 -- representing year-over-year quarterly growth of 42.0 percent. Total broadband connections were 8.7 million, a net increase of 214,000 over the third quarter 2008. This includes a decrease of 68,000 DSL-based Verizon High Speed Internet connections, which was more than offset by the increase in FiOS Internet customers. The 8.7 million is an increase of 8.2 percent year over year.
Growing revenue from broadband and video services drove consumer ARPU in legacy Verizon wireline markets (which excludes consumer markets served by the former MCI) to $68.46 for the fourth quarter 2008, a 14.3 percent increase compared with the fourth quarter 2007.
Sales of strategic business services -- such as IP, managed services, Ethernet and optical ring services -- generated $1.5 billion in revenue in the quarter, up 8.4 percent from the fourth quarter 2007.
Verizon Business continued to expand its global network reach and capabilities, announcing the installation of 26 Private IP (PIP) edge switches, including new nodes in Morocco and Pakistan. The company now has edge switches deployed in 59 countries and supports PIP services in more than 120 countries. Additional network enhancements included installation of eight Converged Packet Access nodes and further mesh network expansion in Asia-Pacific and North America, including the deployment of nodes in Singapore, Toronto, Montreal and several U.S. cities. In an additional seven U.S. markets, the company deployed multiplexers that enable remote provisioning and trouble isolation while providing reduced latency.
http://www.verizon.com
Sun Unveils its Latest Energy-Efficient Datacenter
Sunday, January 25, 2009 Green
Sun Microsystems opened its latest energy-efficient datacenter in Broomfield, Colorado. datacenter. The facility incorporates the latest in Sun's portfolio of energy-efficient systems and expertise, including new datacenter design and power and cooling technologies. Sun estimates it will save more than $1 million in electricity costs and 11,000 metric tons of CO2 per year in Broomfield, helping the company reduce its carbon footprint by 6 percent in the U.S.
The new Broomfield datacenter follows similar Sun projects completed in Blackwater, UK, Santa Clara, Calif. and Bangalore, India in August 2007.
The Broomfield datacenter is based on Sun's Pod Architecture and energy-efficient SPARC and x64 servers, Open Storage and tape products and the OpenSolaris Operating System. In one example, Sun consolidated 63 servers and 30 direct attached storage devices to two Sun servers.
Features of the new Sun Broomfield datacenter include:
Greater space efficiency: A scalable, modular datacenter based on the Sun Pod Architecture led to a 66 percent footprint compression, by reducing 496,000 square feet from the former StorageTek campus in Louisville, Colo. to 126,000 square feet;
Reduced electrical consumption: By 1 million kWh per month, enough to power 1,000 homes in Colorado;
Reduced raised floor datacenter space: From 165,000 square feet to less than 700 square feet of raised floor datacenter space, representing a $4M cost avoidance;
Greener, cleaner architecture: Including flywheel UPS that eliminates lead and chemical waste by removing the need for batteries, and a non-chemical water treatment system, saving water and reducing chemical pollution;
Enhanced scalability: Incorporated 7 MW of capacity that scales up to 40 percent higher without major construction;
Innovative cooling: The world's first and largest installation of Liebert advanced XD cooling system with dynamic cooling controls capable of supporting rack loads up to 30kW and a chiller system 24 percent more efficient than ASHRAE standards;
Partners in the Broomfield datacenter construction include Winter Street Architects, Inc. and TeamQuest Corporation.
"The Broomfield datacenter showcases revolutionary datacenter design with the latest in modularity, scalability and flexibility to drive incredible efficiencies in cost, electricity and overall carbon savings," said Dave Douglas, senior vice president of cloud computing and chief sustainability officer, Sun Microsystems. "As a company we've achieved our first 20 percent reduction in electricity usage since 2002, and the Broomfield datacenter is a great step forward in meeting our goal of another 20 percent reduction."
http://www.sun.com/datacenterdesignhttp://www.sun.com/eco
Deutsche Telekom ICSS Launches CDN with Edgecast
Sunday, January 25, 2009 Service Providers
Deutsche Telekom's international wholesale division (ICSS) is launching a content delivery network (CDN) service in partnership with EdgeCast Networks. The new service, which delivers both live and on-demand media, is targeted at premium video, audio and content publishers, gaming companies, advertisers or service or hosting provider.
"The combination of Deutsche Telekom's powerful global network and EdgeCast's cutting edge content delivery technology offers a tremendous value proposition to publishers" says James Segil, President of EdgeCast Networks, "we are delighted to be partnering with Deutsche Telekom as they introduce this service to both their existing and new customers."htp://www.deutschetelekom.com/icsshttp://www.edgecast.com
Wintegra and PMC-Sierra Team on T1/E1 Transport over Carrier Ethernet
Sunday, January 25, 2009 Silicon
Wintegra introduced its first platform dedicated to Carrier Transport applications that include essential support for the emulation of up to 336 T1/E1 circuits with independent clock domains. Wintegra's new Multi-Service Access Platform includes PMC-Sierra's PM8310 TEMUX 336 framer solution plus its own UFE3 and WinPath2 access processor.
The fast deployment of Carrier Ethernet and MPLS networks requires means of transporting SONET and SDH data using pseudo-wires. Wintegra said this can be achieved in two ways, either using one pseudo-wire for each Synchronous Payload Envelope / Virtual Container (like STS-3c or STS-12c), as described in RFC4842 (Synchronous Optical Network/Synchronous Digital Hierarchy Circuit Emulation over Packet), or by using multiple pseudo-wires that each transport one T1 or E1, using SAToP (Structure-Agnostic Time Division Multiplexing over Packet), as suggested in RFC 4553, RFC 5086, Y.1413 and Metro Ethernet Forum Technical Specification 8 (MEF 8).
The second method, implemented by Wintegra, has the advantage that the packet network can implement an implicit Add-Drop Multiplexer functionality, where individual T1 or E1 circuits can be easily inserted or removed in the Synchronous Payload Envelope / Virtual Containers, by switching them in the packet domain. With the first method, to achieve this, it is necessary to interwork from packet to SONET/SDH, use an Add-Drop multiplexer and then interwork back to packet.
However, the second method is also more challenging to implement, since each T1/E1 can have an independent clock. The need for independent clocks comes from applications where customers lease one or more T1/E1 lines and use asynchronous clock sources to drive the T1/E1 line clocks. In some cases, as an example when the T1/E1 lines are used for Wireless Backhaul, many lines can share the same clock source, since many of them can be connected to the same Radio Network Controller. However in other cases, like Enterprise Access, it is possible for each T1/E1 line to be leased by a different user and hence have an asynchronous clock.
For this reason, and to simplify the management of the SONET/SDH to packet interworking function by not having to define different clock domains, it is necessary to support as many as 336 Differential Clock recovery domains for an OC12 interface.
http://www.pmc-sierra.com/wirelinehttp://www.wintegra.com
T-Mobile USA Teams with Meru for FMC
Sunday, January 25, 2009 Wi-Fi
T-Mobile USA is teaming up with Meru Networks to offer fixed-mobile convergence (FMC) to enterprise customers using unlicensed mobile access (UMA) technology.
The solution lets users of T-Mobile GSM/GPRS devices roam between outdoor cellular infrastructures and indoor Wi-Fi networks without interruption to the call.
T-Mobile has also joined Meru's WINS (Wireless Interoperability and Network Solutions) Partner Program, and the two companies have completed interoperability testing of UMA-equipped T-Mobile devices with Meru enterprise WLANs. The testing verified seamless "handoffs" between Meru WLANs and the T-Mobile cellular network. The companies have also agreed to conduct joint marketing and sales activities.
http://www.merunetworks.com
ZyXEL Wins Powerline Contract with Chunghwa Telecom
Sunday, January 25, 2009 Last Mille
ZyXEL Communications has won the procurement tender of Chunghwa Telecom's Digital Home project. Chunghwa Telecom (CHT) serves over 12.7 million fixed lines throughout Taiwan and connects 4.3 million broadband access customers. ZyXEL has been a frequent winner of CHT's Central Office and Customer Premise Equipment (CPE) tenders including a recent 480,000 port VDSL2 tender.
Chunghwa Telecom's MOD (Media-on-Demand) is expected to reach 1.2 to 1.4 million users early next year -- surpassing its first million customers in 2008. Every MOD customer receives a set-top box required for service. With this latest tender CHT will also provide ZyXEL Powerline network kits. ZyXEL's Powerline network kits enable users to link their Internet connection to convenient locations anywhere within the home to watch MOD programs at their leisure. In addition to home power lines, the ZyXEL equipment included in this tender also delivers data through coax cables providing multiple ways for extending the network connection from home broadband routers.
http://www.zyxel.com
Nigeria's ECAS Selects DragonWave for IP Backhaul
Sunday, January 25, 2009 BroadbandWireless
ECAS Telecommunications & Systems Ltd., which serves an array of leading network operators, service providers, enterprises, governments and state agencies in Nigeria, has selected DragonWave's the Horizon Compact for IP backhaul of WiMAX, 3.5G, Evolution Data Only (EVDO) and Long-Term Evolution (LTE) services in Nigeria. The Horizon Compact -- a single, 9-inch-square all outdoor unit integrating all traditional indoor and outdoor backhaul functionality -- provides transport of up to 800 Mbps per link for ECAS's customers. It operates in licensed radio frequencies in the 6 to 38 GHz range.
In 2009, WiMAX licenses are expectedt to be issued in Nigeria.
http://www.ecas-tele.com
http://www.dragonwaveinc.com