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Tag Archives: Metro Core Transport
Could Broadband be the Shining Light of US Infrastructure?
As the political gears in the United States’ electoral machine begin to pick up speed, it’s fascinating to see the topics that are driving discussion. As you would expect, economic growth, employment and social welfare are some of the hot issues being bandied around by potential candidates. Yet one topic that has been largely absent from this early round of dialogue is the state of the country’s transport and communications infrastructure. Looking at some of the latest figures, this may be something that is about to change.
A recent Economist article highlights the critical condition of the country’s heavily overburdened air, rail and road systems. According to research from the World Economic Forum, the country’s infrastructure has actually deteriorated in recent years. In a global 2010 poll, the US was ranked 23rd for its transport systems. With much of the country travelling on antiquated air and rail networks or using roads that have fallen into disrepair, it isn’t surprising to find that this is impacting upon journey times.
Could VoIP Break the Mobile Industry?
As the ink still sets on Microsoft’s acquisition of Skype, industry analysts are continuing to debate the wide-reaching implications of the deal. With a price tag of $8.5 billion, Microsoft is taking a huge gamble on Skype’s potential to turn a profit, something it hasn’t done in many years. Yet this gamble is more than just on Skype. Microsoft has used over a sixth of its cash reserve in the expectation that voice and video calls over IP will become the key communication tool for both business and personal users.
The long-held promise of voice and video calls over IP is still yet to reach maturity. Since its launch in 2003, Skype has experienced a difficult and at times slow development path. The much-publicised acquisition by eBay and the near collapse of the company in 2008 has seen its expansion delayed, especially into video conferencing and mobile applications. Additionally, the marketplace has become much fiercer. Google Voice, Apple’s FaceTime and T-Mobile’s Bobsled (currently enabling VoIP calls on Facebook) are just a few of the competing services challenging Skype’s dominance.
A New Battleground in the Net-Neutrality Debate: Device Neutrality
April’s proving to be an interesting month for those following the net-neutrality debate. Within the first week we’ve already seen the US Court of Appeals swing into action and dismiss Verizon and MetroPCS’ anti-net neutrality lawsuits filed against the FCC. Thrown out on a legal technicality, many expect these lawsuits to be re-filed shortly. However, while most eyes where following the legal wranglings on Capitol Hill, a new battleground in the neutrality debate has emerged and this time it’s focused on devices.
Since its launch, the iPad has been a disruptive tool. One need only look at publishing to see how the iPad has led an entire industry to question how it operates and, more importantly, how the public wants to consume books and magazines. The same can be said for other media too. In fact, it’s the very issue of consuming film and TV on the iPad that has raised a heated discussion on the topic of device neutrality and the rights consumers have to access video content on mobile devices.
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Cord Cutting Corporate Backbones Device Neutrality Ethernet Access FCC Grid/Cloud Computing iPad iPhone Jeff Lawrence Long Haul Transport Metro Core Transport MetroPCS Mobile Backhaul Mobile Devices Net Neutrality Packet Optical Transport Playon Time Warner Cable TV Verizon Video Wireline Backhaul
The Challenge of Big Data
One of the many things that excite me about working in the tech sector is collaboration. Working collectively on new ideas and new technologies with people spread across the globe continues to inspire me on a daily basis. While on vacation a few weeks ago, I was able to watch such collaboration in action at a conference held by Om Malik on the topic of big data.
With a global delegate list and many people remotely interacting through social media channels, the Structure Big Data conference explored all aspects of managing today’s enormous data demands. However, there was one particular discussion that caught my attention. Focused on the challenges of moving big data around the world, this particular dialogue dived deep into the hurdles both business and domestic users face when trying to access data when they need it, where they need it.
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Bandwidth Demand Big Data Cloud computing Collaboration Conference Core Network Corporate Backbones Data Access Encryption Facetime Fixed Infrastructure Grid/Cloud Computing Long Haul Transport Low-latency Low-Latency Transport Metro Core Transport Mission Critical Mobile Backhaul Mobile Infrastructure Om Malik Online Communication Packet Optical Transport San Connectivity Skype Structure Big Data Venture Capitalists Wireline Backhaul
Is the Buzz Back in Infrastructure?
After a few days out of the office, I found myself yesterday thrown into a hectic schedule of analyst briefings and development calls. At the end of the day, one fact was undeniable – there’s a definite buzz in the optical networking space. As I mentioned in an earlier post, our global networks are at the first stage of what Infonetics Research is calling an optical reboot: The rebuilding of the networks’ core on a foundation of 40/100G, OTN and ROADM technologies.
The success of this rebuild is critical for every member of the networking ecosystem, from businesses aiming to leverage the latest cloud computing applications to reduce IT costs and complexities, to domestic users seeking to consume rich-media applications across a range of devices, and even service providers intent on providing a high-quality of service while at the same time growing profitably. The optical reboot is the first step to ensuring our networks evolve into a flexible infrastructure that can scale to meet tomorrow’s bandwidth demands.
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40/100G Ben Horowitz Cloud computing Corporate Backbones Dig Facebook Foursquare Grid/Cloud Computing Groupon Hardware Internet Bubble Long Haul Transport Metro Core Transport Mobile Backhaul New York Times Optical Optical Networking Optical Reboot OTN Packet Optical Transport ROADM San Connectivity Social Media Software Twitter Venture Capitalists Wireline Backhaul
