THE FUTURE AS SEEN THROUGH TECHNOLOGY

STREAMING TIERS

The computer and the TV have been engaged for more than a decade, but their marriage has never been consummated. Now Pace Micro Technology Americas hopes its IP-based home gateway — the IP 500 — will pave the way to connubial bliss by delivering high-quality video and interactive TV services over IP networks.

Even better for video junkies, the IP 500 offers two-TV support from one DSL line. “What you would need to do otherwise is split the DSL line itself,” said David Novak, Pace's marketing director. “Now you can have one DSL line with two connections to two separate TVs.”

Primarily, though, Pace is enthused about the prospects of carriers using IP to deliver television video, particularly at lower streaming rates of 500 to 800 kb/s using MPEG 4 video streams. The goal, Novak emphasized, is to deliver video over phone lines using the Internet, or at least Internet-based data networks. “This is the first time a true set-top box — not a PC, not scaled-down X 86 architecture that's very high cost to deploy — with a very reasonable cost factor is being deployed,” Novak said. “It has the same kinds of capabilities as a multicast-over-cable system would have — hundreds of channels of TV, video-on-demand, Internet browsing, advanced TV applications, interactive applications.”

The product is being tested, but the final consummation of the TV/computer marriage should draw mucho customers when volume product is available during the early part of next year.

“Digital television offers telecom a significant advantage in being able to compete with cable operators with the market forces that are out there today,” Novak said.
— Jim Barthold
www.pacemicro.com

THE RICH GET RICHER

netVmg's version of least-cost routing is a luxury few enterprises can afford. That's not because it is such an expensive solution; it isn't. The start-up's Intelligent Route Control Software is a low-cost, low-headache alternative to the inefficient routing schemes used in today's Internet routers. Rather, it's because netVmg primarily targets those 7000 or so enterprise customers worldwide that use three or more ISPs.

netVmg's core product, the Flow Control Platform, provides real-time route selection based not just on the predetermined priorities of each link, but also on the link's real-time performance. By providing non-intrusive monitoring for what netVmg calls “the middle mile,” the FCP uses performance and cost algorithms to determine route changes that will ensure the best Internet quality for a business' critical data.

“In addition to seeking private network performance over the public Internet, we want to manage and lower the costs so companies can get the same grade of performance for substantially lower cost,” said Eric Wolford, senior vice president of business development and marketing.

Generally available this month, the FCP is purported to reduce manual traffic engineering and the need to respond to unpredictable spikes in usage. “After all, the fire drill approach is no way to get promoted,” Wolford said.
— Tim McElligott
www.netvmg.com

FOR MORE NEW TECHNOLOGY AND PRODUCTS, CLICK ON THE INNOVATION TAB ON TELEPHONY'S HOME PAGE
WWW.TELEPHONYONLINE.COM