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Daily news and top headlines for broadband communications engineering and design professionals
OpenTV to supply middleware in two deals
June 27, 2001 8:00 pm | by Anne Kerven | CommentsOpenTV just signed two deals over its ITV middleware, one each with Pace Micro Technology and ACTV Inc. Pace will use OpenTV's broadband software on its cable home gateway. The two have combined their technologies since 1996, but under the new agreement, they'll jointly develop digital cable technology worldwide, they report.
Study: DWDM will carry optical networks in short-term
June 27, 2001 8:00 pm | by Anne Kerven | CommentsDWDM may bail out the optical networking market, at least in the short-term, a study says. According to Cahners InStat, a sister division of CED, fiber installations during 1999 and 2000 left a "large inventory of (now-dark) fiber, specifically in the long-haul market." That market will slow "markedly," the firm reports.
AOLTW funds disadvantaged firms; hires two VPs
June 27, 2001 8:00 pm | by Anne Kerven | CommentsAOL Time Warner Inc. set up a fund that will invest about $100 million in three years in minority- and women-owned or managed businesses. The new fund will be headed by Rachel S. Lam, new VP of the company's investments unit. Criteria of the AOL Time Warner Opportunity Investment Fund include significant diversity in senior management, a target of underserved markets and operations that fit wit...
360Networks to cut 800 jobs worldwide
June 27, 2001 8:00 pm | by Anne Kerven | Comments360networks will cut nearly half its worldwide workforce, or 800 jobs, to control operating costs, it says. The cuts affect jobs in North America, Europe, South America and Asia. President and CEO Greg Maffei cited a "very challenging telecom environment and our need to operate as cost-efficiently as possible.
Gearworks' 2.0 tracks field workers on handhelds
June 27, 2001 8:00 pm | by Anne Kerven | CommentsGearworks released its 2.0 version of etrace, which includes a software platform that runs etrace via handhelds and Internet-enabled phones and pagers. An upgrade from 1.0, the product lets field service workers transmit GPS-based tracking information, accept POS credit card payments with a legal signature, get real-time driving directions and print instant receipts.
Illinois governor expected to sign telecom bill
June 26, 2001 8:00 pm | by Anne Kerven | CommentsThe Illinois legislature passed a telecom bill that proponents call a "sweeping reform," detailing the duties of ILECs in the state and penalties for "anti-competitive conduct." Gov. George H. Ryan is expected to sign the bill tomorrow. The thus-far unnamed bill is not a response to what's going on in Washington with the Tauzin-Dingell bill, but a response to what the state has undergone, such ...
Philips to limit set-top platform diversity in U.S.
June 26, 2001 8:00 pm | by Anne Kerven | CommentsRoyal Philips Electronics is taking "major corrective actions" in its Digital Networks division, and will limit the diversity of its set-top boxes in the United States, company President and CEO Gerard Kleisterlee told analysts in Amsterdam yesterday. The company intends to limit platform diversity and focus on profitability, he said, adding that, "Partnerships will be actively pursued in order...
BroadJump goes international with Bell Canada
June 26, 2001 8:00 pm | by Anne Kerven | CommentsBroadJump Inc. picked up its first international customer when Bell Canada opted to use the company's Virtual Truck line in Bell's Sympatico DSL service. Bell Sympatico plans to start using the installation software immediately as part of a starter kit for its subscribers, BroadJump reports. The software automates the qualifying and set-up process.
Excite ISP use up; portal referrals drop
June 26, 2001 8:00 pm | by Anne Kerven | CommentsExciteAtHome saw its ISP usage jump, but its portal has dropped from second-place in popularity to eighth place, a study says. Excite's ISP cable modem service reached second-most-popular standing, behind AOL, says WebSideStory Inc.'s StatMarket. Excite's use quadrupled since early 1999, sending its usage share from 1.
Tality/UNH lab hold DOCSIS 1.1 tests
June 25, 2001 8:00 pm | by Anne Kerven | CommentsWant to run that modem through pre-test tests? The University of New Hampshire will use Tality Corp.'s DOCSIS 1.1 Automated Acceptance Test Plan suite to automate modem tests in its lab. The lab will hold both ongoing tests and a group test period in July. The tests are available to UNH's DOCSIS consortium members for a small fee and to others in the industry for a larger fee, says lab spokesma...
MSN to use Level 3 backbone
June 25, 2001 8:00 pm | by Anne Kerven | CommentsLevel 3 Communications Inc. signed a three-year agreement to supply Microsoft Corp. with broadband services. Under the deal, Level 3 will provide (3)CrossRoads Internet access service in North America for six properties in MSN's network. MSN's routing of "significant" traffic to Level 3's network will start with a service target of 3 Gbps of Level 3's backbone capacity, and almost a third of MS...
Cable subs will surge to 57.5 M globally by 2005
June 25, 2001 8:00 pm | by Anne Kerven | CommentsThe worldwide cable modem market surged last year by 178 percent, but that number will fall in the United States in the next few years, even as subscriptions grow in Western Europe, a study says. Worldwide, the number of cable modem subscribers will reach 57.5 million by 2005. IDC's Worldwide Cable Modem Equipment and Services Market Analysis and Forecast, 2000–2005, says the number of Am...
VOD ready to roll, Yankee Group says
June 24, 2001 8:00 pm | by Anne Kerven | CommentsVOD's technology and upgrades are in place this year "to achieve the critical mass required for commercial deployment," a Yankee Group study says. The research organization says the technology will generate revenue of $65 million by the end of the year and will reach $1.98 billion by the end of 2005.
Alcatel to maintain underwater cable in North Seas
June 24, 2001 8:00 pm | by Anne Kerven | CommentsThe North Sea Cable Maintenance Agreement, an international group of cable carriers, signed a 33-month deal with Alcatel to maintain all submarine networks laid in the North Sea. The group — which includes Concert, Deutsche Telekom, Tele Danmark, KPN, Telia and France Telecom — agreed to share the maintenance costs of the undersea networks.
TWC edges over competition, but customer count falls
June 24, 2001 8:00 pm | by Anne Kerven | CommentsTime Warner Cable shows an edge over other cable companies, with 14.4 percent of the cable TV households, but that number is down from last year's 15.5 percent of the customers, a new study says. Worse, the satellite industry is making inroads into the cable TV market and has higher customer-satisfaction ratings.
