Next-Generation Communications

Testing for Optimal DSL Performance

Edited By Greg Galitzine on October 3, 2008

Earlier this week, at Broadband World Forum Europe in Brussels, Alcatel-Lucent announced that its 5530 Network Analyzer (NA) has evolved to become a single integrated testing solution for DSL-based broadband access networks. The solution features a customer care interface designed to assist service provider staff to provide immediate support when facing end-user issues, and a Dynamic Line Management (DLM) feature automatically sets DSL lines to work at optimal levels, thus delivering increased stability and service quality. Driven by increasing triple play demand from end users, DSL lines need to offer higher performance to meet the needs of customers. The 5530 gives operators greater insight into the loop quality of their DSL lines, giving them greater visibility into potential problems which can be avoided, anticipated or resolved much more quickly. For more, check out the official announcement from Alcatel-Lucent.

Posted in Alcatel-Lucent Technology News, DSL, Next-Generation Communications

Is Business Ready for the Millenials?

Edited By Greg Galitzine on October 3, 2008

A brand-new survey from the respected Economist Intelligence Unit in combination with Genesys predicts finds that most companies are struggling to adapt their businesses to serve customers who are part of the Millennial Generation. The Millenials are generally thought to be those consumers born between 1982 and 2001 (7-26 years of age today). Millenials actually outnumber baby-boomers today, and this generation will continue to grow in influence as younger members of the group reach adulthood over the next decade or so. According to the report, three key findings emerged from the study: · Investment strategies are shifting to favor Millenials: Companies are debating heavily whether to invest more in catering to aging baby boomers versus next-generation consumers, with 42% saying they should tilt toward younger customers, while 39% would shift toward baby boomers and generation X. · The time to act is now: Most companies (54%) have not yet set their strategies or marketing for Millennials even though they overwhelmingly agree that such steps are needed, with 75% saying Millennials will impact their organization as consumers in the next three years. · It's an Enterprise 2.0 world: Most companies have a sophisticated understanding of what it would take to adapt, but are not ready to change their customer engagement model by leveraging social networking, peer marketing, better online support, text messaging, and blogging. The report underscores the need for businesses to invest in new methods of customer communication and to tailor their approaches to match specific customer preferences. To download a copy of the report, click here.

Posted in Next-Generation Communications, Research, Web 2.0

Scots Want Next-Gen Communications Networks

Edited By Greg Galitzine on October 13, 2008

A recent survey of the online population in Scotland found that 84% want high-speed downloads and 87% would like TV and films on demand. The survey was commissioned by Mott MacDonald, a management and engineering consultancy. The challenge facing these would-be wired Scots is that fewer than 0.01% of households in the UK have a fiber network to the home which would allow access to the type of broadband necessary to deliver these services. According to the report on Public Technology.net, the survey: "...highlighted that Scots want access to online services such as video calls (63%), remote healthcare (61%), and high speed broadband to access virtual learning tools (71%)." Tom Allen, director of the Information, Communications & Media division at Mott MacDonald, said: "The Scottish online population has told us they want broadband that simply delivers."

Posted in Next-Generation Communications

Wireless Growth News

Edited By Greg Galitzine on October 14, 2008

A newly released report from Informa Telecoms & Media indicates that 2007-2008 witnessed significant growth in the prepaid mobile services market. At the end of last year, there were nearly 2.33 billion prepaid subscriptions worldwide, of which two percent of subscriptions accounted for prepaid WCDMA accesses. According to the research, by 2013 there will be approximately 3.93 billion prepaid subscriptions, generating concomitant revenues of over $382 billion. The consultancy predicts that from 2007-2013, growth might slow down to a global compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of just over nine percent; Still, the prepaid market will account for over eighty percent of new mobile subscriptions. It's expected that the key drivers of future growth of the prepaid mobile services market will be very-low-income customers in developing markets. In other next-generation wireless news, Alcatel-Lucent today announced a €22 million deal with South African mobile operator Vodacom SA to upgrade its existing 3G network. The goal is to boost the capacity and coverage of Vodacom's network so that the wireless carrier can offer its customers a wide range of advanced next-generation mobile broadband services. The 3G wireless network will be based on Alcatel-Lucent UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System) and HSDPA/HSUPA (High Speed Downlink Packet Access/High Speed Uplink Packet Access) technologies.

Posted in Alcatel-Lucent Technology News, Next-Generation Communications, Research, Wireless

Advancing Broadband Deployment

Edited By Greg Galitzine on October 15, 2008

In cooperation with the East Africa Submarine Cable System (EASSy) consortium, Alcatel-Lucent plans to provide regional bandwidth capacity of 1.4 Terabit/s via a combined submarine and terrestrial optical solution. The company says the bandwidth will be enough to "satisfy broadband needs for years to come." According to the announcement: The EASSy submarine cable network will provide connectivity across the continent to support the increase in local traffic from both traditional and new broadband services. Additionally, with interconnection to other submarine cable systems to the North and South, this project will provide an international gateway, crucial for the economic development of the region and for the reduction of the digital divide. The submarine network will span nearly 10,000 km linking eight countries from Sudan to South Africa, via Djibouti, Somalia, Kenya, Tanzania, Madagascar and Mozambique. Alcatel-Lucent is a major proponent of ensuring that developing territories the world over have access to broadband. In a recent paper titled Broadband Policy Guidelines in High-Growth Economies, the company explained the potential of broadband and how its availability can play a transformative role in the development of a region Broadband's potential can be used as a key driver for economic growth, attracting foreign investment, developing territory attractiveness, and enabling a thriving community. Yet barriers to broadband mass adoption such as affordability, accessibility, awareness, and literacy still prevail. Broadband is not just the Internet made faster. The definition of broadband is a matter of semantics; what should be emphasized is the deployment of a technology that supports sufficient bandwidth connections to the Internet for the service intended.

Posted in Alcatel-Lucent Corporate News, Broadband, Next-Generation Communications

Laptop Guardian Security Solution Goes Global

Edited By Greg Galitzine on October 22, 2008

In order for all the exciting next-generation communications services to be widely adopted by corporate users, certain conditions must be in place, among them ubiquity and security. Not only do business users need access to their applications everywhere and anywhere, the access they crave must be secure. Earlier this week, Alcatel-Lucent announced global availability of a high-speed packet access (HSPA) version of its OmniAccess 3500 Nonstop Laptop Guardian (OA3500 NLG). This solution is designed to protect and recover stolen laptops and data, and was previously available only on CDMA-based 3G networks. (TMC's Rich Tehrani wrote here about the earlier model, which is offered by Sprint on its CDMA network in the US.) Furthermore, in a recent survey of 255 executive level IT, security and compliance decision makers in the U.S. and Germany, it turns out that 76 percent of respondents believe it is necessary to protect a lost or stolen laptop with more than encryption alone - such as having the ability to locate the device using GPS and remotely revoking access to data. And in a finding that should serve as a warning to complacent mobile operators everywhere, 50 percent of companies said they would switch to an operator that offers a security solution that protects lost or stolen laptops used remotely, provides auto virtual private network capabilities, and allows IT to manage laptops even when they're turned off. For more details on Alcatel-Lucent's OmniAccess 3500 Nonstop Laptop Guardian solution, check out the Web site. SingTel of Singapore, Magyar Telekom of Hungary, and broadband carrier IIJ (Internet Initiative Japan Inc.) of Japan all unveiled plans to offer the device on their networks.

Posted in Alcatel-Lucent Corporate News, Alcatel-Lucent Technology News, Next-Generation Communications, Security, Wireless

UK Broadband Feeling Recession Effects

Edited By Greg Galitzine on October 23, 2008

It appears that the global economic malaise is not sparing the UK broadband market. In April of this year, Point-Topic predicted an additional 800,000 broadband lines would be deployed in the latter half of 2008. But now, according to Tim Johnson, chief analyst at Point Topic, those numbers are down. "We're now forecasting that only 620,000 broadband lines will be added in the second half of 2008," Johnson said. "The forecast for 2009 as a whole is 1.1 million, 200,000 down on the earlier forecast." "To keep on track Britain needed to add 390,000 broadband lines in the July to September quarter.

Posted in Broadband, DSL, Next-Generation Communications, Research

North Africa to See Enterprise Voice & Data

Edited By Greg Galitzine on November 4, 2008

Tunisia telecomm integrator TTE and Alcatel-Lucent have joined forces to supply enterprise voice and data solutions in the North African nations of Libya and Tunisia. The agreement will showcase the two firms' common skills and technological abilities and broaden their presence in North Africa. Alcatel-Lucent and TTE will work together to offer complete and secure communication solutions while evolving the network infrastructure to help businesses and governments increase competitiveness and cost-effectiveness. To mark the special occasion, an open house will be held on Nov. 13, 2008 at "Les Berges du Lac Concorde Hotel" in Tunis, Tunisia.

Posted in Alcatel-Lucent Corporate News, Next-Generation Communications

ALU, BT Extend Services Pact

Edited By Greg Galitzine on November 7, 2008

Building on a Multi-Vendor Managed Services contract signed in November 2006, Alcatel-Lucent has announced a seven-year extension of its partnership with UK carrier BT, focused on the support of BT's global network operations. According to published reports, Alcatel-Lucent will manage most of the legacy networks serving BT Global Services' customers, thus freeing up BT to focus on its next-generation communications initiative, the BT Global 21CN Platform. During the first phase of the project Alcatel-Lucent will assume operations for five legacy global and domestic networks in 27 countries outside the UK, along with the BT Global Managed Platform legacy transport network.

Posted in Alcatel-Lucent Corporate News, Next-Generation Communications

Welcome to the Next-Generation Communications Blog

Edited By Greg Galitzine on November 20, 2008

Well, it's finally here! The long-awaited (official) launch of the Next-Generation Communications blog, a daily feature of the Next-Generation Communications global online community, sponsored by Alcatel-Lucent.

In this blog, we'll have a look at the various forces and trends that are driving the next-generation communications market forward. We'll cover the latest news of the day and offer our opinions on emerging technologies and solutions, and the effect they are having on the evolution of the next-generation communications space. We invite you to explore the community and take advantage of the wealth of information that is presented herein. There's something for everybody, whether you approach the market from the position of a service provider, looking to offer innovative applications to your end customers, or if you are an enterprise consumer, looking to leverage next-generation offerings to gain a measure of competitive advantage. If you look at the world of next-generation communications through the lens of someone operating within a particular vertical market -- be it Healthcare, Energy, Education, Government, Finance, Hospitality, Media & Broadcasting or Transportation -- you will find articles, whitepapers, videos, podcasts relevant to your needs. As you peruse the community, you will notice resources that drill down into a diverse array of subject areas, ranging from Eco Sustainability to Broadband (wireless and wireline); from Network and Services Transformation to Business Transformation; and of course areas dedicated to evolving Content Delivery models and technology that enables today's increasingly Digital Lifestyle. We urge you to bookmark this site and refer back regularly for updates via this blog as well as new and compelling content that will be added on an ongoing basis. Welcome to the exciting world of Next Generation Communications!

Posted in Next-Generation Communications

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