Foundry Adds SONET/SDH Support to Its Next-generation NetIron Gear

On March 7th Foundry announced the availability of a common set of packet over SONET/SDH (POS) interfaces for its NetIron XMR series of Internet routers and the MLX series of metro routers. The POS capability offers ISPs, IXCs, MSOs, and metro and wireless operators the ability to leverage their SONET/SDH infrastructure to deliver broadband services.

Recommended Competitive Responses

► Competitors should downplay the significance of Foundry adding POS interfaces to the MLX and XMR routers, saying the vendor is rather late to the market and this is an attempt to play catch-up with their field-proven multiservice edge and carrier Ethernet routers.

► Competitors should try to offset the aggressive pricing of Foundry’s POS portfolio by pointing to its lack of customer traction in the edge/core router and metro Ethernet markets.

► Tier 1 competitors such as Alcatel-Lucent, Cisco, and Juniper should point to their global service provider deployments, which have resulted in an established track record within major carriers that have looked for not only best-of-breed equipment, but also for a partner that can deliver ancillary services such as professional services and full multi-vendor support.

Recommended End User/Customer Responses

► Service providers with large SONET/SDH infrastructures should consider the overall value proposition of building their next-generation networks using the Foundry MLX and XMR series platforms. With compelling price-performance metrics coupled with leading port and switching capacities, they could realize significant CapEx savings.

► Service providers should challenge Foundry to provide proof points that back up its price and performance claims, and they should compare the MLX and XMR against their current or planned vendors’ solutions. With a full edge-to-core portfolio, Foundry could support current migration requirements (i.e., the POS capabilities) and provide these operators with significant headroom to grow their next-generation carrier Ethernet networks.

► Service providers should press Foundry to show that its commitment to the carrier infrastructure market goes beyond next-generation equipment and includes aspects such as professional services, OSS/BSS partnerships, and support for triple play and video delivery ecosystems.

Trapeze Launches Location-based Services Appliance

On February 26th Trapeze Networks introduced the LA-200 Location Appliance, which allows large organizations to find and track assets in real time over existing WiFi networks. This is the first location appliance released by Trapeze Networks in support of its existing wireless LAN solutions.

Recommended Competitive Responses

► Competitors such as Cisco should point out that while claiming open standards, the Trapeze solution requires proprietary access points to function.

► Competitors should point out that Trapeze Networks has offered no test information to validate how the LA-200 will function in very large enterprises tracking thousands of assets.

► Currently, Trapeze’s claims of greater accuracy and less network overhead than client-side solutions are unsubstantiated by the market at large. Competitors offering client-side pattern matching should measure provide test results measuring the accuracy and total cost of ownership of their systems versus Trapeze’s service-based approach to determine whether the Trapeze approach is really more accurate an cost effective. If not, the results would be a very powerful marketing tool.

Recommended End User/Customer Responses

► The LA-200 location appliance is directly tied to Trapeze’s wireless product line, so only current Trapeze customers or those looking to implement a new solution will be able to consider adding this product for location based services.

► The implementation of the LA-200 will require a significant amount of time and resources to map out the facility.

► Current Trapeze customers looking for location-based services should consider the LA-200 as a relatively easy drop in solution for their existing wireless infrastructure.

► Current Trapeze customers that have not upgraded to Smart Mobile need to weigh the impact of additional overhead concerns of location-based services.

Alcatel-Lucent Delivers Creative High Availability Features and a New 7450 ESS Model

On March 7th Alcatel-Lucent announced enhanced IP/MPLS edge routing capabilities and new products to address fixed and mobile carrier requirements for increased network and service availability. The portfolio is expanded with: SR OS release 5.0 for the Service Router (SR) and Ethernet Service Switch (ESS) platforms; new 5620 SAM features; a new 6-slot, 80 Gbps chassis and switch fabric for the 7450 ESS; and two new Media Dependent Adapter (MDA) modules.

Recommended Competitor Actions

► Cisco should highlight how its IP NGN solution, consisting of the flexible 7600 and the scalable CRS-1, addresses the needs of service providers in the areas of scalability, high availability and cost effectiveness.

► Juniper should contrast its M/MX-Series router portfolios against that of the Alcatel-Lucent IP portfolio and show that it’s M320 and M120 provide scale options and its JUNOS-based OS provides high availability features providing a stateless failover solutions for various network failures.

► Ericsson should highlight that, as a result of its Redback acquisition, it now has in-house router assets that it can leverage and build into its wireline and wireless network solutions to provide the scale and high availability attributes required to support its “Broadband Everywhere” story.

► Nokia Siemens Networks (NSN), which leverages Juniper and Cisco IP transport solutions to deliver complete end-to-end solutions, should quickly exercise more control over the IP transport technology it uses.

► All router and software competitors should align with the trends (i.e., emerging standards and best practices) employed by top vendors and establish partnerships or joint solutions that can leveraged to provide a complete solution.

Recommended End User/Customer Responses

► Alcatel-Lucent service providers that are not involved in the current trials and field tests of the new capabilities should begin to evaluate the new software features as soon as they are released.

► Service providers using competitive products should compare and contrast the capabilities such as the high availability features offered by Alcatel-Lucent’s release 5.0. Although a transition to a new equipment provider may be painful, if their current solutions fall short of meeting current and future requirements, the best course of action may be to cut any losses and transition to a more suitable solution.

► Service providers should consider the enhanced OAM capabilities provided by release 5.0. Effective diagnostic and monitoring tools can significantly improve the quality of the services being delivered to the end user. With continued competition for subscribers, a strong service quality program may retain and increase subscriber loyalty.

► Service providers using competitive solutions should compare the current and projected capabilities (roadmap) of their suppliers and press their vendors for enhancements that will improve their service delivery.