Frank- Speaking of fiber as an access solution.
I have not caught up on the FCTF thread. So just in case you missed this FTTH project announcment I thought I would post.
It doesn't mention below, but WINFirst is a MSO overbuilder and they are laying a HFC plant alongside the FTTH plant. What do you make of that? Thanks. -MikeM(From Florida)
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WINFIRST TO INVEST $1 BILLION IN BROADBAND, FIBER-TO-THE-HOME RESIDENTIAL NETWORK
FROM LUCENT TECHNOLOGIES AND AVAYA
DENVER – October 17, 2000 – WINfirst today announced it has signed a five-year, $800 million agreement with Lucent Technologies (NYSE: LU) for equipment, software and services to build a fiber-to-the-home residential network that will provide unparalleled bandwidth for voice, data and video applications. The deployment also includes data switching equipment from Avaya (NYSE: AV) valued at $200 million over five years.
The innovative optical access network will connect each home using a dedicated fiber optic cable and equipment with lasers to send and receive information using the Internet protocol (IP) and Fast Ethernet, a networking transmission standard that provides 100 megabits per second (Mbps) of symmetric bandwidth. Using that single optical link, WINfirst's customers will have more than enough capacity to simultaneously download a DVD movie, view a sporting event from a Web site, stream a digital home video to a relative over the Web and hold multiple phone calls.
"We are building an entirely new, fiber-optic network capable of breaking the 'last mile bottleneck' and Internet logjams that are currently frustrating residential customers," said Jim Vaughn, WINfirst's chairman and CEO. "After a careful review, we chose Lucent as our strategic partner because they provided the unique combination of advanced technologies and networking experience to create and deploy a network capable of delivering our futuristic broadband vision today."
The WINfirst service will be 65 times faster than typical 1.5 Mbps high-speed connections offered today. This will enable people to download a DVD movie in eight minutes or an entire album of MP3 songs in only five seconds -- a process that would take eight hours and five minutes, respectively, over today's high-speed connections. Additionally, having the same bandwidth both upstream and downstream will enable people to share files directly with each other through true peer-to-peer networking.
"Using key technologies we've developed or acquired, this agreement demonstrates the speed and flexibility of our team to build next generation networks for our customers," said Bill Nelson, president of Lucent's North America Region. "We worked closely with WINfirst to create a breakthrough network that leverages the power of optical access networking to deliver the promise of the broadband Internet."
Bell Labs engineers developed two new products for the WINfirst network. A Network Demarcation Unit that is attached to the outside of customers' homes, terminates the fiber connection and uses a laser to send and receive voice, data and video traffic over the network. It also connects to a new Residential Ethernet Gateway that is located inside customers' homes and connects to their PCs and telephones.
The design of the Demarcation Unit and other key components will give WINfirst's network the capacity to grow. The core network will have 130 terabits per second of switching capacity and the equipment providing the direct connection to customers, including the Demarcation Unit, can scale from 100 megabits per second to multiple gigabits per second. This will ensure WINfirst can always provide its customers with 'the fastest route to the Internet and back' stated Jeff Fishburn, WINfirst's vice president of Technology.
"With no legacy network to upgrade, WINfirst has the freedom to build a unique broadband network in terms of its reliability, scaleability and bandwidth capacity," said Christin Flynn, program manager, Carrier Convergence Infrastructure, The Yankee Group. "Moreover, by using Ethernet technology which is common to virtually every PC, WINfirst enjoys huge cost, interoperability and traffic management advantages on its network."
WINfirst has received regulatory approval to build networks in Dallas; Houston; San Antonio; Austin, Texas; San Diego and Sacramento, Calif. In addition, WINfirst has received a network construction permit in Portland, Ore. Franchise applications are pending in Los Angles, San Francisco and Oakland, Calif., Las Vegas and Seattle.
Lucent's NetworkCareSM Professional Services will design, integrate and install the next-generation network in each of WINfirst's target cities. Initial deployments will begin immediately in Dallas and Sacramento with rapid expansion to follow in Austin, San Antonio, Houston and San Diego.
Commented Frank Casazza, WINfirst's president and COO, "We are extremely delighted to be working with Lucent to engineer and integrate the kind of network that will delight residential customers, particularly the 'bandwidth hogs' in our target markets."
Lucent will provide a complete network solution that will include key data and IP technologies from its acquisitions, such as the NX64000® Multi-Terabit Switch/Router, GX 550® Multiservice Wide Area Network Switch and SpringTide 5000 IP Service Switch. In addition to the other Bell Labs innovations, the WINfirst network will also include the 7R/ETM Packet Solutions and optical components from Lucent's Microelectronics Group's Optical Access Group that will be used to enable the fiber-to-the-home connection.
As overall systems integrator for the network, Lucent will be responsible for integrating and delivering a turnkey solution that includes the Cajun® P880® Routing Switches that WINfirst is purchasing from Avaya, the former Enterprise Networks Group of Lucent.
"We're pleased to be at the forefront of using Fast Ethernet in the 'first mile' through WINfirst's fiber-to-the-home initiative," said Don Peterson, president and CEO, Avaya. "The Avaya Cajun P880 will provide WINfirst with the capacity necessary to immediately bring 100 Mbps of bandwidth into customers' homes." |
