• Verizon’s FiOS TV service wins in N.Y.
By Traci Patterson
Residents of the Erie County towns of Amherst and Hamburg, N.Y., as well as consumers in the Nassau County village of Lawrence, N.Y., will soon have access to Verizon’s FiOS TV service, thanks to newly approved agreements authorizing Verizon to offer its video service in the areas.
The new video franchises make 122 the total number of New York municipalities that have approved franchises for Verizon.
Verizon’s FiOS TV offers all-digital programming, 30 high-definition (HD) channels in the New York market and access to more than 10,000 on-demand titles, 70 percent of which are free. In addition to FiOS TV, Verizon’s fiber network also delivers Internet download speeds of up to 50 Mbps and upload speeds of up to 20 Mbps, as well as high-quality voice service.
• Sonus Networks, Camiant join forces on IP multimedia services
By Mike Robuck
Sonus Networks today announced the completion of interoperability testing of its PacketCable 2.0-compliant portfolio of products with Camiant, as well as its PacketCable Multimedia (PCMM) compliant policy server.
The companies said that the integrated offering will help cable providers more rapidly migrate their networks from the basic triple-play of voice, video and data to next-generation services. For cable customers, this means a higher quality of service where voice communications are not disrupted by the demands of other high-bandwidth services such as file transfers, IPTV or video sharing.
“The cable industry has a history of being aggressive; first deploying high-speed Internet services, then adding digital voice for a triple-play, and now offering new services with PacketCable 2.0,” said Michael Rubin, VP of cable and wireline solutions at Sonus Networks. “Camiant is an established leader in policy control, and Sonus recognized the importance of partnering with Camiant so that cable providers can integrate multiple services seamlessly.”
• Ixia’s PBT receives Nortel certification
By Traci Patterson
Ixia has received certification from the Nortel-led Carrier Ethernet Ecosystem for its provider backbone transport (PBT) protocol testing solution. Ixia’s solution, the first in the industry to be based on a full protocol stack, will be available in June as part of the IxNetwork 5.30 SP2.
For the Nortel certification, Ixia used IxNetwork software with the PBT protocol emulation running on the XM2 chassis and the XMV16 16-port gigabit Ethernet (GbE) load module, Ixia said. PBT emulation is also supported on Ixia’s new IxYukon 10 GbE high-density platform.
PBT is considered a viable option for service providers looking to replace legacy transport services – such as frame-relay, ATM and SONET/SDH – with Ethernet technology in their next-generation metro and medium-haul networks. PBT can be used as an alternative or complementary service to MPLS.
• Actiontec intros new DSL gateways at NXTcomm08
By Traci Patterson
Actiontec Electronics has introduced the GT724WGR and GT724R – new DSL Gateways designed to improve the bottom line of Tier 2 and Tier 3 service providers through streamlined modem pre-provisioning, reduced customer support demands, and increased revenue with up-sell and cross-sell opportunities.
The GT724WGR DSL Gateway combines a full-rate ADSL/ADSL2+ modem, four-port Ethernet switch and 802.11g wireless router into one device. The GT724R DSL Gateway features a full-rate ADSL/ADSL2+ modem and a four-port switch for those customers not needing built-in wireless networking capabilities.
Actiontec will showcase these new DSL gateways at NXTcomm08 this week in Las Vegas. The company will also showcase the new GT701D DSL modem, which features an Energy Star adapter, recycled packaging and a small footprint, giving DSL customers the ability to reduce electrical bills and protect the environment.
• Alvarion’s 2.5 GHz base station garners WiMAX Forum certification
By Traci Patterson
Alvarion’s 802.16e BreezeMAX 2.5 GHz base station has been certified by the WiMAX Forum. Alvarion is one of the first four base station vendors to receive the WiMAX Forum flagship profile certification.
Recently, Motorola’s WiMAX WAP 25400 base station received the WiMAX Forum Certified seal of approval.
The WiMAX Forum provides operators with the assurance that approved products will interoperate with other vendors’ WiMAX access points and devices that have also passed the same certification process. The Forum is working toward enhancing the ecosystem and advancing the widespread adoption of the WiMAX 802.16e standard around the world.
More Broadband Direct:
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• Verizon laying claim to fastest broadband speeds; cable counters with 3.0
• Motorola releases MPEG-4 encoder solutions
• Microsoft buys Navic Networks
• Korea’s Hanaro Telecom bulks up bandwidth with Harmonic’s EdgeQAM
• RGB’s products chosen by Crosslake for digital upgrade