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23-June-2006    Volume 13 Issue 120

Asia Netcom Activates Lucent LambdaUnite Switch on Pan-Asian Cable System
Asia Netcom completed the deployment of Lucent's LambdaUnite Multi-Service Switch (MSS) in its pan-Asian submarine cable network, EAC. The upgrade project, carried out over a period of six months, will enhances Asia Netcom's ability to deliver next-generation bandwidth services with a variety of advanced transport and connectivity solutions in the Asia Pacific region.

With the LambdaUnite MSS platform and its support for ASON (Automatically Switched Optical Networks)/GMPLS (Generalized Multi-Protocol Label Switching) technology, Asia Netcom will be able to adopt a meshed, network architecture on the optical layer, and offer a wide variety of "Class-of-Service" options as part of its optical transport services. At the same time, the LambdaUnite MSS platform's enhanced management system gives Asia Netcom full control of all network elements, resulting in seamless service provisioning and network management of EAC.

"This was one of the most complicated and challenging engineering projects in the history of Asia Netcom," noted Bill Barney, Asia Netcom's President and CEO. "We crossed the finish line ahead of schedule and with minimal impact to customers."
http://www.asianetcom.com
http://www.lucent.com
22-Jun-06

Next High-Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI) Spec Doubles Bandwidth
The seven HDMI Founder companies (Hitachi, Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. (Panasonic), Royal Philips Electronics, Silicon Image, Sony, Thomson, and Toshiba) released a major enhancement of the High-Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI) specification for consumer electronics.

Specifically, the HDMI 1.3 specification more than doubles HDMI's bandwidth and adds support for Deep Color technology, a broader color space, new digital audio formats, automatic audio/video synching capability ("lip sync"), and an optional smaller connector for use with personal photo and video devices.

HDMI 1.3 capabilities include:

• Higher speed: HDMI 1.3 increases its single-link bandwidth from 165MHz (4.95 Gbps) to 340 MHz (10.2 Gbps) to support the demands of future high definition display devices, such as higher resolutions, Deep Color and high frame rates. In addition, built into the HDMI 1.3 specification is the technical foundation that will let future versions of HDMI reach significantly higher speeds.
  
• Deep Color: HDMI 1.3 supports 30-bit, 36-bit and 48-bit (RGB or YCbCr) color depths, up from the 24-bit depths in previous versions of the HDMI specification; lets HDTVs and other displays go from millions of colors to billions of colors; eliminates on-screen color banding, for smooth tonal transitions and subtle gradations between colors; eEnables increased contrast ratio; and can represent many times more shades of gray between black and white. At 30-bit pixel depth, four times more shades of gray would be the minimum, and the typical improvement would be eight times or more
  
• Broader color space: HDMI 1.3 removes virtually all limits on color selection. Next-generation "xvYCC" color space supports 1.8 times as many colors as existing HDTV signals; lets HDTVs display colors more accurately; and enables displays with more natural and vivid colors
  
• New mini connector: With small portable devices such as HD camcorders and still cameras demanding seamless connectivity to HDTVs, HDMI 1.3offers a new, smaller form factor connector option.
  
• Lip Sync: Because consumer electronics devices are using increasingly complex digital signal processing to enhance the clarity and detail of the content, synchronization of video and audio in user devices has become a greater challenge and could potentially require complex end-user adjustments. HDMI 1.3 incorporates an automatic audio/video synching capability that allows devices to perform this synchronization automatically with accuracy.
  
• New lossless audio formats: In addition to HDMI's current ability to support high-bandwidth uncompressed digital audio and currently-available compressed formats (such as Dolby Digital and DTS), HDMI 1.3 adds additional support for new, lossless compressed digital audio formats Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio.

Verizon Markets DSL at Wal-Mart
Verizon will begin marketing its DSL service at 549 Wal-Mart stores across 24 states. Specially trained Wal-Mart Connection Center associates will help shoppers use an automated ordering system that checks eligibility for Verizon DSL service and then lets them quickly place their order. A three-step, do-it-yourself installation kit will be shipped directly to the customer once the order is completed. Nearly 50 of the Wal-Mart stores will have Spanish-language sales materials.
http://www.verizon.com
22-Jun-06

Nortel Appoints Ex-Broadcom Exec as CTO
Nortel has appointed John J. Roese as its new Chief Technology Officer (CTO). He will report directly to the President and CEO and will be based in Nortel's R&D headquarters in Ottawa.

Roese joins Nortel from Broadcom, where he was vice president and CTO for networking technologies with a focus on unified communications. Previously, as executive vice president and CTO at Enterasys Networks, he was the principal architect of Enterasys' User Personalized Networking and Secure Networking, and oversaw both long-term and tactical technology strategy. In addition, Roese holds 16 granted and pending patents in the area of policy management, location based networking and other areas of communications.
http://www.nortel.com
22-Jun-06

Novell Replaces CEO and CFO
Novell's Board of Directors decided to terminate its CE,O Jack L. Messman, and its CFO, Joseph S. Tibbetts, effective immediately. Mr. Messman will remain on Novell's Board of Directors until Oct. 31, 2006.

The company's Board elected its current President, Ronald W. Hovsepian, to the additional position of CEO, effective immediately. Hovsepian, who also has been elected to the Board of Directors, has been president and chief operating officer since October 2005. Dana C. Russell, 44, Novell's current vice president of finance and corporate controller, has been appointed interim CFO while the company conducts a search for a permanent replacement.

The company also announced that Thomas G. Plaskett, a director of Novell since November 2002, has been elected non-executive Chairman of the Novell Board.

Mr. Plaskett stated: "The Board concluded that a management change would be the best way to accelerate the execution of our growth strategy and build value for shareholders."
http://www.novell.com
22-Jun-06

Executives Named for Nokia Siemens Networks
Nokia and Siemens named the top executives for their recently announced 50-50 joint venture that combines the Networks Business Group of Nokia and the carrier-related operations of Siemens. The team consists of:

• Mika Vehviläinen, who will serve as Chief Operating Officer. Vehviläinen is currently Senior Vice President & General Manager, Core Networks, Nokia. As Chief Operating Officer, Vehviläinen will have overall responsibility for the following business units: Radio Access, Operation Support Systems, Service Core and Applications, IP Networking and Transport, as well as Broadband Access. In addition, he will oversee Operations (sourcing, manufacturing and logistics) and the Technology Platforms and Quality organization.
• Karl-Christoph Caselitz, who will serve as Chief Market Operations Officer. Caselitz is currently President of Mobile Networks, Siemens Communications. As Chief Market Operations Officer, Caselitz will have responsibility for regional operations, management of global accounts, and marketing and sales management. He will also oversee the Services business unit of Nokia Siemens Networks.
• Peter Schönhofer, who as previously announced will become Chief Financial Officer. Schönhofer is currently a member of the executive board of Siemens AG Austria. Schönhofer will be responsible for all financial activities of Nokia Siemens Networks, as well as information technology and intellectual property rights.

Nokia Scaps CDMA Plans
Nokia and SANYO have scrapped plans for their jointly owned CDMA mobile device company. The companies decided that it is more beneficial to pursue other options individually for their CDMA handset business.

Nokia said that it intends to selectively participate in key CDMA markets, with special focus on North America. Nokia plans to ramp down its own CDMA R&D and manufacturing by April 2007. Nokia is evaluating opportunities to leverage its existing CDMA product development infrastructure and assets in profitable parts of the business.

The company anticipates a restructuring charge of EUR 150 million in the third quarter 2006.
http://www.nokia.com
22-Jun-06

Enterasys Appoints CTO
Enterasys Networks promoted Leon Woo to executive vice president and chief technology officer (CTO). Woo had been executive vice president of engineering since 2003. He joined Enterasys in 2003 when it acquired Tenor Networks, a developer of IP/MPLS-based solutions. Before starting Tenor, Woo was a member of the operating committee and the vice president of research and development at 3Com's Switching Division. He also was a co-founder of Synernetics, a pioneer in the Ethernet switching marketplace.

Enterasys also announced the appointment of Chris Crowell as executive vice president of research and development. Crowell spent several years with Aprisma Management Technologies, where he was head of R&D. He joined Cabletron in 1992 and held a variety of increasingly senior R&D positions in the SPECTRUM business unit at both Cabletron and Enterasys.
http://www.enterasys.com
22-Jun-06

Pulver Announces "Video on the Net" Event for September
Jeff Pulver announced a new event: Video on the Net, which will be taking place September 12-14 in Boston at the Boston Convention Center.

Industry perspectives planned for the event include:

• Ted Leonsis, Vice Chairman, AOL LLC, President, AOL Audience
• Bram Cohen, CEO and Co-founder, BitTorrent
• Jeremy Allaire, Chairman and CEO, Brightcove
• Jeff Jarvis, Consultant and Blogger, Buzz Machine
• Warren Schlictling, Vice President, New Business Strategies, Comcast
• Jeff Pulver, Chairman & Founder, pulvermedia
• Andrew Baron, CEO, Rocket Boom
• Jason Krikorian, CFO & VP, Business Development, Sling Media
• Dmitry Shapiro, CEO, Veoh
• Caroline Little, CEO and Publisher, Washingtonpost.Newsweek Interactive

OpVista Raises $28 Million for ROADMs
OpVista, a start-up based in Milpitas, California, secured $28 million in funding for intelligent optical networking equipment featuring cost-effective reconfigurability, capacity and 10G upgrades capabilities. The company said the new funding, anticipated to be the company’s final round, will be used to expand its product development activities, accelerate international expansion, and broaden marketing and sales support for OpVista2000, which is deployed with Time Warner Cable, Cox Communications and other networks throughout North America. The funding round was led by DCM (Doll Capital Management). Existing investors Sevin Rosen Funds, Incubic and US Trust’s Excelsior Venture Partners also participated in the round.
http://www.opvista.com
22-Jun-06

Alvarion Test Mobile WiMAX Interoperability
Alvarion has completed initial interoperability tests between its 4Motion BreezeMAX base stations and various end user devices from third party manufacturers that are expected to be generally available in the near future.

Focused around the IEEE 802.16e-2005 specification for mobile WiMAX, the tests were performed by Alvarion at multiple locations using its BreezeMAX base stations and other vendors’ end user devices, many of which use the mobile WiMAX chipset from Beceem Communications.
http://www.alvarion.com
22-Jun-06

Verimatrix Raises $8 Million for Watermarking Digital Content Protection
Verimatrix, a start-up based in San Diego, raised $8 million for its digital content protection system. Verimatrix develops Pay TV content protection and access control systems, which include a user-specific forensic watermarking technology called "VideoMark". The Verimatrix Content Authority System (VCAS) is a software-based content security solution that enables digital video content on devices and systems within media delivery networks to be encrypted and authenticated in order to identify security breaches and unauthorized network users. The solution is currently deployed by leading IPTV operators around the globe. The new investment round was led by Crescendo Ventures and included Mission Ventures and strategic investor Siemens Venture Capital GmbH.
http://www.verimatrix.com
22-Jun-06

BellSouth Chooses Tektronix for Real-Time VoIP Service Monitoring
BellSouth will deploy Tektronix's GeoProbe VoIP monitoring solution throughout its IP network to provide end-to-end performance monitoring. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Tektronix' GeoProbe monitoring solution collects all signaling information related to VoIP traffic and provides the ability to trace a call across multiple protocols and networks. The proactive nature of the solution facilitates early detection of network problems and enables BellSouth to quickly isolate and correct problems for greater levels of service quality.
http://www.tektronix.com
http://www.bellsouth.com
22-Jun-06

Telco Systems to Acquire Metrobility Optical Systems
Telco Systems agreed to acquire Metrobility Optical Systems, an early developer of optical Ethernet demarcation solutions for the deployment of carrier Ethernet services. The acquisition will integrate Metrobility’s intelligent Ethernet service demarcation devices with Telco Systems’ metro Ethernet access solutions to offer service providers a wider range of carrier Ethernet demarcation options, as well as augment Telco Systems’ cable provider customer base. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Metrobility is a privately held company based in Merrimack, New Hampshire, with distribution in more than 40 countries. With more than 15 years of experience in Ethernet, Metrobility has more than 70 service providers (CLECs, MSOs and PTTs) and thousands of large enterprises utilizing its products worldwide.
http://www.telco.com
22-Jun-06

About this Report Converge! Network Digest is a daily market research report providing concise, edited and information-enhanced insight into next generation networking technology, products and services.  We cover the full stack of network layers with the belief that innovation and market dynamics at any one layer ripples across the whole industry. The publication is distributed globally to leading telecom service providers, cable network operators, network research labs, network equipment manufacturers, silicon developers, research analysts and members of the media. Subscriptions are available at an annual rate of $500 for 240 issues.  Corporate licenses are also available.  A limited number of complementary VIP subscriptions are available to senior executives of telecom service providers. For editorial comments or to submit news for consideration, please contact James E. Carroll For marketing opportunities via our newsletter and website, contact info@convergedigest.com Subscriptions Cut through the industry noise by getting your own copy of this report Sponsorships Gain visibility and market presence with our audience of key networking executives Directory Listings Make your company stand out by featuring it in our Web directories. White Papers Offer your white papers to our audience, starting at just $495. Seminars Announce your networking seminar or webcast to the world, starting at only $495.