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Technology Stocks : MRV Communications (MRVC) opinions? -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: signist who wrote (11163)	11/4/1998 1:20:00 AM
From: Sector Investor	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 42804

John, that Silkroad post was one confusing announcement, but there is some information on their website. I plan to spend more time looking at this before I comment too much, I'm certainly no scientist or engineer. This though is interesting: From the Silkroad website: "In laboratory demonstrations, today's DWDM may contain up to 80 channels per fiber, where each channel transmits data up to 2.5 Gbit/per second. These systems cost upwards of $5 million to build and require erbium-doped fiber amplifiers (EDFAs) at frequent intervals. While addressing the need of increasing existing capacity on fiber-optic networks, DWDM does not address the question of how to efficiently switch signals on a network or add and drop information. In fact, switching multiple signals in a multi-wavelength environment is proving to be virtually impossible. From the June MRVC DWDM announcement: Current generation DWDM solutions offer only multiple fixed point-to-point connections on a fiber loop. However, data networks require rapid simultaneous and addressable connections to many sites to maintain efficient operations. Reconfiguration of current networks require either expensive digital cross-connects or physical rearrangement of components on the loop. In contrast to current generation DWDM solutions, MRV's Dynamic DWDM will create an optical layer for the access network. This optical layer will perform routing, switching and optical cross connect functions completely in the optical domain. Comments ******************* First off, what Silkroad says DWDM can't do, MRVC says they have already done. Secondly, MRVC's DWDM is NOT $5 Million boxes - probably not even 1% of that. They do not have facilities to build those huge boxes. MRVC's DWDM won't have the 80 or 96 wavelengths that LU or CIEN will have, but their solution will be VERY cost effective. Thirdly, Silkroad has only this technology available next year. They have to CONNECT TO SOMETHING before you have a solution. How long might that take on their own? They obviously have to find partners to develop this technology into hardware products. Whereas MRVC has a full array of Networking products besides their DWDM, all working together. Fourthly, a 90GB pipe needs ultrafast routers and switches to connect to it. The state-of the art in switching right now is about OC-48 (2.5GB/s), moving to OC-192(10GB/s) next year. MRVC's DWDM will take OC-48 AND OC-192 next year, plus they will have the monster router too. Fifthly, Silkroad claims a distance advantage over DWDM, BUT MRVC ALREADY has comparable distance AVAILABLE NOW. Perhaps companies like CIEN, who DOES have multi-million dollar boxes and the optical switching and distance limitations that Silkroad mentions, should be the ones worrying about this new technology. To me, this just shows the attractiveness of MRVC's technology as a full low cost next-generation solution set of products out by this time next year.