[ORCTF to debut splitterless DSL and DSLAM at ComNet]
zdnet.com
"Orckit Communications Inc. and Fujitsu Network Communications Inc. will debut a splitterless modem and DSLAM that use proprietary Orckit technology. The equipment, which is due later this year, will support g.lite once the specification is complete."
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DSL takes a big step forward; PC industry heavyweights to push high-speed Net access
By Carmen Nobel, PC Week Online
01.23.98 5:30 PM ET
A consortium of industry giants is hoping to bring DSL into the mainstream as a high-speed-access technology.
At ComNet in Washington next week, Microsoft Corp., Intel Corp., Compaq Computer Corp. and a host of networking companies will announce they are joining forces with all five RBOCs (Regional Bell Operating Companies) to collaborate on interoperable digital subscriber line hardware and software.
The consortium will endorse widespread deployment of a common flavor of DSL that does not require the service provider to put a line splitter on the customer's premises (see story). That proposal appeals to service providers because it means installation doesn't have to be done manually.
A few companies, such as NetSpeed Inc., have already introduced splitterless modems, but an interoperability specification for splitterless DSL does not yet exist.
Thus, the consortium is working on a fledgling 1.5M-bps ADSL (asymmetric DSL) specification called g.lite, which will be loosely based on the T1413 ADSL standard.
While the consortium is aiming to complete g.lite by year's end, industry experts warn that the technology is far from stable. "There are many technical frequency issues that have to be solved. It takes a great deal of filtering and tweaking to the signal processor in a modem to [make it] operate without an [analog] splitter," said Nigel Cole, technical adviser to the ADSL Forum in Fremont, Calif.
But widespread industry support of g.lite should give a big boost to deployment. "I think that's fantastic. I'm glad they're getting into it," said Philip Cruver, a computer consultant who receives DSL service in Fairfax, Va., where Bell Atlantic Corp. is performing ADSL trials.
Industry vendors will announce at ComNet specific product plans backing g.lite.
Microsoft, for example, plans to add ADSL drivers to Windows 98. Compaq, for its part, is partnering with RBOC Ameritech Corp. to ensure that the Alcatel Network Systems Inc. DSL client devices that Ameritech uses are compatible with future versions of Compaq's Presario PCs due this spring.
Meanwhile, Intel plans DSL modem ports that support USB (Universal Serial Bus), including a prototype of a DSL/USB connection with an Alcatel DSL client device, shown at Comdex/Fall.
Alcatel, which provides DSL equipment to four RBOCs, will work on implementing g.lite in its DSLAM (DSL access multiplexer) equipment. It is also working to make its existing analog line splitter easy enough for users to install.
Orckit Communications Inc. and Fujitsu Network Communications Inc. will debut a splitterless modem and DSLAM that use proprietary Orckit technology. The equipment, which is due later this year, will support g.lite once the specification is complete.
Also at ComNet, Lucent Technologies Inc. will tout its WildWire splitterless DSL chip set, which offers speeds of 1.5M bps and includes 56K-bps technology. The chip set will cost about $50 and is due in the third quarter, said sources close to the company. |
