SBC’S PROJECT PRONTO TO TEST NEIGHBORHOOD DSL GATEWAYS WITH COMPETITORS
SBC Communications will begin testing neighborhood broadband gateways to deliver DSL services as part of its $6 billion Project Pronto initiative.  SBC will open the trials to 10 competitive local exchange carriers (CLECs), including its own data subsidiary.  By delivering DSL directly from neighborhood digital loop carriers rather than from DSLAMs located in its central offices, the trial aims to address the distance limitations that currently restrict availability of DSL.  SBC Communications said that once the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) settles a key ownership issue related to the neighborhood broadband gateways, it intends to activate approximately 4,000 neighborhood gateways by year-end, and 18,000 by the end of 2002.  SBC’s first Project Pronto sites include Austin, Dallas, Ft. Worth, Houston, San Antonio, Kansas City, San Jose, Sacramento, Riverside, Santa Rosa and Danbury (Conn).
SBC Communications, August 23, 2000

• SBC Communications is currently extending fiber deeper into neighborhoods and upgrading its digital loop carriers. Once Project Pronto is complete, SBC plans to offer a minimum "sync rate" connection speeds of 1.5 Mbps from the customer to the gateway.  More the 60% of customers could be eligible for a minimum speed of 6.0 Mbps.  SBC currently provides its DSL customers with a minimum connect rate of 384 kbps.

EXCITE@HOME REACHES 2 MILLION CABLE MODEM USERS, ROAD RUNNER TOPS ONE MILLION
Excite@Home reported passing the two million-subscriber mark for its broadband access service.  The company reached the one million mark in December 1999, four years after it introduced its first cable modem access service.  The figures do not include subscribers to the European chello broadband service, which Excite@Home intends to acquire.  http://www.home.com

Separately, Road Runner reported reaching the one million customer milestone for its cable modem access service, approximately doubling its customer base since January.  The company is moving to a more streamlined installation process that is expected to increase its customer growth rate.  http://www.roadrunner.com
August 23, 2000

SIEMENS’ OPTISPHERE NETWORKS REPORTS STRONG SALES, OUTLINES PRODUCT PLANS
Optisphere Networks, a subsidiary of Siemens Information and Communication Networks that serves the US market, reported a six-fold increase in annual transport revenues.  Orders for its TransXpress Infinity DWDM platform, which offers an aggregate capacity of up to 320Gbs and can span 600 km over non-dispersion shifted fiber without regeneration, have exceeded $200 million to date.  The company plans to release a terabit-class, modular version of the TransXpress platform in early 2001 that would be capable of transmitting up to 160 channels at 10 Gbps and 40 Gbps.  Optisphere Networks also offers a TransXpress Infinity Optical Service Node (OSN), a cross-connect with an optical-electronic-optical (O/E/O) function that enables it to be used at terminal sites as a transponder for converting short-reach optics into long-reach optics or as a regenerator at line sites. A polarization mode dispersion compensator, scheduled for release later this year, will reduce the number of regenerators needed to operate the system.  Siemens said the US market represents 75% of optical networking sales.  Optisphere is headquartered in Reston, Virginia and conducts research and development in Munich, Germany.  http://www.icn.siemens.com
Optisphere Networks August 23, 2000

CENTERPOINT UNVEILS ITS SUBCARRIER MULTIPLEXING (SCM) OPTICAL TRANSPORT
Centerpoint Broadband Technologies, a start-up based in San Jose, California, introduced its unique Lightwave Efficient Network Solution (LENS) for increasing the bandwidth carrying capacity of optical links in metro and regional networks without using DWDM.  Centerpoint will leverages patent-pending Subcarrier Multiplexing (SCM) technology that aggregates multiple signals into a single wavelength.  The technology modulates digital input signals into radio frequency (RF) signals.  Centerpoint said its system can accept inputs in their native form, making it possible to connect legacy systems to the network without having to multiplex the signal to match existing network speeds.  The system transmits data at 20 Gbps on a single wavelength.  The systems can also offer performance monitoring and protection switching, allowing carriers a choice of protection schemes on a subcarrier-by-subcarrier basis.
Centerpoint Broadband Technologies, August 23, 2000

• Centerpoint's technology relies on twelve key patent and patent disclosures that were licensed from Lockheed Martin on an exclusive basis.  The technology is used in government communication systems.  The company is led by Dana Waldman, who previously served as director of Lockeed Martin's Advanced Communications Systems (ACS). 
• The company has raised $67 million in funding from BancBoston Ventures, ComVentures, ViVentures, Menlo Ventures, U.S. Venture Partners and Cisco Systems.

NARUS DEMONSTRATES ITS IP-USAGE SYSTEM WITH INTEL’S GIGABLADE
NARUS demonstrated its IP-usage analyzer providing real-time, wire-speed collection and processing of customer and service usage data using Intel’s Internet Exchange architecture.  The demonstration streamed a series of video clips to a laptop PC from a video server over an OC-12 link.  An optical "T" junction enabled a NARUS Analyzer to be connected to the fiber link via an Intel GigaBlade Accelerator card. The Analyzer passively monitored the video streaming sessions, enabling the Quality of Service (QoS) for each video session to be measured and displayed in real time, and also enabling a bill to be generated immediately after each streaming session ends.  NARUS and Intel said the IP-usage monitoring had no impact on network performance.  http://www.narus.com
NARUS, August 23, 2000

INTEL ANNOUNCES MEDIA SWITCH SILICON FOR ENTERPRISE ETHERNET
Intel unveiled a new Media Switch Family of silicon devices and associated Layer 2/3/4 switch routers for enterprise-class networking platforms.  The new components offer multi-service capabilities for voice, video and data over Ethernet, as well as Layer 2/3/4 application-aware capabilities.  The new products include:

• a single-chip, wire-speed, eight-port, Layer 2/3/4, switch/router that operates at 10/100/1000 Mbps.
  
• a single-chip, wire-speed, 24-port 10/100 plus two-port Gigabit, Layer 2/3/4 switch/router
  
• a single-chip, eight-port, Layer 2/3/4, Gigabit crossbar with integrated packet storage
  
• a single chip, cascadable, eight-port, 10/100 integrated Layer 2 switch that permits QoS packet prioritization, and 
  
• an eight-port 10/100 transceiver supporting both half-duplex and full-duplex operation at 10Mbps and 100Mbps .  http://www.intel.com
  Intel, August 23, 2000
  
• Earlier this week, Intel introduced an OC-48 GigaBlade server card that acts as a front-end processing subsystem for viewing traffic flows and for extracting data from an optical network.  The card enables standard servers to provide visibility into optical networks. Extracted data could then be processed by a wide range of standard applications running on the server, including billing, provisioning, hacker intrusion detection and asset deployment. 

METROMEDIA TO OPEN SIX MORE PAIX FACILITIES
Metromedia Fiber Network will open six more carrier-neutral, Internet traffic exchange facilities modeled after the Palo Alto Internet Exchange (PAIX) center, which it acquired last year through its purchase of AboveNet Communications.  The facilities will offer a choice of carriers from which customers can order circuits, as well as service providers with which to establish peering relationships.  MFN will also offer its dark fiber in the facilities.  Locations of the new facilities include Seattle, Virginia and New York (opening Q3) and Dallas, Amsterdam (Holland), and Atlanta (Q4).  http://www.mmfn.com/  http://www.paix.net/
MFN, August 23, 2000

• Digital Equipment Corporation opened the Palo Alto Internet Exchange (PAIX) in 1996.

OPERADORA PROTEL SELECTS CIENA’S LIGHTWORKS FOR MEXICAN OPTICAL NETWORK
Operadora Protel, a competitive long distance carrier with its own fiber network linking major cities across Mexico, will deploy CIENA's LightWorks optical networking system.  The Protel optical backbone will be capable of offering and wholesale wavelength services and Gigabit Ethernet services to commercial customers.  The carrier will begin deploying equipment next month and hopes to have 17 cities connected by the end of the year.  Financial terms were not disclosed.  http://www.ciena.com   http://www.protel.net.mx
Ciena, August 23, 2000

PARADYNE INTRODUCES MINI-DSLAM FOR APARTMENT BUILDINGS
Paradyne introduced a small-chassis DSL Access Multiplexer (DSLAM) designed for apartment buildings or early-stage CLEC deployments, or areas with fewer than 100 potential DSL subscribers.  The new platform, which is based on Paradyne’s Hotwire GranDSLAM, uses an ATM switching fabric and can accommodate up to 48 ports (up to 72 ports next year) for SDSL, ADSL, RADSL and Multiple Virtual Lines services.  The network uplink card allows up to eight T1 lines to be bonded together.  List pricing starts at $2,595.  http://www.paradyne.com
Paradyne, August 23, 2000