From : Mobile Next, an Ericsson publication -----
Ericsson to contribute to first commercial WCDMA system
Ericsson has been selected to jointly develop the world's first WCDMA mobile phones and base transceiver station systems by Japan's NTTDoCoMo. NTTDoCoMo plans call for commercial service to start in April 2001.
"As is typical of NTTDoCoMo, they will be developing the system with us," says Benny Larsson, head of NTTDoCoMo marketing at Ericsson. "We provide the platform and they provide the application software." The first base station prototypes will be delivered in early 2000, he says.
The terminals are also being developed in a collaborative fashion, which is a first for Ericsson, according to Göran Skyttvall of Ericsson's Consumer Products business segment. "Previously, we have provided completed terminals for NTTDoCoMo under their track 3A regulations. The new agreement will be carried out under track 3 regulations, which instead call for a collaborative R&D effort to develop the new terminals."
NTTDoCoMo is a key operator in Japan. "They not only have almost 60 percent of the cellular market share in Japan," says Larsson, "but other operators in Japan view them as a reference." NTTDoCoMo is active throughout Asia as well, with technical cooperations with operators in Korea, Taiwan, Indonesia, Singapore and China.
Details of the WCDMA contract, including matters such as intellectual property rights and the actual supply terms, have yet to be finalized.
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NTTDoCoMo
Ericsson and Vodafone sign collaboration agreements to develop 3G
Ericsson and Vodafone, the United Kingdom's most popular mobile phone network and a leading international GSM operator, have agreed to collaborate on the development and evaluation of third-generation wireless technologies.
The agreement includes extensive technical experiments. Vodafone announced its Wireless Information Superhighway trials to investigate the performance of wideband mobile multimedia last fall, and Ericsson launched a 3G/UMTS testbed in Guildford, U.K., in February 1999 with the U.K.'s first public demonstration of live WCDMA multimedia calls.
Vodafone has actively participated in this early phase to understand the potential strengths of the new technology in delivering 3G services, and it sees great value in the results of these joint trials to all potential 3G operators. Building on the achievements of the Guildford testbed, Ericsson is installing more WCDMA base stations around Newbury. These will form a key part of the Vodafone multi-party trials.
"The establishment of these joint trials marks another significant milestone in the long and successful relationship between Ericsson and Vodafone, which first covered TACS, then GSM and now third-generation network infrastructure," says Nils Grimsmo, Ericsson's managing director in the U.K.
Says Alan Harper, Vodafone Ltd.'s managing director: "We are delighted to be commencing trials well before the forthcoming 3G license auctions, so that we can understand the practical challenges of deploying WCDMA. It will also help us align our inputs to 3G standardization to ensure these are completed in a timely fashion to allow commercial service to start as soon as possible."
Ericsson has already set up WCDMA experimental systems in the U.K., Japan, Germany, Italy, Sweden and China. Ericsson is also a leader in experimental systems for multiple technologies, such the first systems focusing on EDGE.
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Vodafone
Deal for U.S. firm adds to Ericsson IP-PBX services
Ericsson has added to its range of enterprise IP-telephony solutions with the recent purchase of Silicon Valley's TouchWave for US$46 million. The deal should also expand Ericsson's U.S. presence by opening new distribution channels.
TouchWave products provide full-feature PBX services, voicemail and auto attendant services over a single IP-based network platform. The company targets small and medium-sized businesses, as well as subsidiaries of larger organizations. TouchWave's WebSwitch 2000 and WebSwitch 1608 complement Ericsson's Business Phone 250 and MD110 PBX products. TouchWave's expertise will also help Ericsson further develop its existing IP telephony technology.
"The IP-PBX market is driven by the need to reduce costs and to consolidate scarce networking resources," says Haijo Pietersma, executive vice president and head of Ericsson's Enterprise Solutions business segment. "It offers users new and enhanced IP-enabled network services. TouchWave products are particularly attractive to Internet service providers who need to add value to their present data network services."
Ericsson and Symbol Technologies to sell enterprise solutions
Ericsson Enterprise Solutions and Symbol Technologies recently announced an agreement to deliver wireless LAN-based telephony and data solutions from a single networking platform to enterprise and vertical markets. The agreement will include co-marketing efforts and technology sharing.
The two companies will combine their expertise in technology and services to deliver a streamlined networking environment combining voice and data on a single infrastructure to its customers, enterprise-wide, from the office to remote operations, such as manufacturing facilities, logistics centers and retail outlets.
"This partnership brings together the potent combination of Ericsson's on-site mobility, data networking and IP telephony solutions with Symbol's innovations in industry-specific systems, wireless local area networks and standards-compliant voice-over-IP client devices," says Richard Bravman, senior vice president of wireless systems at Symbol Technologies.
According to the agreement, Ericsson will supply its Webswitch IP-PBX offerings (products from the recent Touchwave acquisition; see story above), computer telephony servers, and Network Access product lines to Symbol Technologies. Symbol will supply its NetVision voice-over-IP phones, mobile computers and Spectrum24® wireless local area network access points to Ericsson.
In addition, Ericsson and Symbol will share technologies, jointly develop common technology platforms and develop customer solutions based on voice-over-IP technologies. Both companies are committed to developing standards-based solutions.
For instance, Ericsson is developing and will offer high-speed (50-60 Mbps) flexible wireless datacom solutions for both office and public-access solutions based on the HiperLAN/2 standard. Symbol's Spectrum24 and NetVision product lines conform to IEEE802.11 airwaves standards and ITU H.323 multimedia standards.
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Symbol Technologies
Ericsson and Juniper Networks agreement benefits next-generation IP solutions
Ericsson and Juniper Networks, Inc., have recently finalized a series of strategic agreements to enable the next generation of multi-service IP network solutions. The first agreement is a contract that allows Ericsson full rights to distribute U.S.-based Juniper's M40 Internet backbone router as the Ericsson AXI 520.
The cooperation between the companies allows carriers and Internet service providers to take advantage of Ericsson's systems integration, turnkey support and global professional services, while benefiting from Juniper's extensive IP backbone routing experience.
"We chose to work with Juniper because of their broad experience in high-performance Internet routers and reputation for delivering flexible, reliable systems," says Mike Thurk, president and general manager of Ericsson Datacom Inc. "Combined with our expertise in ATM switching and IP telephony, our core IP products are now unsurpassed in the market."
To further the development of integrated IP solutions, Ericsson and Juniper also signed a cooperative technology agreement to explore converging opportunities in voice and IP. Separately, Ericsson has increased its minority equity interest in Juniper Networks and taken a position on Juniper's board.
The AXI 520 is the first routing system designed specifically to meet the needs of rapidly growing IP-based high-speed service providers. It processes 40 million packets per second, delivering the fastest backbone routing performance today. It also provides unmatched port density from DS3 to OC48 coupled with JUNOS Internet software.
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Juniper
Copyright and Editorial Information
© Copyright 1999 Ericsson
Mobile Next is an Ericsson publication produced in cooperation with Appelberg Publications AB, Stockholm, Sweden.
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