Cisco adds to DSL furor by boosting product portfolio
By Scott Berinato, PC Week Online
05.26.98 4:23 pm ET
zdnet.com
Cisco Systems Inc. today introduced a line
of DSL hardware that ranges from the end
user to the central office.
The budding technology is poised to attract modem users frustrated by
limited bandwidth while also grabbing corporate users looking for
high-bandwidth alternatives to costly T-1 lines. Digital subscriber line,
which comes in many flavors, ranges in speed from 128K to 8M bps.
DSL has been gaining acceptance rapidly, especially since the advent of
so-called "splitterless" technology. That technology, which will be
standardized as G.lite, allows users to add DSL to a computer as if it
were a modem. Previously, technicians had to come to a customer's site
and condition the phone lines. Cisco is part of the Universal ADSL
Working Group, which is set on proliferating the technology.
At the customer premises
For telecommuters, Cisco is shipping a PCI-based ADSL (asymmetric
DSL) "modem" that plugs into a computer. The CAP (Carrierless
Amplitude Phase) device can transmit data at up to 7M bps. The $240
device uses splitterless technology and has been endorsed by Dell
Computer Corp., which earlier this month announced that it will ship
PCs with DSL built in by the end of the year.
CAP is a modulation scheme that competes with DMT, or Dual
Multi-Tone. The two do not interoperate, and DMT is considered the
standard-in-waiting. However, CAP devices are more readily available
and less expensive, so the two coexist for now.
Other customer premises equipment
introduced today includes the Cisco 626
external ADSL modem. The DMT device
will run at up to 8M bps and sits in front of a
1400 or 3600 router at a small or branch
office. Pricing has not been set. Shipments
are expected to begin in October, said Cisco
officials in San Jose, Calif.
Cisco's 675 for CAP networks and 676 for DMT networks integrate
the routing right into the device. (US West Communications' MegaBit
service will employ these devices.) They start at $499. The 675 is
available now, while the 676 is due to ship in October.
For offices using the 626 to connect several users with one DSL
connection, Cisco has added the 1401 router. The $1,495 device
integrates IP and ATM (asynchronous transfer mode), virtual private
networking and firewall capabilities. Beta trials begin in September. The
626 can also connect to 3600 routers from Cisco through a new ATM
module. Available now, the module will cost $2,200. Both products use
25M-bps ATM, officials said.
The service providers' end of the equation
All of the customer equipment is useless without an access device at the
central office. ISPs (Internet service providers) and local phone
companies are looking to deploy the high-speed technology for several
reasons. For one thing, it's a new revenue stream for cash-strapped
ISPs. Competitive local exchange carriers, or CLECs, can offer DSL as
an alternative to phone companies' expensive T-1 service, of which
there is a shortage. Regional Bell Operating Companies, meanwhile, are
faced with adapting to the competitive technology or losing customers to
CLECs. In the meantime, phone companies, which own the central
office space and lease it, can make it very difficult for competitors to
deploy equipment.
On the central office side, Cisco introduced three access concentrators
and two service and management systems, starting with the 6100
DSLAM (DSL access multiplexer). The 6100 will support from 192 to
600 users per 7-foot telco rack. OC-3 or T-3 uplinks are available.
Shipping now in CAP format and in September with DMT support, the
6100 series starts at $14,500.
One step up is the 6200 DSLAM. While the 6100 is specific to local
phone companies and their emerging competitors, the CLECs, the 6200
extends to worldwide telephone companies. Support for the different
loop designs overseas will make this product applicable to DSL service
in several countries, officials said. The 6200 will support 240 users per
rack and will first be available in CAP format in July. DMT support is
slated for September. It will start at $18,650.
To use climbers' parlance, that "Hillary Step" in Cisco's DSL central
office equipment brings carriers to the 6400 Universal Access
Concentrator. The 6400 will aggregate traffic from 6100 and 6200
DSLAMs as well as third-party DSLAMs. It will terminate up to 8,000
sessions and support a tunneling architecture for VPN (virtual private
network). Available in October, it will list at $42,000, officials said.
Time to decorate the house
With the plumbing in place, service providers will want to decorate the
house. This means enhanced services such as on-demand bandwidth
and VPNs, which provide additional revenue to ISPs, must be included
in any service offering. Cisco today introduced two products to address
this.
The Cisco 6510 Service Selection Gateway and Dashboard is a dial
and DSL management platform that provides two key features: It
enables service providers to create service portfolios for corporate
customers while handling all accounting and billing functions, and it
allows ISPs to turn services on and off. Not only will this allow
corporate customers to set up flexible service contracts that can be
changed as needs change, but it also gives the service provider the
ability to market special-event services, such as extra bandwidth at the
same price for a limited time. This is similar to the way long-distance
service is flexibly marketed.
Available in June, the 6510 will cost $43,000, Cisco officials said.
Working in tandem with the 6510 SSG and Dashboard will be the User
Control Point, or UCP. UCP is a policy engine that makes viable
services such as usage-based billing (as opposed to flat-rate billing),
roaming services, IP address management and network planning. It will
cost $60,000 including installation and training and is expected to ship in
July, officials said.
Cisco will demonstrate the equipment at Supercomm in Atlanta in two
weeks.
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