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UUNET'S
FORECAST: GROWTH
RATES WILL ACCELERATE
UUNET's backbone
traffic continues to grow at a blistering pace, said John
Sidgmore, WorldCom's Vice Chairman, speaking at the Broadband Year
2000 conference in San Jose, California.
And the grow rate will only accelerate as more Internet
users come online, DSL and cable modem subscriptions rise,
audio/video content improves and wireless data services come to
market. Traffic
projections require an 8x to 10x increase in backbone capacity per
year, according to Sidgmore, clearly dispelling any notions that
there could be a bandwidth glut in the near future.
Wall Street invested $15 billion in CLECs last year,
despite the fact that no CLEC has ever been profitable -- even
WorldCom's own MFS unit has not profitable to date.
But Sidgmore believes that technology will not be the
deciding factor in determining which telecommunications firms
succeed and which fail. The
cost of data switching and the cost long-haul fiber accounts for
only 16% of the overall bill for data service, and these are on a
sharp decline. In
comparison, local access accounts for up to 40% of WorldCom's
costs, while general sales/marketing/billing operations account
for roughly 30% of their overhead.
True advantages are gained by solving the last mile
challenge and by improving the company's operating efficiency,
such as by moving to Web-enabled customer service and sales.
Key trends on Sidgmore's radar include wireless data access
(the prime motive for WorldCom's attempted acquisition of Sprint)
and machine-to-machine communications.
Currently, data represents an insignificant fraction of
wireless traffic, but the percentage will grow quickly with the
arrival of 3G. An
even bolder prediction: machine-to-machine
communications, such as Web sites talking to each other, virtual
agents perpetually scanning for human initiated requests, and even
mundane applications like automobiles or Coke machines
electronically reporting their status via the Web, could account
for 90% of all traffic ten years from now.
Converge! Network Digest, June 29, 2000
NORTEL
NETWORKS TO RESELL JUNIPER'S ROUTERS
Nortel Networks will
resell Juniper Networks' M-series routers.
Under a strategic alliance, two companies will also
participate in joint marketing, network planning, and
implementation.
http://www.nortelnetworks.com/corporate/news/newsreleases/2000b/06_29_0000414_juniper.html
Nortel Networks, June 29, 2000
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Last
October, Juniper Networks announced an 18-month agreement
under which its routers would be resold as part of Alcatel's
as part of its "2IP" network architecture.
Juniper also has a strategic OEM partner relationship
with Ericsson and a number of country specific distributors.
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In
June 99, Nortel Networks disclosed plans for its own core
Versalar Switch Router 25000.
ADTECH
ADDS BGP-4 ROUTING EMULATION FOR CORE ROUTER TESTING
Adtech added a BGP-4
routing emulation option to its AX/4000 Broadband Test System.
The BGP-4 capabilities enable the system to perform
realistic Internet-scale stress testing with up to 100,000 routes.
The solution provides real-time, full-rate traffic
generation and analysis with QoS performance metrics for data
flows across advertised routes.
It supports a variety of topologies, from SONET OC-3c
through OC-192c, including POS, IP/ATM, IP/Frame Relay, Gigabit
Ethernet and 10/100 Ethernet.
Target systems include core Internet routers and next
generation gigabit and terabit routers.
Adtech is a SPIRENT company.
http://www.adtech-inc.com/
Adtech, June 29, 2000
CENTILLIUM
ACQUIRES AVIO DIGITAL FOR HOME NETWORKING ASICS
Centillium
Communications will acquire Avio Digital, a developer of home
networking technology, for an undisclosed sum.
Avio's MediaWire home network technology could use coax,
ordinary Category 5, Category 3, and even lower-quality in-wall
telephone wire to connect devices.
The company is developing its own ASICs as well as PCI
cards. Centillium
said the acquisition would enable it to jumpstart development of
home gateway products.
http://www.centillium.com
http://www.aviodigital.com/
Centillium Communications
, June 29, 2000
ECI
TELECOM DIVESTS ITS PBX BUSINESS
ECI Telecom sold its
Business Systems Division, which makes PBX systems, to Israel's
ELCO Holdings Ltd. for US$75 million.
ECI Telecom said it would continue a strategy of divesting
its non-core businesses, preferring to focus on Broadband Access
solutions, Transport and Core Network solutions (including
optical) and Gateway solutions that include Voice over IP and
Voice over ATM. http://www.ecitele.com
ECI Telecom, June 29, 2000
ARCOS1
UNDERSEA CABLE TO ADD TERABIT CAPACITY TO THE CARIBBEAN
The Americas Region Caribbean Ring Systems (ARCOS1)
Consortium will deploy an 8,200 km undersea cable linking 15
countries in Caribbean. The
network will consist of two repeatered segments comprising
approximately 2000 kms and 22 unrepeatered segments with more than
6000 km of Corning Cable Systems' 24-fiber cable.
Initial service between Miami and Puerto Rico is expected
early next year. Siemens
will supply the SDH/DWDM equipment and Tyco Submarine Systems will
construct the network. ARCOS1
is 85% owned by New World Network, which is a joint undertaking of
Global Light and Germany's Siemens Project Ventures (SPV). http://www.corning.com/cablesystems
Corning, June 29, 2000
SPRINT
EXPANDS ITS MMDS RESIDENTIAL SERVICE TO TUCSON
Sprint began offering
an MMDS fixed wireless access service in Tucson, Arizona.
A similar service was commercially re-launched seven weeks
ago in Phoenix. Sprint
Broadband Direct is priced at $39.95 per month, including
EarthLink Sprint ISP service, for "always on"
connectivity. The
service is capable of downstream burst rates of up to 5 Mbps, but
Sprint said most customers would commonly experience download
speeds of up to 1 Mbps. Upstream
service bursts up to 256 Kbps.
http://www3.sprint.com/Stemp/press/releases/200006/200006291021.html
Sprint, June 29, 2000
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