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Lucent signs with Union Carbide Lucent signs with Union Carbide Source: iLocus Lucent announced it has signed a five year, $33.8 million agreement with Union Carbide, a chemical manufacturer, to provide voice network technology and support for its 46 locations in the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico. Through its NetCare portfolio of services, Lucent will upgrade Union Carbide's 38 Lucent DEFINITY Enterprise Communications Servers to Release 7.1, which will allow the company to send voice and fax over the Internet or via ATM, as well as the circuit-switched network. Lucent also will install DEFINITY ProLogix Solutions servers at eight locations, giving all 46 locations the same networking capabilities. Also versions of CentreVu Customer Care Solutions will be upgraded to latest-release software. The company's 32 Octel 200/300 messaging servers also will be upgraded to latest-release software, and Lucent will manage all voice communications hardware and software systems, including 16 group videoconferencing facilities, from its NetCare Global Network Management Center in Carrollton, Texas. Lucent will provide Union Carbide with a solution that includes upgrades for life, helpdesk support, remote monitoring and software administration, billing, and trouble ticket management as well as asset management.
MediaRing.com is to use ITXC's network to deliver its PC to Phone service, starting with MediaRing.com's new promotion which offers free PC-to-Phone calls to the US from anywhere in the world beginning December 18, 1999. MediaRing.com and ITXC began working together as a result of ITXC's recently announced acquisition of OzEmail Interline. Traded on the Singapore exchange, MediaRing.com has also partnered with Chinese service providers China Netcom and CE-Infocom Network Technology to promote its services to China users. The enhanced service provider also brings a significant amount of traffic to deltathree.com through a agreement announced earlier this year. It has near about 2 million registered users for its PC-to-PC, PC-to-Phone and other value added applications. Investors in the nextgen company include include Creative Technologies, Lernout & Hauspie, Pacific Century CyberWorks, TDF Management and Temasek Holdings. When MediaRing.com filed for an IPO in Singapore its quota offering of 30 million shares was 42.9 times over-subscribed. Upon the closure of the offer, the company received applications for a total of 1.3 billion shares.
Siemens mass producing IP phones Source: iLocus Siemens reports that it has achieved mass volume production of IP-based digital phones that interoperate with the majority of IP PBXs available on the market today from Siemens and other manufacturers. The company is shipping volume quantities of its HiNet series phones and PBX systems. The exact volume was not mentioned in the announcement. The H.323 compatible HiNet series include Ethernet network adapters, analog adapters, and server software. The products permit calls between IP telephones, classic PSTN phones and H.323 standard-compatible PC clients. These gadgets produced for enterprises can also connect fax machines, modems (up to 33.6 kbps) and analog or wireless telephones to an Ethernet LAN, enabling communication with like devices and other H.323-compliant IP terminals. Some of the products in the HiNet range such as HiNet LP 5100 and HiNet TA 1100 can be purchased direct from Siemens Information and Communication Networks, priced at $425 and $475, respectively.
Cescom, a Canada based IP telephony wholesale provider, reports that it has teamed up with Fraunhofer CRCG (Center for Research in Computer Graphics) to jointly work on the evaluation of telecommunication quality of service over the Internet. Fraunhofer CRCG is an independent non-profit applied research and development corporation located in Providence, Rhode Island, USA. It focuses its efforts on determining how computer applications on large networks can be made to transform the workplace in a shared environment, allowing real-time interaction among people and processes. Fraunhofer CRCG is a US subsidiary of Fraunhofer Gesellschaft (FhG), one of Germany's leading applied research organizations. FhG operates several research institutes with nearly 5,000 scientists and engineers around the world.
Although the market for Net access through wireless phones is still new, companies such as Sprint and AT&T are pushing services that provide some Web information, such as stock quotes or sports scores, over cellular phones. Yet little content is actually available for wireless Web phones so far, as it is difficult to reconfigure a standard Web site to make the content accessible over a mobile phone. Nevertheless, Web companies and venture capitalists have recognized the growing demand for advanced wireless services as more phones are sold. Industry analysts predict that by 2002, more than 100 million phones worldwide will be able to tap into the Net in some fashion. By 2003, more than 1 billion mobile phones will be in use worldwide. To jump-start the mobile Web market, cell phone users have to be coaxed online. So far, the four-inch screens and telephone keypads that would-be surfers have to use today on cell phones haven't proven particularly user-friendly. A handful of companies, ranging from Lucent Technologies to smaller start-ups, have created software that allows users to talk to their phones though basic voice recognition features. Phone.com plans to use @Motion's voice-activated technology to allow users to ask for email or stock quotes by simply saying "check email" or "check stocks." Unlike more complete voice recognition software packages that require lengthy "training" periods so a PC will recognize a user's voice, no training is needed with this wireless software technology, Linder said. According to Phone.com, it's a direction that has been borne of necessity as wireless phone carriers realize the drawbacks of trying to surf the Web by pushing a phone's tiny buttons. AT&T agrees. "Phones are getting smaller, and with that the keys are getting smaller," AT&T Wireless spokesman Ken Woo said. "For some people, that's not a practical thing." "One of the key markets for this is the in-vehicle market," said Larry Swasey, vice president of communications research for consulting firm Allied Business Intelligence. "Once you go into the vehicle this could be a huge market for actual Internet access. It's a lot easier to ask for your stock quotes than trying to manipulate the keypad." But other analysts caution that the market is still new, and that consumers still aren't getting anything like the content found on the World Wide Web. Barely a hundred sites in the Unites States, and only a few hundred worldwide, have reconfigured their content so it is accessible through Phone.com's mobile phone Web browser. "There's still a lot of issues with the first rollout of [wireless Web technology]," said Jane Zweig, executive vice president of Herschel Shosteck Associates, a telecommunications consulting firm. "The promise is still a long way from reality." Linder said he expected to see beta tests of voice-enabled wireless Web software during the first half of next year.
Intel forms wireless group Source: msnbc Intel
has announced its Computing and Enhancement Group would
become the Wireless Communications and Computing Group, focusing on cellular and
wireless communications. “We think it’s a major play for us,” said
Craig Barrett, Intel’s president and chief executive, in an interview.
“It’s potentially a large market.”
Intel Corp. is stepping up its attack on Advanced Micro Devices Inc. in a battle that should ultimately benefit the consumer. The Santa Clara, Calif., chip maker Monday rang the bell on the latest round with rival AMD by announcing it is now shipping 750MHz and 800MHz Pentium III chips. The 750MHz Pentium III chip was expected in January. The 800MHz Pentium III, however, comes a full two months before it was originally expected. This, analysts say, is a response to mounting pressure from AMD (NYSE: AMD). The move, in fact, is the latest in a series of jabs between Intel and AMD, which began when AMD announced its Athlon processor at speeds of up to 650MHz in August. Since August AMD and Intel have battled back and forth with faster chips. AMD beat Intel to 700MHz in October and to 750MHz in November. But Intel made it first to 733MHz and 800MHz. AMD, however, won't be far behind. The company will launch its 800MHz Athlon early in January, possibly at the Consumer Electronics Show. PC makers Compaq Computer Corp. and IBM Corp. are expected to support it. "We've been sampling customers to support a January launch with (PCs) available in January," said AMD spokesman Drew Prairie. "What you will likely see on Monday are some reviews posted on our 800MHz part." While the two companies have been fairly close in their introductions of new processors, Intel says it is about to step it up and offer new desktop Pentium III chips sooner than expected. "We have made a shift with this product line," said Jeff McCrea, director of marketing for Intel's Desktop Products Group. "The world is working on Internet time. We've decided to get (800MHz) into the marketplace as soon as possible. Because of this, "You're going to see Intel being much more aggressive in the future," he added.
In a bid to assuage Information technology (IT) managers' concerns about remote PC security related to the deployment of digital subscriber line (DSL) and cable modem services, vendors are prepping a series of products that offer better security features. This week, 3Com Corp. (Santa Clara, Calif.) will ship its PathBuilder S500 switches with support for virtual private network (VPN) connections over DSL links, with prices starting at $17,995. VPNs use encryption to carve out secure tunnels to carry traffic between a remote client and a server. InfoExpress Inc. (Los Altos, Calif.) this week will unveil the Firewalker VPN suite with a firewall to protect PCs or branch-office networks using DSL or cable services. With these services, Internet protocol (IP) addresses generally don't change unless users disconnect, making PCs more vulnerable to intruders. Firewalker, due out next month, starts at $129 per seat. Also, Cisco Systems Inc. (San Jose, Calif.) last week shipped its 1400 DSL and uBR924 cable access routers with firewall and tunneling support. "Firewalls are going to become more necessary to secure telecommuters' PCs," said Dataquest Inc. analyst John Coons. But for now, some companies just turn off continuous connections. "We advise telecommuters to disconnect their DSL lines when they're not using the network," said Dale Kendrick, network manager at Workers' Compensation Fund (Salt Lake City).
The cable t.v. world tuned in to fast home networks and cable telephony as the future of a converged network at the Western Show this past week. But a heavy dose of uncertainty was in the air, thanks to the arrival of a formidable new competitor--AT&T--and debate over which killer apps the service providers will need to conjure up if they are to lure consumers to this broadband world. With mergers and consolidation breaking up that old gang of cable operators, and new players like AT&T barging in, the cable industry no longer speaks in a single voice. "Cable operators now have disparate agendas," said Leo Hindery Jr., former president of AT&T Broadband & Internet Services (Englewood, Colo.). For its part, AT&T is seeking to develop services like cable telephony to differentiate itself from its key competitor--local phone carriers. "We want to evolve to a network with an IP [Internet protocol] backbone," said Lois Hedgepeth, president of AT&T's Consumer Marketing Division. "How do we take advantage of the large amount of bandwidth available to the home? The secret, in my opinion, is new applications." Helping push cable set-top boxes forward, Lucent Technologies Inc. this week detailed a trio of home networking chips that use telephone wiring to create an in-home network. Lucent said these are the first devices to integrate phone-line networking, traditional modem and Ethernet capabilities onto one piece of silicon. At a time when the cable industry hopes to expand broadband services not only for digital video but also for high-speed data and IP telephony, the traditional cable industry culture--with a few select companies such as General Instrument Corp. and Scientific-Atlanta Inc. supplying key technology for development of proprietary solutions--is being radically altered. The mantra in cable today is "open systems," allowing more choices for service operators and consumers. Motorola is banking on wireless access technology, for which it has formed an alliance with Cisco Systems Inc. (San Jose, Calif.), to bring cable bandwidth to home networks. The GI acquisition will mean the merger of a series of cable telephony and set-top box field trials that the two companies have scheduled to begin next year. GI separately announced a series of deals for the sale of several million of its DCT-5000 digital set-top boxes. Paul Allen's Charter Communications Inc. (St. Louis), for example, has agreed to purchase up to 1 million boxes over the next two years. Targeting major cable operators like AT&T, GI also unveiled a digital return-path platform that uses an optical link operating at 2.5 gbit/s to relay return-path signals from cable hubs to headends. In addition, GI said it is working with Lucent to expand its IP telephony offerings. Philips announced its first foray into the U.S. cable market, a deal to supply an undisclosed number of set-tops to cable operator MediaOne's Jacksonville, Fla., network. "The U.S. cable industry is finally moving to open standards," said Willem de Zoete, president of Philips Home Access Solutions. "We felt [the chance to enter the market] is now or never." The Philips group also oversees partnerships already in place with many U.S. companies in the set-top business, including AOL TV, DirecTV, EchoStar, TiVo and Microsoft's Web TV. Furthermore, technology solutions offered by set-top vendors such as GI, Scientific-Atlanta and Philips are no longer tied to a single operating system or a single set of middleware. GI, for example, has two set-top models. Its advanced digital set-top box, the DCT-5000+, runs GI's proprietary operating system, Liberate's software platform and MicrosoftTV, which is based on Windows CE. This high-end model uses a MIPS processor, ATI Technology's 2-D/3-D graphics processor, and Broadcom's DOCSIS-compliant front-end chip and MPEG-2/AC-3 decoding IC.
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