• A new Signaling Working Group has been formed to focus on signaling between the electrically and optically switched domains.  An interoperable User to Network Interface (UNI) is expected during 2000.  
  
• The OIF's Architecture Working Group has completed a draft Architecture Requirements document outlining future work.  The OIF's Physical & Link Layer Working Group completed key internal system interface specifications for OC-48 and OC-192 data rates.  The SER/DES Framer Electrical Specification for OC-192 formulates a common interface between framers and serial/deserializer parts used to implement OC-192 and STM-64 interfaces. The SPI-3 Packet Interface for Physical and Link Layers for OC-48 provides system designers with a common Packet Over SONET (POS) Physical Layer interface, providing a versatile bus interface for exchanging packets within a communication system. The specs are in straw ballot.  
  
• The OIF also elected a new Board of Directors: Carol Sensale (Telcordia Technologies), Vice President of Marketing Andrew Greenfield (Cisco Systems), Vice President Adam Dunstan (Avici Systems), Treasurer Bob Tkach (AT&T), Sam Halabi (Extreme Networks) and Mike Ahdieh (Nortel Networks).

http://www.oiforum.com/
OIF, March 6, 2000

SPRINT SELECTS MARCONI'S ASX-4000 FOR ITS BROADBAND SWITCHING
Sprint selected Marconi's ASX-4000 as its primary switch in its broadband services network for connecting a series of PoPs around North America.  Sprint will use the ASX-400 switches to offer UNI services at OC-12, OC-3, DS3 or DS1 rates, as well as through inverse multiplexing over ATM (IMA).  Financial terms were not disclosed.  http://www.fore.com
Marconi, March 6, 2000

COGENT SELECTS CISCO TO SUPPLY $280 MILLION ALL OPTICAL NATIONWIDE BACKBONE
Cogent Communications awarded a $280 million contract to Cisco Systems to supply equipment for its nationwide network.  The Cogent network design will use OC-192 DWDM on the long-haul routes and OC-48 metro DWDM connections within each of 12 US cities.  http://www.cisco.com/warp/public/146/pressroom/2000/mar00/sp_030600.htm
http://www.cogentco.com/
Cisco Systems, March 6, 2000

• Cogent Communications recently named Dr. R. Brad Kummer as its Chief Technology Officer of Optical Transport.  Kummer formerly was the Chief Technology Officer of the Optical Fiber Systems Engineering group at Lucent's Bell Labs.

AVICI AND TELLIUM SHOW DYNAMIC PROVISIONING BETWEEN OPTICAL AND IP LAYERS
At this week's OFC conference in Baltimore, Tellium Optical Networks and Avici Systems are demonstrating the ability for optical switches to provide bandwidth on demand based on IP traffic loads. http://www.tellium.com
Tellium, March 6, 2000

• In December, Tellium announced the coupling of its StarNet optical signaling protocol to Open Shortest Path First (OSPF) based routing and Multi-Protocol Label Switching (MPLS) based signaling.  Tellium said the combination of OSPF, and MPLS StarNet would make the optical layer act like a dynamic Internet with competitive Optical Service Level Agreements (OSLAs) backed by millisecond re-routing, protection and restoration capabilities.

ASTRAL POINT LAUCHES OPTICAL ACCESS FOR METRO MESH NETWORKS
Astral Point, a start-up based in Chelmsford, Mass., unveiled an optical service node that uses a patent-pending "Self-Healing Mesh" algorithm to enable SONET-quality protection in mesh networks.  The company believes its Self-Healing Mesh algorithm will make it practical for metro network operators to deploy mesh topologies rather than the more difficult to manage SONET rings.  The Astral Point ON 5000 platform integrates SONET protection, frame and cell switching, Optical ADM at unique network-wide, distributed DCS.  Astral Point also features a fully distributed, mesh network topology discovery and bandwidth-management system, which the company says will reduce provisioning time to one tenth that of standard SONET provisioning.  General availability is expected in Q2.  http://www.astralpoint.com/
Astral Point, March 6, 2000

OPTICAL NETWORKS UNVEILS ITS ACCESS PLATFORM FOR MUXING ONTO OC-48 WAVELENGTHS
Optical Networks, a start-up based in San Jose, California unveiled an optical access solution designed for multiplexing lower bit-rate services onto a single high-speed optical channel.  The ONLINE7000' platform, which complements Optical Networks' larges 9000 platform for carrier metro networks, be used as customer premise equipment (CPE) within an enterprise or by service providers wishing to combine multiple OC-3/STM-1 and OC-12/STM-4 signals into one wavelength operating at OC-48/STM-16.  The smaller chassis ONLINE7000 uses the same line cards as the ONLINE9000, and offers optical layer protection for natively unprotected data services, such as Gigabit Ethernet, Fibre Channel, ESCON and others. http://www.opticalnetworks.com/news/pr_3_6_2000.htm
Optical Networks, March 6, 2000

ADVA DEBUTS METRO OPTICAL PLATFORM FOR LEASED SERVICES
ADVA Optical Networking AG introduced a metropolitan area optical solution enabling carriers to lease high-speed data and SONET services.  The ADVA Fiber Service Platform 3000 (FSP 3000) provides up to 32 protected or 64 unprotected channels in logical-hub, add-drop, and managed-ring and logical-mesh topologies.  In Unidirectional Path Switched Ring (UPSR) topologies, the platform supports up to 10 nodes within 100 km of the central office.  Switching time is rated at less than 50 milliseconds.  http://www.advaoptical.com/
ADVA Optical, March 6, 2000

• Last week, ADVA Optical Networking announced plans to acquire Storage Area Networks Ltd., a developer of a switching system combining Fibre Channel, SCSI, ATM and Gigabit Ethernet, and Cellware Broadband GmbH, a privately held developer of ATM-based integrated access devices.

AT&T AND LASERCOMM TEST DISPERSION COMPENSATION ON 40 GBPS SIGNALS OVER WDM
AT&T Labs has tested LaserComm's Hi-Mode Dispersion Management Device to achieve 40 nm-wide WDM transmission of 40 Gbps traffic signals.  In the experiment, eight laser sources from 1525nm to 1565nm, each modulated at 40 Gbps, were simultaneously transmitted through 240 km of non-zero dispersion shifted fiber (NZDSF) comprising three equal segments with in-line optical amplifiers.  LaserComm's device provides wideband dispersion compensation capable of correcting multiple wavelengths of light simultaneously with minimal loss and without exciting nonlinear effects.  LaserComm is a start-up based in Plano, Texas with R&D in Tel Aviv, Israel.
http://www.lasercomm-inc.com
LaserComm, March 6, 2000

• LaserComm recently named Daniel A. Acton as President and Chief Operating Officer.  Acton formerly served as President and CEO of Corning Optical Corporation of America. 

ALTITUN ENHANCES LINE OF TUNABLE SEMICONDUCTOR LASERS
Altitun, a start-up based in Stockholm, Sweden announced several upgrades and additions to its line of tunable, semiconductor lasers.  Altitun's portfolio now includes new Distributed Bragg Reflector (DBR) tunable laser designed for fixed wavelength replacement in DWDM systems. The Anywave 65 can tune to up to 10 nm on the C band and includes integrated wavelength locking.  Altitun also offers a tunable laser based on Grating-assisted co-directional Coupler with Sampled Reflector (GCSR) technology, which allows the widest tuning range with lower output power.  http://www.altitun.com/
Altitun, March 6, 2000

• The Norwegian carrier Telenor AS is testing a 100-channel, mesh DWDM network that is driven by tunable laser technology instead of conventional electrical or electro-optical switches.  The technology was supplied by Altitun, Marconi and NTT.  Telenor deployed a five-node, 100-channel demonstrator network with 50-60 km fiber spans between the nodes. The channel spacing was 50 GHz.  Switching was accomplished by varying the frequencies of the transmitter lasers. 

KYMATA RAISES $72 MILLION FOR ITS PLANAR OPTICAL COMPONENTS
Kymata, a start-up developing planar optical integrated circuit devices, secured E93 million ($89 million) in new venture financing to increase its manufacturing facilities and support aggressive growth plans in product development. Kymata's integrated optical components will use a silica-on-silicon process. Current product families include: Arrayed Waveguide Gratings (AWG) multiplexer/demultiplexers; Variable Optical Attenuators (VOA) which provide broadband attenuation of optical signals; and Thermo-optic Switches (TOS) which enable quick, efficient and reliable switching of signals from one optical fiber to another.  Investors include Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, Bowman Capital, 3i, TeleSoft Partners, ComVentures and ACT Venture Capital.Kymata is based in Livingston, Scotland.  http://www.kymata.com/
Kymata, March 6, 2000

PHAETHON TARGETS TUNABLE OPTICS FOR SUSTAINING HIGH-SPEED SIGNAL CLARITY
Phaethon Communications, a start-up developing tunable devices to address the degradation of optical signals, raised $7 million in a first round of funding led by Mohr, Davidow Ventures.  The company said its solutions would help sustain signal clarity for delivering OC-192 and higher data rates over any type of fiber. Phaethon is based in Menlo Park, California.  The is named after Phaethon, the son of Helios, the Greek sun god, who drove his father's sun chariot.  http://www.phaethoncommunications.com
Phaethon Communications, March 6, 2000

VIRATA INTRODUCES DSL PROCESSORS FOR HOME ROUTER GATEWAYS
Virata unveiled its new Beryllium and Boron communications processors designed for DSL routers, gateways, PCI and USB ADSL modems, integrated access devices (IADs) and set-top boxes.  The devices are single chip ADSL solutions that support USB and PCI and are software configurable to either the G.992.1 or G.992.2 forms of ADSL. Both chips feature built-in V.90/V.Fax processing.  http://www.virata.com/
Virata, March 6, 2000

CYPRESS LAUNCHES PROGRAMMABLE SYSTEM-ON-A-CHIP COMPANY
Cypress Semiconductor created a venture-backed spin-off that will develop programmable technologies, such as CPLDs and FPGAs, targeted at next-generation data communications applications that previously required multiple chips fabricated in multiple technologies.  Cypress MicroSystems, which is based near Seattle, will offer system-on-a-chip designs encompassing provide a broad array of analog functions, such as Delta-Sigma A/D converters, incremental A/D converters, D/A converters, programmable gain, programmable loss, analog comparators, zero-crossing detectors, lowpass filters, highpass filters, bandpass filters, and notch filters.  http://www.cypress.com.
Cypress, March 6, 2000

YOTTAYOTTA SECURES FUNDING FOR MASSIVE NETWORK STORAGE ARCHITECTURE
YottaYotta, a start-up developing massive network storage solutions, secured $10 million in first round funding from TechnoCap (Montreal) and private investors.  YottaYotta is developing an architecture for networked storage that eliminates storage controller bottlenecks for massive scalability storage for wide area networks.  The company's name refers to the term yottabyte, which is one trillion terabytes of data.  The company's head office is in Montreal with R&D in Edmonton, Alberta. http://www.yottayotta.com/
YottaYotta, March 6, 2000

ADC LAUNCHES $100 MILLION VENTURE CAPITAL FUND
ADC announced a $100 million venture capital fund focused on investing in emerging and start-up companies in the United States, Europe and Israel who are engaged in developing high-performance, next-generation broadband communications technologies.  Before establishing the fund, ADC already has investments in 12 companies, including Siara Systems, Efficient Networks, Optical Networks, Vyyo, Mind CTI, Tdsoft, G-Connect and Ensemble Communications, with a cost basis of approximately $40 million and an estimated market value of $1.2 billion.  http://www.adc.com
ADC, March 6, 2000

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