Number of results 25 for Networks

22/05/2012 - Juniper Networks joins QuestMark Partners in Vidyo Series D funding

Juniper Networks (NYSE:JNPR) is investing in video conferencing company Vidyo , through its Junos Innovation fund. The networking company is joining lead investor QuestMark Partners in the funding round and other existing investors Menlo Ventures, Rho Ventures, Star Ventures and Four Rivers Group.

Vidyo said the latest cash infusion will be used to increase its go-to-market activities and integrate its video conferencing products with Juniper's offerings.

Terms of the investment were not disclosed.

The New Jersey-based startup has so far raised $97 million.

Vidyo currently has more than 1,850 enterprise, healthcare, education, and government customers for its telepresence platform, a platform that routinely is referred to as a disruptor in the accelerating conferencing and collaboration space.

"As the use of video in the enterprise and on end devices continues to expand, our customers are seeking new ways to improve video delivery," said Jeff Lipton, vice president, Venture and Strategic Investments, Juniper Networks.  "Vidyo is an emerging player that is driving innovation in software-based videoconferencing."

Vidyo's co-founder and CEO, Ofer Shapiro, said the startup sees Juniper as "a kindred spirit," and said the investment "is a solid endorsement of our vision and a recognition of how rapidly the videoconferencing market is expected to grow."

For more:
- see this release

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Cisco, Polycom, now Avaya... is Vidyo the true disruptor of video conferencing space?
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21/05/2012 - Aruba gets nod for Voice-over-WiFi test bed

Aruba Networks' wireless LAN has received a thumbs up from the WiFi Alliance as part of that organization's WiFi Certified Voice-Enterprise and WiFi certified WMM-Admission control programs to drive standards-based certification of wireless infrastructure with client devices for enterprise voice over wireless LAN deployments.

The WiFi Alliance, having already worked in the consumer space, is taking its many-into-one certification process into the enterprise space where voice-over-WiFi is a growing concern. The certification process selects products and solutions with which all vendors must interoperate.

WiFi Certified Voice-Enterprise is designed to provide good voice quality in large enterprise networks requiring support for advanced WPA2-enterprise security mechanisms. WiFi Certified WMM-Admission Control provides bandwidth management tools that optimize voice and video traffic delivery in wireless networks.

"These two new WiFi Alliance certification programs will make it much easier for enterprises to ensure voice quality on mobile devices, replacing the variety of disparate, proprietary solutions with certified, standards-based solutions," Dorothy Stanley, head of standards strategy for Aruba Networks said in a news release.

The certification of Aruba's 3200 Mobility controller and AP-105 mean that other ecosystem vendors must purchase Aruba products to test their implementation against the reference standard.

For more:
 -see this release

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14/05/2012 - Mitel introduces IaaS play AnyWare for UCC

Unified communications specialist Mitel (Nasdaq: MITL) has rolled out an Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) play designed to extend its virtualized unified communications and collaboration (UCC) software.

The product, AnyWare, helps IT organizations deploy Mitel's Freedom Architecture to give them the option to host the virtualized UCC software in a virtual private data center.

The data center, provided by service provider division, Mitel NetSolutions, lets IT organizations implement a virtualized voice, unified communications and collaboration solutions without the capital necessary to deploy these virtual applications in their data center.

Organizations can deploy a private or hybrid cloud model that aims to streamline operations and reduce overall infrastructure costs.

"Mitel AnyWare IaaS provides a sophisticated, SAS70-certified virtual Private Data Center with the resources to support the deployment of Mitel's comprehensive UC applications," said Jon Brinton, president of Mitel NetSolutions.

AnyWare is is optimized for Mitel's purpose-built UCC applications and facilitates centralized UCaaS deployments which can reduce the lifecycle support costs associated with maintaining Enterprise communications infrastructure.

For more:
- see this release

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03/04/2012 - Genband buys Aztek Networks to bolster network transformation offering

Genband has acquired privately held Aztek Networks, a supplier of switch consolidation and network migration solutions. Terms of the deal, which closed today, include all of the company's assets and entire portfolio. Financial details were not released.

Genband said Aztek's line access technology would enhance the company's network transformation offering and enable operators to eliminate legacy TDM sites, consolidate and modernize their core network and realize capex and opex savings.

Genband said the Aztek 5000-series, which will be supported and marketed under the Genband G5 platform brand, will play an important role in its offering, as service providers look for a cost-effective way to replace legacy line access equipment.

"The Aztek acquisition strategically enhances our network transformation capabilities with both innovative technology and talent," said Charlie Vogt, president and CEO of Genband.

The company said the acquisition of the Aztek product line helps assure an efficient network transformation, ensure services are delivered without disruption and particularly enhances its TDM to IP network transformation in the last mile of the network.

Operators increasingly have been looking to replace aging TDM networks and copper infrastructure as the equipment reaches the end of its design lifetime. Doing so affordably without disrupting services to customers often can be a challenge.

"Few companies have more depth in IP Network Transformation than Genband," said Steven M. Bruny, CEO of Aztek Networks. "We are thrilled to join the company and complement Genband's team dedicated to network evolution."

Aztek Networks was backed by VC investors, including Verizon Investments. The company was founded in 1982 as Aztek Engineering and is based in Boulder, Colo.

For more:
- see this release

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02/04/2012 - Start up Insieme's poaching of rivals stirs resentment in the Valley

Insieme Networks, a company that looks destined to end up as a Cisco (Nasdaq: CSCO) "spin-in" to give the company a software-designed networking product line, appears to be ruffling more than a few feathers as it builds its engineering and executive pool by raiding other start ups in the Valley.

So far, the start up, which was started by a trio of Cisco veterans, reportedly has raided competing start ups Nicira, Big Switch Networks, Arista Networks and Cumulus Systems for five engineers. The companies are focused on the software defined networking space--a space Cisco badly wants to join to mitigate the potential erosion it'll cause in sales of Cisco's networking gear as data centers continue to gather speed.

Insieme and Cisco are offering a pot of almost $2 million as incentives for new hires willing to cross over, reports GigaOm, which said the raids aren't over yet.

GigaOm said an email from a headhunter for Insieme says the company is a "virtual guarantee for high financial payout to those who join especially at this early stage."

The email goes on to say the company is building a team that includes former employees of Brocade, Google, Juniper and VMware.

For more:
- see this GigaOm article
- see this Network World article

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26/03/2012 - ShoreTel's M5 Networks upgrades its UC suite with M5 Communicator

When Shoretel (Nasdaq: SHOR) bought M5 Networks last month for $160 million, it was, as much as anything else, looking to ease its way into the booming cloud services business and to take advantage of M5's experience in unified communications.

M5 already appears to be paying dividends in the form of new product offerings, today unveiling its first new play since its acquisition. The company upgraded its UC suite with M5 Communication, which includes several new features available for free to its existing clients.

The features, available as an application that can be accessed from a user's desktop, include peer-to-peer video chat, file transfer, screen-sharing capabilities and "presence"--the ability to see where their colleagues are on the phone--and bring the M5 offering up a notch, likely making it an even more attractive option to enterprises and SMBs looking to get into UC without having to invest a lot of cash upfront.

With forecasts pointing to continued growth in the hosted UC market, Gartner estimates the market to be $700 million today and expects it to grow at a 36 percent compounded annual growth rate to $2.2 billion in 2015. ShoreTel is hoping to reap some of that growth.

ShoreTel CEO Peter Blackmore, during the company's earnings call (see ShoreTel tops analysts estimates in 2Q, ups revenue 22%), said M5 brings a proven hosted UC solution to the company. And, he said, ShoreTel, after eight months of performing an extensive buy-versus-bill review "determined that the secret sauce in hosted UC is not just a well developed R&D solution, but more fundamentally experienced in running a very different business model."

Blackmore was attracted to M5 also because it brought with it a low churn rate, high average revenue per unit, competitive customer acquisition cost and expertise in running in 24/7 data centers.

For more:
- see this release

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27/10/2011 - 360networks expands reach in Texas, adds coverage of 4.5M people in Houston LATA

Facilities-based wholesale provider 360networks, which earlier this month accepted  a deal to be acquired by Zayo Group, has expanded its own IP Origination footprint, adding 48 rate centers in the Houston LATA. With the addition--which has a population coverage of some 4.5 million--360networks now provides wholesale VoIP services in six of the nation's 10 largest metropolitan areas, and 1606 rate centers covering a population base of over 80 million people across 17 states.

360networks offers a full suite of VoIP services that includes IP Origination, IP Termination, and Toll Free, with a variety of pricing models and features. The VoIP services leverage the company's 18,500 route mile fiber optic backbone to reduce costs and minimize third party dependencies.

It's been a busy year for the company. Besides being acquired, the company has been expanding its presence in Texas and, in July, launched 360connect, a new VoIP customer portal. It's also currently in beta trial for the 360connect Application Programming Interface (API).

"Extending our VoIP reach to include Houston, and other Texas markets, is an obvious extension for customers to use 360networks as their single source provider," said Nick Reifschneider, VoIP product director for 360networks. 

For more:
- see this release

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08/08/2011 - Edgewater's new SBC aims to help enterprise simplify security for UC remote access

The increasing popularity of employees working remotely is causing security and networking headaches for enterprises trying to include them in their unified communications functionality. Traditional firewalls struggle to support UC real-time protocols, and, as a result, employees seldom realize the value of UC application investment.

Edgewater Networks EdgeMarc Enterprise Session Border Controllers

The EdgeMarc Enterprise Session Border Controller (pictured) can terminate multiple TLS connectors from remote locations.

But Edgewater Networks, which in May launched a new session border controller targeted at SMBs and branch offices of larger enterprises, has rolled out yet another SBC designed to extend UC.

Its EdgeProtect Series e-SBC enables enterprises to save money while securely connecting all employees--including remote and distributed personnel--to their UC systems and IP PBXs.

The EdgeProtect solution uses Transport Layer Security to simplify connectivity and provide confidentiality, authentication and encryption for all IP-based voice, video and data connections. It also integrates passive call quality monitoring to isolate network impairments to local or wide area network segments. 

The new platforms--there are three interations--terminate multiple TLS connections from remote locations using Edgewater Networks EdgeMarc Enterprise Session Border Controllers.

The EdgeProtect solution is fully interoperable with any IP-based UC system, including solutions from Alcatel-Lucent, Avaya, Cisco Systems, IBM, Interactive Intelligence, Microsoft, Mitel, NEC, ShoreTel, HP Networking, Siemens, Digium and Aastra.  As securing voice and video devices can be complicated due to inconsistent encryption support and certificate management issues across components, the EdgeProtect solution provides comprehensive security for all IP phones, PC soft clients and server systems including those that do not natively support encryption services.

"Unified Communications holds the promise of increased productivity and reduced costs but only if implemented easily and reliably," said David G. Norman, CEO of Edgewater Networks. "The EdgeProtect solution enables enterprise organizations to save money and create a competitive advantage by providing simplified, secure access to their UC systems."

For more:
- see this release

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09/12/2010 - Junction Networks Announces 10,000th Account
Junction Networks has announced that MBLM NYC has become the company's 10,000th customer of its hosted VoIP services. Following a merger, the New York-based branding firm chose to deploy OnSIP Hosted PBX service to "quickly deploy a complete communications solution and save on upfront investment."


05/11/2010 - IPsmarx Announces Completion of Interoperability Testing with 360networks
IPsmarx has announced a referral arrangement with 360networks, a full service wholesale provider of Private Line Transport, VoIP, IP, and Local Access (T1/DS3) services on its wholly-owned fiber optic backbone. Through this arrangement IPsmarx will recommend 360networks’ IP and Toll Free Origination services to complement IPsmarx Class 5 and IP-PBX Solutions.

02/09/2010 - Interview: 360Networks CTO Brady Adams

Sean Buckley over at FierceTelecom sat down with 360Networks CTO Brady Adams to talk about wholesale services and migrating from legacy to next gen networks. Interview


16/08/2010 - Sonus Enables Cable Customers to Make and Receive Calls on Their Smartphone Using Their Home Phone Number
Sonus Networks has introduced a new solution for cable operators to add value to their existing home line services. Dubbed "Fixed – Smartphone Convergence," cable operators can use new capabilities in the company’s ASX Telephony Application Server to allow cable subscribers with home phone service to combine their existing phone line with up to five additional SIP-enabled devices including 3G/Wi-Fi enabled smartphones.


05/08/2010 - 360networks lands CDS deal

In a vote of confidence for the security of its networks, 360networks has announced that it will be providing private line circuits for CDS Telecom.

CDS Telecom is a provider of project management, design and engineering services for DoD, federal government and commercial telecommunications projects. The telecom company will use 360networks' western state connectivity to support a government project in that area.

"The end users who rely upon our circuits are responsible for safeguarding our nation, and network security and reliability are crucial to those missions," said CDS vice president and general manager Mark Whitney in a release. "360networks not only got us precisely where we needed to go, something other providers were not able to do, but they did so using a robust network that is necessary to support our ultra-important end users."

360networks is a facilities-based full service wholesale provider of VoIP, Private Line Transport, IP and Local Access solutions and the company claims its focus on advanced networking helped it win the deal.

For more:
- read the release

Related articles:
360networks takes VoIP services to the Sacramento market
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18/05/2010 - Empirix Brings VoIP and IMS Expertise to Mobile Networks
Empirix has expanded its flagship Hammer XMS technology to provide end-to-end network monitoring for mobile core architectures. For mobile operators transitioning to all IP LTE networks, and traditional wire line operators or MSOs that are adding mobile service offerings, Hammer XMS "helps lower the cost of deploying and maintaining multi-protocol network architectures and ensures a more consistent customer experience," as the company claims.

11/05/2010 - Goober Introduces New HD Voice and 6-Way Video Conferencing Solution
Goober Networks, a Unified Communications provider, announced goober 3.0 as a public beta, a new collaboration solution that includes multi-protocol instant messaging, HD Voice to landlines and cell phones and 6-way video conferencing calls to PCs including Windows and Macintosh.

15/04/2010 - 360networks makes some VoIP upgrades

360networks has been busy making upgrades and adding services to its wholesale VoIP product suite.

First, the wholesale operator has upgraded its wholesale VoIP by offering Orca Wave's BlueWater software. The software is a voice routing management system which will help enhance and streamline the wholesaler's OCN-LATA and NPA-NXX based routing and monitoring capabilities, carrier rating tools, code management, and detailed reporting.

"With the integration of Orca's Blue Water software and improved processes our operations become even more productive to enhance services and increase value to our customers," said Brady Adams, 360networks' CTO in a release.

Second on 360networks' list of updates is the addition of SMS/MMS features to its wholesale VoIP offering. The wholesale provider also upgraded its VoIP Origination service to include support for short message service/multimedia message service (SMS/MMS). It also added a new metered inbound pricing model for communications service providers requiring billing based on total minutes of call time.

For more:
- read the Orca Wave release
- read the SMS/MMS announcement

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10/03/2010 - 360networks brings on Empirix for monitoring and troubleshooting

360networks, a wholesale VoIP and fiber wholesale provider, announced it will use Empirix's Hammer XMS monitoring and troubleshooting system to watch its 17,000 route mile fiber network.

Empirix's Hammer XMS is a network monitoring system that offers visualization of real-time service quality using a graphical user interface to optimize the search and diagnostic process and monitor the network for negative trends in voice quality.

"The integration of Empirix's Hammer XMS technology allows us to manage both VoIP and TDM call flows into a single application, improving fault isolation and network performance," said Brady Adams, chief technology officer of 360networks in a release.

For more:
- read the release

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16/02/2010 - Nortel CVAS simplifies deployments with Edgewater Networks

In a move to simplify IP communications deployments, Nortel Carrier VoIP Application Solutions (CVAS) has teamed up with Edgewater Networks to provide the the gateway maker's products to Nortel CVAS customers.

According to FierceVoIP's interview with Nortel, the new thing about this partnership with Edgwater is that Nortel CVAS will be selling SMBs the entire package combining Edgewater's EdgeMarc Network Services Gateways and EdgeView VoIP Support System with Nortel's Hosted IP Communications--offering a holistic approach that will be plug and play. Offering one package to get them up and running, the new offering will relieve customers of the task of purchasing, installing and managing additional CPE infrastructure.

Nortel's Hosted IP communications gives service providers carrier-hosted UCC for enterprise customers with email, IM, VoIP, click-to-call and video calling. Edgewater's EdgeMarc Network Services Gateways and EdgeView VoIP Support system will add IP Routing, survivability, SIP call processing and QoS functions to these services.

For more:
- read the release

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03/09/2009 - IT EXPO West - Sipera exec offers anecdotes on the need for VoIP & UC security

LOS ANGELES - Sipera, maker of VoIP security solutions, prefers that customers proactively prepare their communications networks before serious problems arise. But Adam Boone, VP of marketing for Sipera, said some anecdotes from panels at IT EXPO West show that often security doesn't cross people's minds until it's much too late.

At a panel in which he participated, Boone said one presenter, an executive at a VoIP and UC reseller in Southern California, admitted just how costly failing to secure the company's network proved to be.

"No one likes to admit that they've been victimized by toll fraud," Boone said. "But he pulled out a monthly bill for $19,000 resulting from a hack over a weekend that resulted in 9,000 minutes of international dialing before the employees came back on Monday to discover something was wrong. Their usual monthly bill was only a couple hundred dollars."

Boone said it's best to identify weaknesses and vulnerabilities in a voice network during deployment, before "hair on fire" issues like toll fraud or corporate espionage demand immediate, costly attention.

He shared another story of a Fortune 100 client that was involved in major litigation with a competitor, who they believed was eavesdropping on their VoIP communications. Sipera diagnosed the vulnerabilities, but before fixing them, let the firm plant evidence in phone calls. Sure enough, that planted information was presented by the competition in the litigation soon after, and the client was able to prove that the competitor was up to no good.

Boone said the company plans to expand into IP video surveillance and video teleconferencing security in the next 12 months.


10/08/2009 - Natural Convergence sells assets after insolvency

Broadview Networks, a business communications provider, announced its has purchased some of its Natural Convergence Inc.'s software, hardware and intellectual property assets, including the rights to the silhouette product line. Natural Convergence, which is insolvent according to reports, purchased assets from another defunct company, NewStep Networks, just two months prior, raising some questions about the firm's capital allocation.

After that acquisition, Natural Convergence President Bill Crank said in an interview that the company was looking at other purchasing opportunities in the next six to nine months, but it appears that poor economic conditions have reversed that equation. Broadview said it would hire nine Natural Convergence employees as part of the purchase, according Venturewire.

For more:
- see the Ottowa Citizen article here 

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04/08/2009 - IPsmarx Technology with Encore Networks to Deliver Global SS7 Connectivity


Encore Networks announced that IPsmarx Technology, VoIP solution provider, has selected Encore’s SP-201-Z Signaling Gateway to deliver C7 to ISDN protocol conversion and other VoIP based solutions to Long Distance carriers and global operators.

02/07/2009 - VoIP Biggest Victim of IT Managers' Hesitance to Deploy Next-Generation Apps

VoIP is the most likely application type to have deployments delayed due to third-party network concerns, according to a survey of IT managers.
The report by Apparent Networks found that 73 per cent of respondents also said VoIP was the most common application to stress their networks.

02/07/2009 - GENBAND and BroadSoft Offer Legacy Switch Migration Solution

VoIP applications provider Broadsoft and IP infrastructure solutions developer GENBAND have announced a new set of solutions that enable carriers to upgrade their networks while supporting legacy features.
The two companies have integrated GENBAND's gateways with BroadSoft's suite of hosted telephony and multimedia applications.

01/07/2009 - VoIP is app most likely to be delayed by IT managers

Apparent Networks, an IT performance manager focusing on cloud applications, conducted a survey of IT managers that found VoIP is the most likely application type to have deployments delayed due to third-party network concerns. Seventy-three percent of the survey respondents also said VoIP was the most common application to stress their networks.

Of the IT managers surveyed who said they delayed an application deployment (36 percent), 61 percent said they had delayed a VoIP application. Unified communications and video delivery applications were the next two most commonly cited for delays in deployment. 

For more:
- see the press release here

Related article
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19/06/2009 - Agito provides first FMC solution for BlackBerry smartphones

Agito Networks, a unified communications and FMC hardware maker, announced it is the first company to deliver a solution that enables fixed-mobile convergence and unified communications functionality for RIM's BlackBerry smartphones. Prior to Agito's solution, BlackBerry users could only access UC and PBX functionality from their cellular network, which caused problems with poor in-building cellular performance and costly cellular roaming charges for workers traveling internationally.

Agito Chief Marketing Office Pejman Roshan said mobile UC for the BlackBerry has been sought after by enterprises for years, as the device is the North American smartphone market leader and a fixture in enterprise communications.

"Agito's BlackBerry solution is RIM Developer approved, works without any hacking or "jailbreaking" of the device, and will continue to function smoothly with any firmware updates to the phone, since the solution was developed using RIM APIs," Roshan said. "While other companies offer mobility and unified communications functionality on the BlackBerry, they can only do so only with several expensive upgrades to their servers and PBXs, and no one has been able to deliver these services over WiFi to this point. The Agito RoamAnywhere Mobility Router is also the only solution which provides mid-call conference, hold and transfer options for the Blackberry."

Agito will support four BlackBerry devices: The Bold 9000, the Curve 8900, the 8800 and the Curve 8300. The solution is currently in beta testing and will be available to all Agito users by mid-July, according to Roshan. All current RoamAnywhere Mobility Router users will have to do to gain BlackBerry functionality is download a software update. The service will have no additional charge, and will not require the use of a RIM's Mobile Voice Services plan to access the VoIP over WiFi capabilities. 

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