THE FUTURE AS SEEN THROUGH TECHNOLOGY

CAPEX FIX

As carriers increasingly curb major capital expenditures for network equipment, it may seem that they are postponing a new generation of network capabilities and services in the process. However, carriers should not make their networks and customers pay the price for a bad economy, according to optical networking vendor Lightscape Networks.

“Every service provider is cutting expenses, and while the network cost savings is important, they cannot put off the migration to next-generation networks for too long,” said Emanuel Nachum, vice president of marketing and acting president for Lightscape North America.

One major sector that could be held up by drastic carrier spending cuts is the metro, where there could be a near-term move to single platforms that integrate duties currently performed by complex configurations of multivendor TDM, frame relay ATM and IP equipment over Sonet metro rings.

Lightscape's XDM Metro platform is positioned to integrate optical networking applications across the metro edge, core and regional architectures by being exactly that kind of do-it-all box. The XDM provides service interfaces for Lambda, ATM, IP and gigabit Ethernet; Sonet OC-3 to OC-192; and DS-3 and video. It has DWDM scalable to 160 channels; add/drop multiplex capability for interconnecting multiple rings; and broadband and wideband digital cross-connects.

Nachum said the inherent cost-effectiveness of integrated platforms like the XDM gives carriers good reason to keep the infrastructure investments coming.
— Dan O'Shea
www.lightscapenetworks.com

PACK IT IN

net.com's latest product offering, the SHOUTlink protocol converter, could be viewed as a simple transition box that lets carriers migrate from first-generation gateway platforms. More impressive, though, is the unit's implementation of a proprietary technology that puts twice the number of calls over existing bandwidth.

What the company is calling BESTflow frame-packing technique is based on compression techniques that do not compromise quality. Under current standards, quality and voice compression have an inverse relationship — the more you compress, the worse the quality.

Though offering up yet another acronym, BESTflow — which stands for bandwidth-efficient streaming technology — combines multiple frames from a single voice call to “pack” more data onto existing bandwidth. And while other boxes offer similar techniques, net.com is promising to do it without adding latency, the surest way to degrade call quality. At the same time, the company claims its technique will reduce router congestion by sending fewer but more densely packed packets.

“Routers choke on packet processing. Routers don't choke on bandwidth,” said Craig Forbes, vice president of marketing for net.com.

In one example, voice-over-IP carriers can typically handle 135 calls per T-1 if they use H.323 or SIP-based gateways and compress voice traffic. BESTflow can increase that traffic to 225 calls per T-1.
— Vince Vittore
www.net.com