Tero,
Are you referring to this SK Telecom? Samsung looks like the golden child here. How will NOK ship phones with 1X-MC chips by Q4 2000? Not from QCOM, of course! (Secret 1X-MC DoCoMo/NOK chip trials happening in Japan, backward compatible to all pre-existing FUD?) Unless of course, those faint rumors of NOK buying QCOM's ASIC division are true?
Kent
SK Telecom Selects 3Com and Samsung 3G Wireless Solution for World's First CDMA2000 1X Network
--From AOl-- Cooters
SANTA CLARA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 5, 2000--
Standards-based Network Will Deliver Mobile Data Services at Speeds Up to 144kbps; Commercial Availability Scheduled for Q4 2000
3Com Corporation (Nasdaq: COMS) today announced that its joint solution with Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., for high-speed wireless data and voice networks will be deployed this year by SK Telecom of Korea in the world's first cdma2000 1X network. The new network from 3Com and Samsung will enable SK Telecom customers to access mobile data services at speeds of up to 144 kbps - dramatically faster than the 9.6 kbps and 64 kbps data transmission speeds common today. Other features available in the cdma2000 1X network will include support for simultaneous audio, video and text data services; advanced packet data technology for enhanced network efficiency; and a two-fold increase in wireless channel capacity.
SK Telecom intends to make the high-speed wireless data and voice network available to its subscribers early in the fourth quarter this year. When deployed by SK Telecom, the cdma2000 1X network will cover most of the Korean peninsula, including the Seoul metropolitan area and mid provinces. SK Telecom has more than 10 million subscribers currently, and expects to reach 12 million subscribers by the end of the year.
"This is a significant development in the evolution of wireless networks, and a strong endorsement of the 3Com/Samsung solution," said Irfan Ali, senior vice president and general manager, 3Com Carrier Networks Business. "With 3Com's leadership in Internet access technology in the mobile network and partners such as Samsung, we are leading the migration to next-generation wireless networks for the world-class service providers like SK Telecom."
Wireless data solutions are an integral part of the CommWorks(R) architecture, 3Com Carrier Networks Business' versatile solution for multiservice packet-based networking. The CommWorks architecture allows service providers to deliver narrowband enhanced data services, IP telephony, wireless data, and broadband access over a single converged network. Standards-based and designed with open interfaces throughout, the CommWorks architecture meets the telecommunications industry's need for a coherent architecture that allows the deployment of multiple services in a single, unified networking environment. The CommWorks architecture streamlines the migration from today's analog networks to next-generation, packet-based converged networks.
Evolving Wireless Networks
The cdma2000 1X network is the next phase in the evolution of cdmaOne(TM) digital cellular and PCS networks. Today, cdmaOne networks provide coverage in more than 40 countries and boast more than 57 million subscribers around the globe. (Source: CDMA Development Group, May 9, 2000). cdma 2000 1X networks give wireless operators the flexibility to introduce advanced data services to meet emerging market demands, and to migrate their existing digital cellular networks to next-generation network infrastructures over time. Wireless infrastructure equipment makers like 3Com and Samsung, who are developing 3G products in step with industry standards, are enabling this migration.
Using an evolutionary approach to building a next-generation wireless network enables service providers to continue using existing infrastructure and recoup existing network investments while preparing for the future. At each new network phase, mobile network operators will be able to offer their subscribers substantial additional benefits, including higher network speeds (eventually, up to 2 Mbps), global interoperability among different operators' networks and mobile phones, and more sophisticated application services.
3Com/Samsung Solution is Standards-based
The 3Com/Samsung solution developed for SK Telecom adheres to the IS-2000 series of standards developed by the Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA). An open, standards-based architecture maximizes the options for wireless and cellular operators to expand and migrate their networks to take advantage of future capabilities. Equipment from 3Com and Samsung will interoperate with other standards-based products, and is also versatile enough to be feature-customized for customers, giving service providers maximum flexibility to design and develop their individual networks.
In the new cdma2000 1X network, the base station controller (BSC) will connect directly - via a new radio port (RP) interface - to a packet data serving node (PDSN). The PDSN will perform the traffic aggregation function, similar to that handled by circuit switches today. The PDSN uses authentication, accounting and administration (AAA) servers for user authentication and traffic management, then forwards traffic to a gateway router/home agent (GRHA) at the designated IP network.
Samsung will provide the radio access network equipment, including base transceiver systems and base station controllers. 3Com will provide the data core network, which includes the packet data serving nodes (PSDN), home agent (HA), authentication/billing servers, and network management system. Equipment from the two companies will inter-connect using fully standards-compliant interfaces, as defined by the IOS Version 4 interface, TIA/EIA/IS-2001, under the TIA's IS-2000 series of standards, and TIA/EIA/TSB115 (PN-4286) and TIA/EIA/IS-835 (PN-4732). With its greater efficiency and capacity, the 3Com/Samsung solution will be able to host more than 256,000 concurrent calls in the space of a standard central office rack.
3Com's Wireless Leadership
3Com Carrier Networks Business is the world's leading manufacturer of CDMA 2G wireless data equipment, and its CDMA 2G interworking function (IWF) solution is currently compatible with all major CDMA switches and is used by virtually every major CDMA cellular and PCS carrier worldwide. 3Com's wireless data equipment connects directly to wireless switches or radio access networks to provide the interworking and protocol conversions required to deliver both circuit-switched and packet-switched data capabilities to mobile data users. The wireless data technology is based on the award-winning Total Control(R) 1000 multiservice access platform and the CommWorks architecture from 3Com Carrier Networks Business. The Total Control 1000 platform gives service providers a powerful and highly reliable networking solution, including support for enhanced data access, carrier-grade IP telephony, IP fax, cable access, virtual private networking and other converged voice, video and data applications.
About the CommWorks Architecture
The CommWorks architecture encompasses all areas of 3Com's carrier portfolio, reflecting the multiservice nature of the company's offerings in enhanced data services, IP telephony, wireless data access, and broadband access. The CommWorks architecture gives service providers a cohesive, methodical migration path as they shift from circuit-based networks to feature-rich and efficient packet-based IP networks. The architecture includes a full line of products and services to support complete IP-based infrastructures. With open interfaces throughout, the CommWorks architecture allows service providers worldwide to quickly develop differentiated enhanced services and stake out leadership positions in their markets. 3Com developed the CommWorks architecture in a standards-based environment designed to drive the evolution of IP-offerings through partnerships that will provide the building blocks for the next-generation of telecommunication service providers.
About Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.
Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., with 1999 sales revenues of US$22.8 billion, is a world leader in the electronics industry. The Korea-based concern has operations in about 50 countries with 54,000 employees worldwide. The company consists of three main business units: Digital Media, Semiconductors and Information & Communications Businesses. For more information, please visit our website, samsungelectronics.com.
About 3Com Corporation
With more than 300 million customers worldwide, 3Com Corporation connects more people and organizations to information and each other in more innovative, simple and reliable ways than any other networking company. 3Com delivers web-enabled solutions to consumers, small- to medium-sized business locations and network service providers. For further information, visit 3Com's World Wide Web site at www.3com.com or the press site at www.3com.com/pressbox.
3Com, CommWorks and Total Control are registered trademarks of 3Com Corporation. All other company and product names may be trademarks of the respective companies with which they are associated.
CONTACT:
3Com Public Relations
Karin Bakis, 508/323-1562
karin-bakis@3com.com
or
Steven M. Ostrowski, 847/342-6304
steven-m-ostrowski@3com.com
or
Angela Heng, 852/2501-1231
angela-heng@3com.com
KEYWORD: CALIFORNIA |
