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Jim Barthold
TollBridge Technologies Inc. has taken the short step between voice-over-digital subscriber line (DSL) and voice-over-cable.
"Because we're IP (Internet Protocol)-based, it's just a question of adding another protocol. We handle the three main broadband access media: DSL, cable and wireless," said marketing VP Agnes Imregh.
TollBridge also worked out a politically savvy multilevel partnership with chip manufacturer Broadcom Corp.
"Since they provide the signaling chips for about 80% of the cable modems in the country, it was necessary to make sure we could talk to the cable modems when we installed our systems," she said.
The TollBridge system, she said, follows DOCSIS 1.1 PacketCable standards and lets cable operators link next-generation voice-capable cable modems to Class 5 switches without using constant bit rate methodology.
"The telephones are connected to the cable modems, which are connected to the CMTS (cable modem termination system-headend) which passes the voice packets over the IP network to our local exchange gateway," she said.
The gateway translates the IP voice packets and sends them to the switch that then routes them to long-distance carriers, billing systems and local telephone services. Each gateway can cost between $100,000 and $500,000 and switches run from $1 million to $5 million.
Keeping the switch, she said, makes things easier for the operator.
TERAYON SNARES INTERNET TELECOM Terayon Communication Systems Inc. strengthened its Voice-over-IP (VoIP) package by acquiring Internet Telecom, a privately held supplier of PacketCable and standards-based VoIP systems and technologies for about $40 million. Terayon has said it expects to introduce its first VoIP products into the market later this year.
ETHERNET SECURITY Cayman Systems Inc. has integrated Point-to-Point Protocol over Ethernet (PPPoE) on its broadband gateway products for small offices and residences, letting service providers automatically authenticate and deploy broadband services using PPPoE independent of the client operating system or hardware platform. The technology also meets subscriber demands for secure DSL (digital subscriber line) and broadband connections. The gateways with PPPoE support are now available.
C-COR IN FIBER ALLIANCE C-Cor.net Corp. and Finisar Corp. have allied to co-develop a set of fiber op-tics-based products that help expand and support services such as fast Ether-net over broadband and distributed CMTS (cable modem termination system). Initial product release, which leverages C-Cor's radio frequency (RF) and optics expertise with Finisar's digital integration capabilities, is set for June.
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