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Rogers promises phone
service in 2001 Rogers promises phone
service in 2001 Speaking in Toronto last week, Ted Rogers said that his organization would begin offering local phone service over cable lines by the end of next year. Peter Ciceri, former president of Compaq Canada, has been hired to head a new company, Rogers Telecom.
Feds okay use of Globalstar Public Works and Government Services Canada has granted a National Master Standing Offer to Globalstar. This means that federal government departments can purchase and use Globalstar mobile satellite telephones.
Cisco to spend $100
million on new plant Cisco Systems, the largest maker of computer-networking equipment, said it is spending about $100 million on its new Salem, N.H., plant that makes gear for fiber-optic networks. The company also plans eventually to share the space with parts suppliers to speed up production, Cisco officials said. Cisco, which unveiled the plant purchase in May without disclosing the price, said it's spending about $45 million to buy the land and building and $55 million for capital improvements. Cisco's optical-networking equipment business is growing fast, reflecting last year's $7.15 billion acquisition of Cerent, though the business is smaller than a similar unit at rival Nortel Networks. The 674,000-square-foot facility more than doubles company-owned manufacturing space worldwide. Cisco isn't shutting its other plants for optical gear.
Avici shares rise on Qwest deal 18 percent after the maker of high-capacity Internet routers said Qwest Communications International agreed to buy its devices for use in Qwest's fiber-optic network. Avici shares today traded as high as $95, up 18 percent, before slipping to close at $84.06, up $3.69, or almost 5 percent. Shares have almost tripled in value since the North Billerica, Mass.-based company first sold shares to the public in July. Financial terms of the agreement weren't disclosed. Long-distance phone company Qwest will install Avici's terabit switch routers in four cities this year as part of a field trial expected to last several months, Avici said. Denver-based Qwest will use the products in its network if the trial is successful, Avici said.
FCC gives green
light to wireless powerhouse The Federal Communications Commission has approved with conditions SBC Communications and BellSouth's proposal to create the second-largest wireless carrier in the United States. "The combination of SBC and BellSouth's U.S. wireless properties will not adversely affect competition in any U.S. telecommunications market and will permit the companies to form a wireless network capable of competing with other companies that provide service on a nationwide basis," the FCC said in a statement. The venture, which was announced in April, will have about 18 million subscribers, second to Verizon Wireless, a joint venture between Verizon Communications and Britain's Vodafone AirTouch. The FCC's approval is conditioned on the divestiture of interests in certain areas of Louisiana, Indiana and California, a requirement the U.S. Justice Department had already set. The Justice Department gave its blessing to the deal on Aug. 31 on the condition that the two companies sell overlapping operations in major metropolitan areas of Los Angeles, Indianapolis, New Orleans and Baton Rouge, La. A decision on the Los Angeles operations will be announced by Dec. 18, the companies have said.
Sycamore
announces its long haul optical transport system Sycamore Networks unveiled its plans for a high-capacity optical transport platform that would eliminate costly optical-to-electrical-to-optical (OEO) regenerations in long-haul and ultra long-haul networks. The Sycamore 10000 Intelligent Optical Transport System, which is designed for distances of up to 4,000 km, will leverage a number of “hard-optics” innovations, including optional Raman amplification, dispersion compensation and high-capacity Forward Error Correction (FEC). A range of service interfaces will be supported from OC-3/STM-1 through OC-192c/STM-64c, and Gigabit Ethernet. Upgrades are also planned to OC-768/STM-256. Sycamore’s software would enable carriers to provision, sell, monitor, and bill for new wave-based services transported over its entire portfolio of access, transport and switching products. Sycamore expects to ship the platform in the first half of next year.
Burlington firm
announces e-commerce agreement Willis, the world's third largest insurance broker and risk management adviser generating in excess of $5 billion in premiums through its North American-based retail and wholesale operations, has partnered with Burlington, Mass.-based OneShield, Inc. to embark on an e-commerce initiative with its commercial property and casualty insurance business. This transaction is the latest in a series of customer acquisitions and strategic acquisitions for OneShield. Starting with an early success providing real-time bindable quotes for a major Workers' Compensation company, OneShield has since partnered with fourteen other insurance entities to provide insurance e-commerce solutions.
Crys-tel
Telecommunications deploys Nx Networks Nx Networks has announced at the iLocus.com (Europe 2000) show the signing of a strategic agreement with Crys-Tel Telecommunications, a facilities-based international carrier, to deliver next-gen telephony solutions in Europe, USA and South America, Asia and the Middle East. The network will deliver in excess of 35m minutes per month. Crys-Tel will deploy Nx Networks voice over packet solutions, using its voice gateways, within the next six months. Apart from Crys-tel, Prime Communications also plans to deploy Nx Networks converged communications products and solutions to build upon local and regional optical networks in the Middle East and Eastern Europe, including Turkey. Network capacity to deliver packet telephony solutions will be 100m minutes per month. Crys-Tel Telecom operates both as a wholesale carrier for international long distance resellers and as a retail carrier, servicing its own network and marketing the use of its network to consumers in designated areas. CoolCall.com activates its
network CoolCall.com has announced at the iLocus Europe 2000 Show in London, that the company has activated its IP network. The network utilizes Clarent IP gateways and is accessible from more than 50 countries. The company expects to grow to over 300 PoPs over the next two years. The company's new software and systems integrate rating and least-cost routing with back-office support capabilities such as customer care, billing and TAG support. The systems implemented are able to provide a set of next-gen services including prepaid calling card, wholesale carrier and enterprise utilizing multiple rate tables and discount levels. CoolCall.com is an ITSP offering the hardware, software, setup and network management that is needed to offer VoIP, Unified Messaging and other enhanced services.
Microsoft wins battle
over appeal venue The U.S. Supreme Court ruled on 26 September that the government’s antitrust case against Microsoft Corp., Redmond, Wash., must first be reviewed by a lower court, denying the request for an expedited appeals process submitted by trial judge Thomas Penfield Jackson. The move is seen as a victory for Microsoft because the case will be heard by the Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, which has previously ruled in favor of the software giant on issues related to this case. The appeals court immediately ordered Microsoft to submit a schedule for the preliminary trial hearings expected to last through December. Observers say the case is not likely to go to court before the beginning of 2001. Judge Jackson and the U.S. Department of Justice, one of the plaintiffs in the case, had argued that a lengthy appeals process would allow Microsoft to continue the anti-competitive practices it was found guilty of at trial.
First computer
virus for handhelds discovered The first virus affecting programs run on the Palm OS operating system was reported on 22 September. The virus, called Phage, infects all third-party application programs. The virus overwrites the existing code and the file size shrinks down to about half. When run, the infected files do not run as they used to, instead they infect other third-party application programs. Trend Micro Inc., Cupertino, Calif., an Internet security company, noted that to rid the device of the virus, a user can reset it–erasing all settings, user-installed applications, and data–leaving only the applications that shipped with the unit. Restoring the lost programs and data would require downloading them from a backup file in the user’s PC. Wireless Web access in airports United Airlines passengers will soon be able to check their e-mail and surf the Internet wirelessly from virtually anywhere in an airport terminal, the world’s largest airline said on Tuesday, Oct.3. The unit of UAL Corp. said it was partnering with Aerzone, a subsidiary of San Francisco-based SoftNet Systems Inc., to offer high-speed wireless technology to Red Carpet Club airport lounges, gate rooms, terminals, First Class Lounges and “1K” Frequent Flyer Centres at up to 50 top airports around the world. The new wireless service will eliminate the need for a physical connection through a conventional telephone line, which limits Internet access to airport lounges or modem-equipped pay telephones. United said installation will be subject to approval by the individual airports. Aerzone operates wireless broadband local area networks and business centres in locations frequented by business professionals, such as airports, convention centres and hotels.
CLECs face partly cloudy future Competitive local exchange carriers (CLECs) that can survive pummeled stocks and the ongoing market shakeout are expected to experience strong growth in the next couple of years, according to a recent study by New Paradigm Resources Group (Chicago). However, financial analysts say that until CLECs can begin to show that they are increasing their earnings and moving toward profitability, an upswing in stock valuation will depend largely on the mood of investors. New Paradigm analysts see the shakeout leaving behind only those companies
that are innovative enough to offer strong services and better quality than
their competitors. "This is part of the ebb and flow of markets
finding equilibrium. We have introduced competition into monopoly before with
utilities and railroads, and it takes a long time to get to that
equilibrium," said Terry Barnich, president of New Paradigm. So what
does it take for companies to weather the current storm? According to Barnich,
companies need strong financing or credit to last them a couple of years, as
well as "top-flight management" with experience in the business. Most
importantly, companies have to define their strength. According to Barnich, many CLECs ran into problems trying to offer data without having the right experience. "Part of the problem was these guys were blind-sided by the Internet. They scurried to catch up, and what they forgot was nice sound strategies," he said. "You've got a clash of philosophies between data and telephony." Also many CLECs staked their position in their respective markets by saying they would treat their customers better than incumbents, which hasn't panned out. "CLECs as a group are not delivering on quality of service," as was expected, Barnich said.
Dell to show
off laptops with wireless networking Dell Computer's new Latitude C series of laptop computers will have the ability to handle the integrated IEEE 802.11B wireless network. Apple Computer has provided customers with that option for over a year and Dell is following its lead, in an effort to increase sales in sectors such as education, government, and health care. The computers have the ability to maintain an Internet connection if moved from place to place via a wireless transceiver. Dataquest analyst Mike McGuire says a system with a wireless connection meets the demand for equipment that allows employees to work from various places. Dell will offer the C600 version of the Latitude beginning next week and the C800 sometime in the next two months. The entry-level model of the C600 is priced at $2,599. Lucent will provide the wireless LAN device. IBM is also launching a wireless system as part of its ThinkPad I series 1300. Various analysts say the market for such systems will continue to expand.
Power-line technology: Loopy Power-line technology, which electric companies have been using for some time to check faults and read meters, is being considered as a way to boost capacity in the local loop. However, Internet demands require the signal to be increased from several hundred khz to over 1 mhz. Siemens and Nortel are among the companies testing "single-carrier" technology, which uses a substantial amount of power to route the signal on a special frequency. Such technology allows for a clear path to remote customers. But single-carrier systems also necessitate so much power that they often interfere with other telecom systems. Spanish utility Endesa and Canadian utility Newbridge both have undertaken the "multi-carrier" system. The multi-carrier approach uses a level of power comparable to that of the single-carrier approach, but distributes power over more bandwidth, and thus lessening the top power level at any frequency. But the problem with the multi-carrier approach is that signals do not extend as far as single-carrier signals, making it necessary to deploy costly repeater stations. But a benefit of the technology is that it actually works, according to a PLT report by technical consulting firm the Smith Group. However, neither of the methods conforms to current EU regulations. While European Commission officials are considering standards that may allow PLT to broaden, they may not enact such standards fast enough to keep up with changes in the Internet industry.
IBM unveils
a new mainframe and renames its servers IBM execs won't give up yearning for the way things were for the company in the '60s and '70s, and they see E-business as an opportunity to get there again. They still want to be the only IT provider that companies need. That must be what they have in mind in rebranding the System/390, AS/400, RS/6000, and Netfinity server lines. Starting now, all of the machines will now be part of the new eServer family of machines. IBM says it will have tighter integration among the four servers and share technology among the product lines. For example, logical partitioning from the mainframe, which enables customers to run secure multiple applications on a single system, will move down the lines. According to IBM, companies have only made 3% of the infrastructure changes they are going to make in support of E-business. So the vendor wants to present a tighter product line for companies looking to complete the online transformation. The Z series replaces System/390; the I series replaces the AS/400; the P Series replaces the RS/6000; the X Series replaces the Netfinity and NUMA-Q Intel-based lines. According to Phelps, the 900 is more powerful, has more flexible software pricing, and has better bandwidth than its G6 predecessor. A 16-way 900 can process around 2,500 millions of instructions per second, compared with just under 2,000 Mips from the G6. The CMOS processors inside the mainframe are 64-bit for the first time, which means customers can quickly move memory-intensive apps around the machine without having to check them through external storage. With the new intelligent resource director software, customers can now dynamically move capacity around to support higher-priority workloads. The 900 has a better channel framework, pushing I/O rates to 24 Gbytes per second, compared to 8 Gbytes per second before.
Cintech releases NetVIA Cintech introduces their virtual e-contact center, NetVIA. It has voice, email and Web chat communication channels. Users choose from three different levels of access. The most basic license lets the user take email, Web chat or voice contacts, one channel at a time. Other license types provide access to any two channels at a time, or all channels simultaneously. Licenses are issued on a concurrent user basis and can be upgraded at any time. NetVIA is based on IP technology and works over the user's data network. Standardized reporting and routing functions integrate management information and control for NetVIA email, voice and Web chat contacts. The program generates reports, multi-channel status displays and contact handling across communication channels. Using any PC with a standard Web browser, authorized users can access NetVIA's full range of reports and status displays.
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