<<Look up the investor relations pages ---total up the contract dollars awarded over the last two months . By the way if you read half the research out on the market LU is overvalued ---I feel it is fairly valued but am worried due to the lack of new contracts to keep the future bright>>
I am surprised no one has discussed the below. Think how many Definity switches are out there. Many large companies have hundreds. Many, many, many small companies have one. And every Definity location is now a "new lead" for the add on services.
Definity switches are like annuities for LU, upgrades are now mostly software, margins are fantastic on upgrades, and now data networking capabilities will add more high margin upgrades into the "renewal annuity" mix. All in the same cabinet, that doesn't have to be moved.
Lucent can sell a $200,000 to $400,000 upgrade every five years (with data capability) on each G-3 out there (hundreds of thousands) and not even have to knock the dust off of the top of the switch carrier cabinet when doing the upgrade.
I've said it before on this thread, I think the voice people can more easily migrate to data (and maintain mission-critical quality for both functions) than the data companies can migrate to voice. I like Lucent's strategy, and I am betting it is really scaring some of its competitors.
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Lucent Technologies Delivers Voice Over IP, ATM and Data Networking Capabilities for DEFINITY Servers
Level 3 Communications, AboveNet Communications, Maritz, Inc. and Rockefeller Group Telecommunications Take Advantage of RealWorld VoIP Networking
BASKING RIDGE, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 30, 1999-- Lucent Technologies (NYSE:LU - news) today announced it is delivering Voice over IP, ATM and other data networking capabilities for its popular family of DEFINITY® business communications servers, further evolving the industry-leading telephony switches into ''triple-network'' servers that can use IP, ATM or circuit-switched networks for voice and fax calls, and call center, wireless and messaging applications.
Level 3 Communications, AboveNet Communications, Rockefeller Group Telecommunications Services, and Maritz, Inc. are among the first businesses to benefit from the network efficiencies, lower costs and flexibility provided by the new software, Release 7.1, and hardware for Lucent's DEFINITY Enterprise Communications Server (ECS) and DEFINITY ProLogix(TM) Solutions. The upgrades - which include an IP Trunk Interface, ATM circuit cards, TCP/IP connectivity, enhancements to Q-Signaling, tools for simplifying network management, and enhanced security -- give enterprises the ability to leverage the best of what their existing voice and data networks have to offer without compromising reliability.
''Lucent is delivering on its promise of real-world solutions for businesses while others are still talking about their strategies,'' said Bill O'Shea, president, Lucent's Business Communications Systems group. ''Now enterprises can leverage their investment in the award-winning DEFINITY platform -- with its unparalleled reliability, scalability and robust features and applications -- and have their choice of networks for voice and fax calls. That is what real-world networking -- and intelligent technology migration -- are all about.''
Voice over IP
Release 7.1 supports Lucent's previously announced IP Trunk Interface, which allows businesses to reduce the costs of communications services by sending voice and fax directly to the Internet or over corporate intranets. With the simple addition of this trunk card, enterprises also can create a virtual private network among multi-vendor telephony servers, sending voice and fax over IP networks to other DEFINITY servers with the IP Trunk Interface, or to other vendors' PBXs equipped with Lucent's Internet Telephony Server for Enterprises (ITS-E).
Businesses requiring a high level of reliability, but wanting to take advantage of network efficiencies offered by IP, have the flexibility of using the DEFINITY server's Least Cost Routing and Class of Service features to monitor the performance of the IP network. If at any time the IP network's performance is not acceptable for voice or fax calls, the DEFINITY will reroute the call over an alternative network.
The IP Trunk Interface is the first phase of Lucent's expansion of IP capabilities on the DEFINITY servers. The next software release, Release 8.0, scheduled for availability in the fall, will include support for voice and fax over wide and local area networks, and IP softphones. They are components of Lucent's REALWorld® VoIP Networks(sm) announced in May, the industry's most comprehensive portfolio of VoIP Solutions for enterprises.
ATM Networking
The new software also expands the DEFINITY server's existing ATM capabilities when used with the ATM Port Network Connectivity circuit pack (PNC), which provides connectivity to wide area and local area networks. The ATM PNC lets businesses create a virtual private ATM network, with a single DEFINITY server sharing applications -- such as messaging, call routing, or call center software -- across multiple sites. This capability reduces costs by eliminating the need for a T1/E1 network and enabling many locations to share the resources and applications residing on one DEFINITY server.
Another new trunk card, the ATM Circuit Emulated Service (CES) Trunk Interface, provides the equivalent of eight ISDN PRI cards on a single card - a double benefit that lowers costs by eliminating the need for multiple PRI cards and frees up card ports for other uses.
TCP/IP Connectivity and Q-Signaling Enhancements
With the new software release and a Control-LAN (C-LAN) port network circuit pack, DEFINITY ECS and ProLogix Solutions can now use a TCP/IP network for signaling between DEFINITY servers, and for connectivity between the PBXs and adjunct servers without a T1 connection. The ability to move signaling from the DCS networking to an IP network frees up channels and makes more efficient use of bandwidth.
Through its enhanced Q-Signaling (Q-SIG), the new software expands companies' internetworking capabilities, increasing the DEFINITY servers' usefulness as a central communications server in a multivendor PBX network. Businesses can now share applications such as INTUITY(TM) AUDIX® Multimedia Messaging System or other Q-SIG-enabled voicemail applications across all locations that have DEFINITY or another vendor's Q-SIG-enabled switch.
The new software release also supplies a Windows-based network administration tool called DEFINITY Site Administration; an encrypted security administrator called Access Security Gateway for network protection; and network management enhancements such as E-911 crisis alert routing to a digital station.
Level 3 Communications, which describes itself as the first communications company building an all-IP international network, is using DEFINITY ECS Release 7.1 with the IP Trunk Interface for its internal voice communications network.
''As we move forward in providing our customers with a full range of communications services on our extensive IP network, we are looking forward to using Lucent's DEFINITY ECS as a reliable, cost-efficient and flexible solution to help us communicate internally with our offices throughout the world,'' said Denzil Samuels, vice president of Information Technology at Level 3.
AboveNet Communications, the architect of a global one-hop network that brings together high-bandwidth content sites, is using DEFINITY Release 7.1, Internet Telephony Server-Enterprise (ITS-E), combined with Octel® 250 voice/fax messaging server, Visual Messenger(TM), www.messenger(TM), and the IP Trunk Interface to link its San Jose, Calif., Vienna, Va. and New York offices over its IP network. AboveNet plans to add a Lucent call center the network and link several international offices over IP.
''As a major driver behind the successful deployment of high-bandwidth applications on the Internet, AboveNet is committed to the development of VoIP,'' said Dave Rand, Chief Technical Officer of AboveNet. ''The Lucent VoIP solution, which we are successfully deploying for our internal communications, demonstrates to our clients that our reliable, low-latency network is ideal for VoIP.''
Rockefeller Group Telecommunications Services (RGT) provides comprehensive telecommunications services to 30 sites in and around Rockefeller Center in New York City through a network of DEFINITY ProLogix Solutions and the DEFINITY ECS. Among other things, RGT is using the Release 7.1's TCP/IP capabilities to share applications, such as voice mail, among multiple locations. Dan Healy, senior vice president of RGT said, ''The DEFINITY enhances our business operations, allowing us to tap into improved functionality for remote users, a multitude of feature applications and powerful messaging capabilities with an IP connection.''
Maritz, Inc., the St. Louis, Missouri-based travel planning, marketing research and performance improvement firm, is using the DEFINITY server's TCP/IP connectivity with Lucent's CentreVu® Call Management System to track calling statistics among its multiple call centers throughout the United States. This capability reduces the company's network expenses by eliminating the need for a dedicated network connection. ''Lucent's products have helped us achieve our goal of lowering network expenses by reducing call center support overhead,'' said Mark Bryzeal, director of Telcom for Maritz.
Availability
Release 7.1, IP Trunk Interface, ATM CES and ATM PNC are available now in North America and will be available globally in July and August from its direct sales force and Lucent BusinessPartners.
Lucent Technologies, headquartered in Murray Hill, N.J., U.S.A., 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 of the company. For more information about Lucent Technologies, visit its Web site at www.lucent.com. |
