[Two conversations]
My first conversation was with Bill Kula, PR director of GTE.
I asked his opinion of the conference call and he said he thought it went well and went on to say there were many security analysts on line, besides the press, as well as representatives from CompuServe and UUNet.
My main concern was the state of ADSL development and he said they would deploy later in the year and have a press announcement some time within the next three months. They're in the phase where they're looking at regulatory and technical issues, and studying every aspect of commercial deployment. "We want to know it works the first time," he said. Billing, provisioning, installing, marketing are all considerations. He reaffirmed that ISPs are asking for higher speeds and that everyone is anxious to see the service come to fruition.
Would the announcement regarding deployment coincide with the trials coming to a close, I asked, and he said, yes. One of the issues they're dealing with is *how* to offer the service and much depends on the regulatory environment. There are certain things telcos can offer if they're not regulated and others they can offer if they are---for example, under one condition you can sell hardware. (John, help me out here, I've forgotten which is which.) None of this has to do with the technology but it's all part of the maze they have to get through.
Mr. Kula reminded me that the time frame for their ADSL development has been phenomenal. It's only been one year since they launched their first trial in Irving, Texas, and less than a year since Amati was asked to join. I've pulled both press releases for those who want to walk down memory lane. Note it was an Overture *4* back then. We now have Overture 805 and more advanced ones are on the way. (See the Allegro information I posted yesterday.)
Before ending our conversation, Mr. Kula said they are still line code agnostic, which is what he has to say considering he's the director of public relations, and that they could go with one vendor or three --- they still didn't know.
My second conversation was with Tac Berry and he confirmed there are more press releases ready to go, awaiting someone else's release. I don't know when they'll be out, but it's immaterial as long as they're on their way.
After Tac explained about the FCC regulations, I asked about the CAP vs. DMT issue and whether he thought next week's T1/E1 committee would make a decision on a second standard. He said he thought it was on the agenda but that it wasn't much of an issue any more. "No one's asked about it," he said. "In fact you're the only one." It's become a matter of which technology is superior, which vendor the telcos want to work with, and who has the best total solution, not whether it's DMT or CAP.
The standard may not be an issue with Tac---easy to say when you're in the driver's seat :)---but Mr. Kula said GTE will only go with ANSI-standard technology. True of all the RBOCs, as well. That's why I don't understand why everyone says both will be deployed.
All in all, it's been a good day:
Reed Hundt says no access fees for ISPs, Tac says more PR on the way, AT&T and GTE both say no to 56K (at least until there's a standard), and two articles recognize what's been obvious to this board all along: that COMS and USRX have an ADSL strategy that involves TI DSPs.
There's a faint streak of light along the horizon.
Cheers!
Pat
[Two early press releases:]
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GTE to test Asymmetrical Digital Subscriber Line (ADSL). High-speed technology trial to involve small and mid-sized businesses, residents.
IRVING, TX., February 6, 1996 -- Responding to the growing demand for faster Internet access, and the need for small businesses and individuals who work at home to quickly connect to enterprise networks, GTE Telephone Operations today announced that it has begun testing the use of Asymmetrical Digital Subscriber Line (ADSL) technology as part of a public data trial in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex.
The six-month trial, designed to test the high-speed communication capabilities of ADSL over existing telephone lines, will initially involve the Irving Public Library system, ProTech Books (a sister company of Taylors Bookstores) and area GTE employees. The trial will be expanded to other participants.
Using ADSL technology, customers can simultaneously make standard voice calls and use their personal computer to send or receive information to and from remote offices or the Internet at speeds 10 times faster than Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN), and more than 50 times faster than a conventional 28.8 kbps dial-up modem.
ADSL service is provided by connecting a pair of modems to each end of a telephone line; one in the telephone company's central office and the other at the customer premise.
As a high-speed modem technology, ADSL operates over existing twisted-pair copper telephone lines that carry regular telephone service, and can simultaneously transmit data at speeds up to 6.144 Mbps downstream, and up to 640kbps upstream. During the local trial, data will be transmitted at speeds up to 4 Mbps downstream, and up to 500kbps upstream.
At 4Mbps, 200 pages of text can be downloaded in less than one second, and a typical World Wide Web page with graphics and text can be downloaded in less than one-tenth of a second.
ADSL Could Provide Customers with More Choices
"The trial will enable us to learn how ADSL operates in the public network, and determine if a commercial offering is prudent," said Jeff Kissell, assistant vice president of business product management for GTE Telephone Operations. "If the trial is successful, we believe ADSL has the potential to expand our high-speed data portfolio, become an alternative to cable modems, provide customers with more choices, and fill a market niche that is in high demand by small businesses and telecommuters who want fast, affordable access to the Internet and enterprise-wide networks."
Small to mid-size businesses, non-profit organizations, libraries and residential customers can benefit from ADSL, according to GTE's ADSL product manager Sean Dalton.
"Given its eventual projections of bandwidth, ADSL is a beneficial service for companies that require high-speed data access, but for whom T-1 and Frame Relay service are cost prohibitive," said Dalton. "Likewise, today's dial-up customers will enjoy using on-line services at greater speeds than ever offered before."
Libraries, Businesses, Residents Participate in ADSL Trial
"ADSL holds great promise for becoming a widely used high-speed on-ramp to the Information Highway," said Dr. Robert Olshansky of GTE Laboratories in Waltham, Mass., which has provided the network design and systems integration for the data trial. "ADSL will enable GTE and other telephone companies to use the existing copper-line telephone network and off-the-shelf computer networking equipment to provide high-speed data connections from customers' computers or local area networks to the Information Highway."
Computers at Irving's Central and Northwest branch library will be equipped with ADSL modems to create a virtual private network between the two locations and provide visitors and employees with Internet access, electronic messaging and desktop business conferencing capabilities.
ProTech Books, also located in Irving, a seller of computer and high-technology books, kits and guides, plans to use the ADSL technology to give customers and employees greater access to, and use of, the Internet.
ADSL modems are being provided specifically for the trial by Westell Technologies of Oswego, Ill., and Aware, Inc. of Bedford, Mass. Routers and switches used to provide connection between the ADSL access lines and the Internet are being provided during the trial by Bay Networks, Inc., of Billerica, Mass. Irving, Texas-based GTE Intelligent Network Services (GTEINS) is providing Internet access during the trial.
GTE Telephone Operations is the largest U.S.-based local telephone company, providing voice, video and data products and services through more than 23 million access lines in portions of the United States, Canada, South America, the Caribbean and the Pacific. Its parent organization, GTE Corporation, is one of the largest publicly held telecommunications companies in the world.
GTE expands Asymmetrical Digital Subscriber Line (ADSL) data trial. Company to add third modem vendor and The Microsoft Network to high-speed initiative.
GTE to demonstrate very fast Internet access, work-at-home solutions, using high-speed data ADSL modem technology during Networld+Interop West. GTE booth #3289.
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LAS VEGAS, Nev. -- GTE Telephone Operations, which launched the nation's first data trial using Asymmetrical Digital Subscriber Line (ADSL) technology in February, announced today that it will move rapidly to enhance its high-speed test involving small businesses and residential customers.
In April, customers will begin using the Overture 4 ADSL modem made by Amati Communications Corporation of San Jose, Calif. Amati becomes the trial's third modem vendor. To demonstrate the ability of supporting multiple on-line products over a single service, GTE also plans to add The Microsoft Network to its trial.
Adding a third ADSL modem vendor and The Microsoft Network to the trial will enable the company to make a better decision on whether it can commercially deploy ADSL as early as the fourth quarter of 1996 or early 1997, GTE said.
"Considering that our pioneer participants have expressed nothing short of praise about ADSL, we are very pleased with the early results of the trial," said Barry Nalls, director of business data products and services for GTE. "We expect that the next four months will confirm our belief that the marketplace is primed and ready for ADSL." Amati and The Microsoft Network Join ADSL Trial
"The GTE trial is an excellent opportunity to test ADSL technology in a data application," said James Steenbergen, President and CEO of Amati. "With growing demand for faster Internet access, we believe ADSL offers significant potential to satisfy users who want to upgrade their access connections from existing, slower technologies.
"This will also be the first time telephone customers will be able to view ADSL technology as a viable add-on to their existing service, enabling high-speed digital data to co-exist on the same line that delivers their plain old telephone service (POTS)," noted Steenbergen.
For all trial participants, a desktop "client page" will be created on which the icon for MSN_, The Microsoft Network, will appear, providing a friendly point-and-click link to MNS content at ADSL speeds.
"We believe that MNS's interactive content and applications will shine over ADSL," said sr. director Dan Rosen of MSN Services at Microsoft Corp. "Customers will really love MSN over ADSL from GTE."
Because ADSL operates over a combination of existing network infrastructure and off-the- shelf products, it can service as an alternative to cable modems because less than five percent of the CATV plant in the United States has been upgraded to provide two-way cable service, said Sean Dalton, GTE's Internet access/ ADSL product manager. (Editor's note: See attached ADSL Backgrounder)
ADSL Modems Provide Lightning-Fast Speed
In addition to Amati Corp., GTE's trial includes the use of ADSL modems provided by Westell Technologies of Oswego, Ill., and Aware, Inc. of Bedford, Mass. GTE's trial will initially use Amati's Overture 4 modem that carries data at speeds of 1.5 Mbps downstream and 160 kbps upstream over an approximate three-mile distance.
Westell's FlexCap modems transmit data at 1.5 Mbps downstream and 64 kbps upstream, over a distance of about three miles. Aware's ADSL Internet Access Transceiver modems tout 4 Mbps downstream and 500 kbps speeds, transmitting data over distances of two miles.
Bay Networks of Billerica, Mass., continues to provide routers and switches used to provide connection between the ADSL access lines and the Internet, and the GTE subsidiary, GTE Intelligent Network Services, provides Internet access.
Trial to Include 30 Participants
GTE's six-month trial, designed to test the high-speed communication capabilities of ADSL over existing telephone lines, currently involves the Irving, Texas, Public Library system; ProTech Books (a sister company of Taylor's Bookstores); a Circuit City store in Irving, Texas; The Internet Store (Plano, Texas); and area GTE employees. The trial will ultimately include about 30 participants.
Computers at three GTE central offices have been equipped with ADSL modems to create a virtual private network between the trial participants' locations, and provide visitors and employees with Internet access, electronic messaging, whiteboarding and desktop business conferencing capabilities.
To obtain additional information about GTE's trial, visit the company's ADSL data trial web site at wcn.gte.com.
GTE Telephone Operations is the largest U.S.-based local telephone company, providing voice, video and data products and services through more than 23 million access lines in portions of the United States, Canada, South America, the Caribbean and the Pacific. Its parent organization, GTE Corporation, is one of the largest publicly
held telecommunications companies in the world.
Background: Asymmetrical Digital Subscriber Line
Asymmetrical Digital Subscriber Line (ADSL) is a high-speed modem technology that converts existing twisted-pair telephone lines into access paths for multimedia and high-speed data communications.
Using ADSL technology, people can simultaneously make standard voice calls and use their personal computer to send or receive information to and from remote offices or the Internet at speeds 10 times faster than Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN), and more than 100 times faster than a conventional 14.4 kbps dial-up modem.
Because ADSL can simultaneously transmit data at speeds up to 6.144 Mbps downstream (to the subscriber), and up to 640 kbps upstream, its current major uses include Internet access, remote access to corporate enterprise networks, multimedia
access, video on demand, whiteboarding and home shopping, all of which require high data rate demands downstream, but relatively low data rate demands upstream.
To provide ADSL service, a pair of ADSL modems are connected to each end of a telephone line; one in the telephone company's central office and the other at the customer's premise. An ADSL circuit connects an ADSL data modem on each end
of a twisted-pair telephone line, creating three information channels -- a high speed downstream channel, a medium speed upstream channel, and a plain old telephone service (POTS) channel.
To guarantee uninterrupted POTS service even if ADSL fails, the POTS channel is split off from the digital modem by filters. The high-speed downstream rates range from 1.5 to 6.1 Mbps, while upstream rates range from 160 kbps to 640 kbps. Each channel
can be submultiplexed to form multiple, lower rate channels.
In February, GTE launched the nation's first data ADSL trial in the Dallas/Ft. Worth Metroplex involving small businesses, a city library system and GTE employees. ADSL modem vendors in the six-month trial include Amati Communications Corp., Aware Inc. and Westell Technologies. The trial's router and switch vendor is Bay Networks. Internet access for the trial is being provided by GTE Intelligent Network Services. >>>
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