Lucent Integrates Data and Voice Networks with Switching Enhancement
Tuesday September 1, 3:12 pm Eastern Time
Company Press Release
SOURCE: Lucent Technologies
5ESS(R) AnyMedia(TM) Switch evolves to include ATM/IP capabilities
LISLE, Ill., Sept. 1 /PRNewswire/ -- Service providers' quest to converge their data and voice
networks just got easier with a new switching enhancement from Lucent Technologies
announced today. Now communication service providers can offer the latest data services while
building on their vast investment in equipment for the public telephone network.
With this latest switch evolution, Lucent's 5ESS(R) AnyMedia(TM) Switch, which currently
connects more than one hundred million lines to the public network, combines voice networks
with data networks. Service providers can offer data services from the highly reliable switching
systems they already manage and maintain, generating new revenue and bundling voice and data
services, without the expense or trouble of introducing brand new network elements.
Lucent's new switch module, called the AnyMedia(TM) MultiService Module, or MSM, is
integrated in the 5ESS Switch, allowing it to connect to data networks such as those based on
Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) or Internet Protocol (IP). With the MSM, providers can
offer data services including modem pooling, voice over the Internet or ATM, Internet access,
xDSL, frame relay, or private line data-all bundled with full featured, reliable voice services.
''To meet today's revolution to data services, we've created an evolution of our 5ESS Switch,''
said Frank D'Amelio, vice president of product management and marketing for Lucent's
Switching and Access Solutions group. ''By constantly enhancing the switch, we're helping
service providers prepare for the future while protecting their investments.''
The voice-over-ATM feature can lower network costs by putting voice traffic onto the service
provider's ATM backbone data network. The MSM's modem pooling feature allows the
numerous and unpredictable calls to Internet service providers (ISPs) today to terminate on the
5ESS Switch, rather than the ISPs' facilities. These are attractive features for service providers
to offer to their customers because they generate revenue using existing and highly reliable
equipment. The 5ESS Switch is the industry's most reliable switch and has set new industry
performance benchmarks according to analysis of the most recent Federal Communications
Commission quality report.
The MSM also enables service providers to offer data aggregation, which is attractive to large
customers because it simplifies switch interfaces. Rather than having two separate pipes from the
switch-one for voice and one for data-only one large pipe is needed. Another feature is data
network interworking, which allows circuit and IP/ATM networks to work together seamlessly.
This is necessary since voice networks move traffic in circuits and data networks move traffic in
packets.
With the MSM, the 5ESS Switch now becomes a bridge between voice and data networks,
efficiently moving voice traffic and voice-related services over networks designed for data. This
integrated switch module avoids ''front-ending'' the switch with an additional box that must be
managed separately.
Having only one network to maintain is much more cost-efficient and less risky for service
providers than adding multiple network elements. Lucent's MSM simplifies voice-data
convergence by moving many small pipes into a few large pipes, which lessens trunk demands,
reduces operations and training costs, and overall, decreases total cost of ownership. This
simplified approach relieves congestion on the trunk side of the switch, a problem in many
networks today. The MSM is built to industry standards, with open interfaces, and will be
available in the U.S. in the fourth quarter, 1998, and outside the U.S. in 1999.
The MSM reflects advances in Lucent research and development as well as Lucent
incorporating technology from recent data networking acquisitions. For example, its ATM
switching function is provided by MultiService Switch 1000 (MX 1000) technology, which was
developed by Bell Labs. Its modem pooling feature is based on Portmaster(TM) 4 technology,
which became part of Lucent's data networking portfolio via the acquisition of Livingston
Enterprises in December 1997. Similarly, the MSM's ability to adapt Time Division Multiplexing
(TDM) into ATM and its ATM access concentration are provided via the PathStar(TM) Access
Concentrator 120, which comes to Lucent via the acquisition of Yurie Systems in May of this
year. These technology assets will be fully integrated into the 5ESS Switch and managed via a
single operations, administration, management and provisioning system.
Lucent Technologies, headquartered in Murray Hill, New Jersey, designs, builds and delivers a
wide range of public and private networks, communications systems and software, data
networking systems, business telephone systems and microelectronics components. Bell
Laboratories is the research and development arm for the company. For more information on
Lucent Technologies, visit the company's web site at lucent.com.
SOURCE: Lucent Technologies
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