PITTSBURGH, Jan. 11 /PRNewswire/ -- FORE Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:FORE), a
leading global supplier of multiservice networking solutions, announced today
that the company has been selected by Cable & Wireless USA, Vienna, Virginia,
to provide backbone solutions and products for the company's high-performance
Internet Protocol (IP) network. Cable & Wireless USA's newly acquired
Internet business will deploy the ForeRunner(R) ASX(TM)-4000, FORE's industry-
leading ATM (Asynchronous Transfer Mode) switch.
The Cable & Wireless USA network today uses FORE Systems' products as the
core switching layer for the company's nationwide Internet Protocol (IP)
network, offering unmatched flexibility and scalability to accommodate
exponential bandwidth growth and higher levels of customer services.
"The core of the Internet must accommodate new high speed access
technologies on the horizon, like xDSL and cable modems, as well as video and
traditional voice applications," said Randy Catoe, senior vice president,
Internet engineering, operations, solutions and support for Cable & Wireless
USA. "These technologies are rapidly becoming available and, with the
addition of the ASX-4000 in our network, we are well positioned to support the
growing demand for those services."
"Cable & Wireless USA is one of the key Tier 1 ISPs that pioneered and
implemented the principles of traffic engineering within the core of the
Internet," said Robert Sansom, chief technology officer and co-founder of FORE
Systems. "Their forward-thinking approach to traffic engineering is a
fundamental building block for traffic management in MPLS (MultiProtocol Label
Switching)."
ASX-4000 Fortifies the Cable & Wireless USA Network
During the first phase of Cable & Wireless USA's network upgrade, a total
of 18 ASX-4000 switches -- each with 40 Gbps of non-blocking, full-duplex
switching capacity -- will be deployed at various Cable & Wireless USA sites
across the United States.
"The ASX-4000s will complement our existing ForeRunner ASX-1000
infrastructure by offering an architecture that supports TCP/IP traffic flows
of up to OC-48c speeds (2.5 Gbps) and at unprecedented OC-12 (622 Mbps) port
density," said Catoe. "FORE is currently the only vendor that is shipping OC-
48c ATM interfaces -- and that technology leadership was a big factor in our
decision to extend our commitment to FORE."
ASX-1000 ATM backbone switches currently in use by Cable & Wireless USA
will be redeployed at each location to perform router concentration services
that will further enhance the network's overall performance and reliability.
The company's decision to standardize on the ASX-4000, and to utilize a
separate Layer 2 backbone, followed an extensive evaluation of switching
technologies and vendors.
"Our investigation of technology and vendor options convinced us that
combining separate Layer 2 and Layer 3 infrastructures offered a far more
scalable, proven architecture," Catoe said. "ATM is clearly superior for
supporting high-performance ISP applications by eliminating hops, creating a
more easily managed network."
ASX-4000 Delivers Key Features for Service Providers
Hardware and software from FORE Systems enables Cable & Wireless USA to
perform various kinds of traffic engineering. Additional features such as
reliability and resiliency are essential elements in a large nationwide
network supporting millions of customers.
"Cable & Wireless USA has been an instrumental partner in driving features
that are critical to our service provider customer base," said Ron McKenzie,
vice president of strategic marketing at FORE Systems.
"Our decision to choose FORE products also was clear-cut," Catoe said.
"FORE offers superior port density, along with the traffic management
intelligence in hardware and software required for IP transport applications.
The result is a backbone that addresses our current requirements while
providing a clear path to OC-48c with future support for OC-192 and even
higher transport speeds. Our network will also allow us to introduce voice
and video services in the future."
"Large Internet Service Providers succeed or fail by the reliability,
resiliency and flexibility of their networks," said Thomas J. Gill, president
and CEO of FORE Systems. "Through our close relationship with Cable &
Wireless USA, one of the world's leading Internet services companies, we seek
to answer those needs today and provide them with a strategic technology
advantage that positions them strongly for the future."
About Cable & Wireless USA
Cable & Wireless is one of the world's leading providers of integrated
communications and a major global supplier of communications traffic:
Internet, data, voice and video. Its businesses around the world offer a
range of services spanning interactive entertainment and information,
broadband data, Internet access and broadcast television, as well as fixed and
mobile voice. With 17 million customers in 70 countries, Cable & Wireless is
one of the world's largest carriers of international traffic, provides mobile
communications in more than 30 countries and operates the world's largest,
most advanced cableship fleet. Cable & Wireless plc is listed on the Stock
Exchanges of London, New York (NYSE:CWP) and Frankfurt.
About FORE Systems
FORE Systems is a leading global supplier of networking solutions based on
an Intelligent Infrastructure(TM) designed to handle the networked
applications of today and tomorrow.
FORE's Networks of Steel(TM) deliver the increased capacity, reduced
complexity and unparalleled flexibility and scalability necessary to build
networks that last. Thousands of enterprise and service provider customers
worldwide have put FORE Systems' solutions at the heart of their networks. |
