Friday, May 29, 2020

CenturyLink connects 14,000 homes in Boulder, Colo. to fiber

CenturyLink has big plans to bring more fiber to more cities this year. On Friday, CenturyLink announced it recently finished up a fiber project that connected 14,000 additional homes, in Boulder, Colorado to gigabit speeds. The fiber-to-the-home project, which also included some businesses in the Boulder area, started last year.

Lowenstein: Avoiding another multi-billion broadband boondoggle

The call to bridge the digital divide has intensified since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic. The move to work and learn from home has thrown into sharp relief the broadband gap. Some 10-15% of Americans can’t get a decent broadband connection even if they wanted it -- these are the unserved or underserved. Another 10-20% of households don’t have broadband because the $50-$60 monthly price tag represents a significant financial hardship. These are the high school kids doing their homework in the McDonald’s parking lot. 

Comcast kicks the tires on a WFH SD-WAN service

With millions of employees now working from home, service providers are looking for ways to offer more secure, manageable services into those home offices. SD-WAN could emerge as a prime technology that better enables work-from-home (WFH) and work-from-anywhere (WFA) scenarios for enterprises.

Report: Ciena, Cisco and Infinera leaders of the Q1 DCI pack

In Q1, Ciena, Cisco and Infinera were the top three vendors in the data center interconnect market, according to a report by Dell'Oro Group. Combined, those three vendors accounted for more than 70% of the market share in the first quarter, which was driven by increased demand for data center connectivity.

GSMA cosies up to O-RAN Alliance

The GSMA, the telco industry lobby group, has announced a new partnership with the O-RAN Alliance to accelerate the adoption of Open Radio Access Network (RAN) technologies.

Thursday, May 28, 2020

Pandemic Muddles SD-WAN Supply Chain

The ongoing pandemic and a seismic shift in the number of people working from home has put a new emphasis on SD-WAN. There’s just one problem: this explosion in demand, coupled with an already strained supply chain, means many companies are having to wait weeks for the hardware they need.

Daily Roundup: Cisco Pays $1B for ThousandEyes

In case you’ve been stuck in video conference meetings all day, here are today’s top stories from SDxCentral. Also, make sure to subscribe to our daily newsletter to get these stories in your inbox.

GSMA, O-RAN Forge Alliance

Open RAN is on a roll, gaining support from the largest and most consequential association in the mobile industry. The GSMA and O-RAN Alliance linked up today to collaborate on products and services that adhere to the vision of open radio access networks (RAN).

Will Broadcom step up for DOCSIS 4.0?

Industry sources say Broadcom has halted investment in next-gen DOCSIS technology until it gets financial support from cable operators, including help footing the bill on product development.

Dell Weathers Initial Coronavirus Storm

Dell Technologies sounded a cautious tone in releasing its latest earnings, noting that while results were relatively flat year over year, it was in a good position to ride out the current coronavirus uncertainty.

Cisco Continues to Dominate COVID-19 Clipped Switch, Router Market

COVID-19 took a $1 billion bite out of the ethernet switch and router market in the first-quarter of 2020, pushing vendor revenues to their lowest level since the first-quarter of 2013, according to a new report from the Synergy Research Group (SRG). Despite the financial hit, Cisco continues to dominate the space.

SAP Cloud CFO Set to Jump Ship

SAP is set to lose the CFO from its cloud business, which the German-based firm has repeatedly described as an important cog in its recently revamped organizational structure.

12 GHz band returns to 5G stage

While Dish Network is busy positioning itself as the fourth facilities-based carrier in the U.S., a group of industry organizations is asking the FCC to revisit a petition Dish and others filed four years ago that would make more mid-band spectrum available for 5G.

Moore: About 83% of postpaid carrier stores were open in mid-May

May has been a month of recovery from the nadir of sales amid the pandemic. At the end of March, Wave7 Research reported that 45% of postpaid carrier stores were open, but this number rose to an estimated 83% in mid-May. Only 73% of stores of the top three prepaid brands – Metro by T-Mobile, Boost Mobile and Cricket Wireless – were open in early April, but the Wave7 Research mid-May estimate was that 96% of prepaid stores were open.

AT&T serves up a faster broadband speed for WFH employees

The impact of the coronavirus pandemic has caused service providers to pivot their resources toward better connectivity and security for the millions of employees that are now working from home. On that note, AT&T Business announced on Thursday that it's offering a new broadband service for residence locations that features symmetrical speeds of 1-Gig. 

AT&T to deploy DSS in second half of 2020

Verizon has probably been the carrier most vocal about benefits of dynamic spectrum sharing (DSS) technology, but rival AT&T is also a fan and SVP Igal Elbaz said Thursday that the carrier expects to deploy DSS later this year.

Q&A: Colt's new CEO is ready to blaze her own trail

It's a long way, literally and figuratively, from Leadville, Colorado to London, but Colt's new CEO has made the transition with aplomb. Last week, Keri Gilder was named as CEO of Colt after previously working there for 18 months as its chief commercial officer.

Wednesday, May 27, 2020

VMware Posts Q1 Beat, Reports Triple-Digit VMC on AWS Growth

VMware reported stronger-than-expected first-quarter fiscal 2021 earnings and revenue today driven by strong subscription and software-as-a-service (SaaS) revenue. This included its hybrid-cloud service with Amazon Web Services (AWS), which saw triple-digit growth during the quarter.

O-RAN Alliance Co-Chair Dishes on Open RAN Journey

The success of open radio access networks (RAN) will ultimately be gauged by how much of the architecture is deployed in commercial networks, according to Sachin Katti, co-chair of the O-RAN Alliance’s technical steering committee. 

Instana Adds W3C API Support to APM Platform

Instana today announced support for World Wide Web Consortium’s (W3C) Trace Context and User Timing APIs within its application performance monitoring (APM) suite. The Chicago-based APM vendor specializes in providing customers greater visibility across cloud-native microservices.

Docker Drives Desktop Deeper Into Microsoft Azure

Docker Inc. is more tightly integrating its Docker Desktop into Microsoft Azure and Visual Studio products in an attempt to make it easier for developers to move their container deployments between the two ecosystems. The move builds on Docker Inc.’s migration from an infrastructure company to a support company.

NetApp Revenue Hits 9-Year Low

NetApp reported its lowest full-year revenue since 2011 with fiscal year 2020 revenue of $5.41 billion, down 12% from the $6.15 million it reported for fiscal year 2019.

Cisco Throws Its Weight Behind SASE

Cisco today threw its full weight behind the secure access service edge (SASE) architecture, thus eliminating any doubt that the Gartner-coined network and security category is more than hype.

Shaw joins the gigabit club

Canadian operator has launched 'Fibre+ Gig,' a DOCSIS 3.1-powered residential broadband product that has ties to Shaw's syndication deal with Comcast.

Daily Roundup: Cisco Gets SASE

In case you’ve been stuck in video conference meetings all day, here are today’s top stories from SDxCentral. Also, make sure to subscribe to our daily newsletter to get these stories in your inbox.

Cisco Advances Software Push With $1B ThousandEyes Buy

Cisco today announced plans to acquire ThousandEyes, a multi-cloud network monitoring vendor based in San Francisco. The companies declined to share financial terms of the deal, but Bloomberg, which broke the news and seemingly prompted a rushed announcement, reported it was nearly $1 billion. 

Splunk Splashes Platform With Cloud, Machine Learning Updates

Splunk jumped back into the cloud and machine learning pool this week with a cannonball of new capabilities to Splunk Cloud and Splunk Data Stream Processor (DSP) as well as other updates to the core Splunk platform that aim to strengthen real-time stream processing. 

Carr: 5G Upgrade Order will make antenna swaps faster

With the 5G Upgrade Order on the FCC’s next open meeting agenda, the agency will be looking to update its rules governing how existing macro towers are treated as opposed to the new small cells that were part of earlier efforts to smooth the transition to 5G.

Report: Microsoft mulls $2B investment in Jio Platforms

When it comes to investing in Jio Platforms, Microsoft could be next. Various Indian media outlets are reporting that Microsoft is mulling a $2 billion stake in Jio Platforms.  According to two unnamed sources in a story by the Hindustan Times, Microsoft's $2 billion investment would buy it a 2.5% stake in Jio Platforms.

Nokia VP: Open RAN not a ‘binary choice’

While some might question why Nokia, as one of the major traditional telecom suppliers, recently joined the OpenRAN policy coalition, executives say it makes perfect sense and there’s more to be gained working collaboratively alongside newer players to move the needle on shared basic policy objectives like the need for R&D funding and support to compete against the likes of Huawei.  

Tuesday, May 26, 2020

Cable-Tec Expo 2020 in Denver is a no-go

SCTE/ISBE is considering alternative arrangements after receiving notification that the designation of the Colorado Convention Center as a temporary medical facility has been extended through the rest of the year.

Daily Roundup: Cisco Licks Wounds

In case you’ve been stuck in video conference meetings all day, here are today’s top stories from SDxCentral. Also, make sure to subscribe to our daily newsletter to get these stories in your inbox.

5G wacky races

Different spectrum vehicles partly explain why 5G operators are traveling at varying speeds (but there's more to 5G race-performance than a nifty acceleration pedal).

Cisco Licks Wounds, Targets Next Cloud Computing Wave

Cisco missed out in the first wave of cloud computing, but the company is confident that its new programmable silicon architecture and 8000 Series router will chart a new course, Jonathan Davidson, SVP and GM of Cisco’s Mass-Scale Infrastructure business, said today during an investor conference.

T-Mobile, Google team up to promote RCS adoption

Could 2020 finally be the year for Rich Communications Services (RCS)? Signs are pointing that way, with the latest being an announcement by Google and T-Mobile that they’ve expanded RCS, so T-Mobile customers can get the same RCS experience when texting with Android users on other networks across the globe.

Is virtualization causing fragmentation to the 5G standard?

The competitive fervor over 5G is at an all-time high in the U.S. with AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile touting their 5G network speeds and coverage areas. But the industry still has a long way to go to realize the full potential of 5G. These early deployments that operators are currently promoting use non-standalone (NSA) 5G technology, which means that they use the existing LTE radio access network for signaling between devices and the network. It also means the networks are using an evolved packet core, which is enhanced to support NSA.

Retail explores use of CBRS private wireless networks

Retailers are already starting to use Citizens Broadband Radio Service (CBRS) private wireless networks for outdoor connectivity. Analysts say there are several ways for malls and theme parks to use the technology, including backhaul, internal communication and interactive kiosks.

Monday, May 25, 2020

KT Commercializes 5G Self-Driving Freight Carts

KT Corp., South Korea’s largest telecommunications company, announced today that it is using 5G self-driving carts at its logistics center, enabling a nearly 50 percent reduction in employees’ travel range for loading and transporting inventory.

Operators hope for a VR catalyst to 5G

Verizon, China Mobile and Deutsche Telekom are among the 5G operators rallying around a new batch of virtual and augmented reality devices that could eventually boost their service revenues.

Nokia Cries Foul on Rivals’ 800G Claims

Nokia called out misleading 800 Gb/s fiber optic field trials in a blog post Tuesday, just days after the telecommunications vendor doubled down on 400 Gb/s optics with the launch of its own WaveFabric Elements portfolio.

Hospitals to use CBRS private wireless networks to enhance care

Healthcare facilities are likely to connect people and equipment to private CBRS networks in the future. IT professionals that focus on healthcare are evaluating the technology and talking to the makers of connected medical devices about the idea of adding CBRS radios to their products. Use cases include outdoor connectivity, asset tracking, critical communications and patient monitoring.

Make Metadata Active Again

Data management must be everywhere, according to Gartner VP Mark Beyer. “It has to recognize everything. It has to be dynamic in every way and enable discovery by everyone,” the analyst said during his keynote at Informatica’s Intelligent Data Summit, the first of a series of free events taking place this summer.

Daily Roundup: IBM Slashes Jobs

In case you’ve been stuck in video conference meetings all day, here are today’s top stories from SDxCentral. Also, make sure to subscribe to our daily newsletter to get these stories in your inbox.

Is Nokia Serious About Open RAN?

Nokia is the first major radio access network (RAN) vendor to join the Open RAN Policy Coalition that was formed three weeks ago to promote policies that standardize and develop open interfaces. 

How 5G can power a resurgence with ‘network native’ enterprises

It is clear to me that no individual or business has remained untouched by the pandemic. But just as sure is my belief that technological innovation will drive our recovery and usher in a new dawn of digitalization. 5G will be at the heart of this, helping enterprises improve their resilience and power their growth.

Sunday, May 24, 2020

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