Verizon nears convergence goal

Optical Networking This newsletter is sponsored by Altiris Six steps to pain-free hardware upgrades Desktop hardware upgrades are traditionally costly, complicated and time-consuming - but now it's time to break with tradition. Discover six steps to a successful hardware refresh. Click here to watch this Webcast Network World's Optical Networking Newsletter, 06/27/07 Verizon nears convergence goal By Jim Duffy and Denise Pappalardo Verizon Business will announce vendors it has selected for its converged core router architecture and its next-generation multiservice access edge in the third quarter, according to officials interviewed at the NXTcomm conference here. Verizon Business has had an RFP out for a few years on the converged core router. The carrier has been looking for a system that can consolidate its five separate IP networks into the same box with virtual segmentation and 100% availability. The multiservice edge project will essentially be the next-generation Converged Packet Access (CPA) architecture, said Fred Briggs, executive vice president of network operations and technology at Verizon Business. CPA converges multiple services -- IP, Ethernet, private line data and voice -- over a single Ethernet interface for access to an IP/MPLS core at speeds up to 1Gbps. Network World LAN/WAN Buyer's Guide Find the right LAN/WAN products for your enterprise - fast. Our extensive database of detailed product information will help you quickly pinpoint what you need. With the side-by-side comparison tool you can evaluate product features and make the best decision for your enterprise. Click here to go to the Buyer's Guide now. The multiservice edge will extend access interfaces beyond Ethernet, Briggs said. These projects fall under Briggs’ network technology priorities for this year, which include 100% availability, flow-through provisioning, predictable latency and accurate billing. For availability and predictable latency, Verizon Business is extending its optical mesh technology onto three routes in the Pacific Ocean, Briggs said. It is on seven routes in the Atlantic and it helped Verizon Business maintain uptime on its Private IP VPN service during the devastating earthquake in Taiwan late last year. The carrier plans to deploy the optical mesh across the United States in the second half of this year. “One of the big drivers is latency,” Briggs said, as are better restoration, higher availability and predictable performance. The carrier’s vendors for the optical mesh are Ciena, with its CoreDirector product, and Alcatel-Lucent’s LambdaUnite system. Verizon Business is also turning up its 40Gbps route between New York and Washington, D.C. It will trial 100Gbps next year, Briggs said. For the full story, please go here.   What do you think? Post a comment on this newsletter

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Contact the author: Jim Duffy is managing editor of Network World's service provider equipment coverage. He has 18 years of high-tech reporting experience, including over 12 years at Network World. Previously, he was senior editor at Computer Systems News and associate editor/reporter at Electronic News and MIS Week. He can be reached at jduffy@nww.com. Denise Pappalardo is a Senior Editor at Network World covering service providers. She can be reached by e-mail. This newsletter is sponsored by Altiris Six steps to pain-free hardware upgrades Desktop hardware upgrades are traditionally costly, complicated and time-consuming - but now it's time to break with tradition. Discover six steps to a successful hardware refresh. Click here to watch this Webcast ARCHIVE Archive of the Optical Networking Newsletter. BONUS FEATURE IT PRODUCT RESEARCH AT YOUR FINGERTIPS Get detailed information on thousands of products, conduct side-by-side comparisons and read product test and review results with Network World’s IT Buyer’s Guides. Find the best solution faster than ever with over 100 distinct categories across the security, storage, management, wireless, infrastructure and convergence markets. Click here for details. PRINT SUBSCRIPTIONS AVAILABLE You've got the technology snapshot of your choice delivered to your inbox each day. Extend your knowledge with a print subscription to the Network World newsweekly, Apply here today. International subscribers, click here. SUBSCRIPTION SERVICES To subscribe or unsubscribe to any Network World newsletter, change your e-mail address or contact us, click here. This message was sent to: networking.world@gmail.com. Please use this address when modifying your subscription. Advertising information: Write to Associate Publisher Online Susan Cardoza Network World, Inc., 118 Turnpike Road, Southborough, MA 01772 Copyright Network World, Inc., 2007