PB & Henk - It would appear that NetSpeed has a few other friends.
>>>The groundwork for a relationship between Compaq and NetSpeed is already there. NetSpeed President John McHale, was president of NetWorth, Inc.,which Compaq bought in 1995.
Synergy is also important because NetSpeed already has a formal exclusive relationship with Northern Telecom, Inc. (Nortel) under which Nortel sells NetSpeed gear to carrier networks.<<<<<<
Compaq greases the DSL skids
By Tim Greene
Network World, 10/13/97
If Compaq Computer Corp. has its way, the world soon could be connecting to the Internet at 20 times today's speeds.
The computer powerhouse is looking to put digital subscriber line (DSL) access technology inside its PCs, a move that could mean the replacement of today's modems with a truly high-speed alternative.
Compaq could help usher in a new Internet era, one where Webmasters could fill sites with the audio and video that chokes current modem technology.
Much in the same way that PCs sold with modems and online services have helped create the mass of Internet users, bundling DSL with desktops could create a huge community with speedy access, enough to justify richer site development.
Compaq Computer Corp. reportedly is partnering with ADSL-product maker NetSpeed, Inc. in a move that could kick open the door to ubiquitous, inexpensive high-speed remote access services.
Sources said Compaq will announce an agreement with NetSpeed to provide an asynchronous DSL (ADSL) board that could slide into Compaq's boxes. The board would let users connect to the Internet or corporate backbones at speeds up to 8M bit/sec. ADSL supports 8M bit/sec upstream and 1M bit/sec downstream speeds and is cheaper than other high-speed services because it uses existing copper lines.
The move would make ADSL as universal as Compaq's workstations, provide commercial and consumer users with high-speed remote access to a variety of services and possibly push service providers to bring ADSL offerings more quickly to market.
In addition, Compaq later this year will enter the Gigabit Ethernet wars with an OEM version of Extreme Networks, Inc.'s Summit Gigabit Ethernet device called the Netelligent Gigabit Ethernet switch. At Networld-Interop 97 last week, Compaq showed the Netelligent box, but did not confirm the OEM relationship.
The DSL and Gigabit Ethernet initiatives are part of Compaq's scheme to become a network powerhouse. The company is looking at the DSL market to complement its purchase earlier this year of Microcom, Inc. Microcom gave Compaq the remote dial-up access concentrators and Microsoft Windows NT Server remote access support that now ship in Compaq servers.
Compaq's venture into Gigabit Ethernet expands its LAN offerings that already include 10M/100M bit/sec Ethernet switches, as well as PCs and servers. Compaq's agreement with Intel to codevelop chips and software drivers for Gigabit Ethernet should give Compaq a three- to six-month jump on the market once the new chips now in development are completed, said Alan Lutz, senior vice president and general manager of Compaq's Communication Products Group.
''This is a frontal assault strategy,'' Lutz said.
Compaq's DSL move could be significant for that market, said one analyst. Corporate users buying PCs for workers who telecommute could purchase DSL-ready desktops in large enough numbers to prod services from carriers, said Beth Gage, senior broadband consultant for TeleChoice, Inc., a telecommunications management consulting firm in Verona, N.J.
''If a very large corporation with campuses around the country decided to use ADSL for remote access, perhaps that would be a way to push different service providers,'' Gage said.
With a guaranteed sizeable demand for corporate DSL lines, a carrier could gracefully ease into offering the service, she said.
Selling DSL-capable PCs also would relieve carriers of one of their biggest potential headaches: installing the necessary DSL gear. Most current carrier business models for DSL call for the carrier to install and own the customer gear.
The groundwork for a relationship between Compaq and NetSpeed is already there. NetSpeed President John McHale, was president of NetWorth, Inc.,which Compaq bought in 1995.
Synergy is also important because NetSpeed already has a formal exclusive relationship with Northern Telecom, Inc. (Nortel) under which Nortel sells NetSpeed gear to carrier networks.
So if you combine Nortel's clout with carriers and Compaq's corporate and consumer sales reach, you wind up with a team that actually could accellerate the growth of the budding DSL market, Gage said. |
