Avaya
Cable
Conferences
NEC
Partnership
Power
SIP trunking
SMB
Unified communications

Avaya

Enterasys introduces D-Series workgroup switch
Enterasys Networks Inc. announced the Enterasys D-Series Gigabit Ethernet enterprise workgroup switch. Advanced QoS features automatically discover, classify and prioritize voice, video and data applications such as IP telephony, HD video conferencing and business intelligence analytics. Redundant power supplies and standards-based IEEE 802.3af Power over Ethernet (PoE) options ensure availability while supporting the connection of wireless access points, IP telephones and IP security cameras. “What You Need Is What You Get” role-based policies assure service level agreement (SLA) requirements and proactively prevent security incidents based on user and application privileges that ensure only the right users have access to the right information from the right place at the right time.
Visit www.enterasys.com.
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Cable

BICSI Executive Director resigns
BICSI regretfully announces that David C. Cranmer, RCDD, BICSI Executive Director, has tendered his resignation, citing personal reasons. The BICSI Board of Directors has appointed Betty M. Eckebrecht, BICSI CFO, as BICSI Acting Executive Director, effective immediately.  The BICSI Board of Directors has formed an Executive Director Search Committee (EDSC) under the leadership of Brian Hansen, RCDD/NTS Specialist, BICSI President-Elect. The EDSC will immediately undertake the process of selecting a new Executive Director. BICSI is a professional association supporting the information transport systems industry with information, education and knowledge assessment for individuals and companies. BICSI serves more than 23,000 ITS professionals, including designers, installers and technicians.
Visit www.bicsi.org.
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Conferences

Acme Packet announces Interconnect 2008
Acme Packet announced that its fourth annual worldwide user conference, Interconnect 2008, will be held November 16–18 in Miami, Florida. Interconnect 2008 will give Acme Packet’s service provider, enterprise and contact center customers an extraordinary opportunity to share their experiences and learn about pragmatic solutions to the challenges of delivering next-generation network services. Interconnect 2008 will feature business and technical topics ranging from fixed-mobile convergence, IMS, femtocells, VoIP security, IP contact centers and SIP trunking. Sessions will include presentations, debates and interactive panel discussions where Acme Packet’s customers will discuss their experiences and insights, and Acme Packet will share its vision for the role of session border controllers in fixed/mobile IMS architectures, enterprises and contact centers. Senior staff from Acme Packet’s product management, engineering, customer service and manufacturing teams will be available for interactive discussions throughout the event.
Visit www.acmepacket.com/interconnect2008.
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NEC

New Mexico Educators FCU deploys NEC UNIVERGE platform
NEC Unified Solutions, Inc. announced that the New Mexico Educators Federal Credit Union (NMEFCU) in Albuquerque, NM, a 25-year NEC customer, has begun unifying its business processes for enhanced customer service and internal communications using NEC’s IP-based UNIVERGE infrastructure and productivity-enhancing unified communications (UC) applications. Serving more than 100,000 members statewide, the credit union had been using NEC’s UNIVERGE NEAX 2400 digital PBX system since the 1980s. Over time, the reliable system served NMEFCU’s headquarters and 12 branch locations well.  But by the early 2000s, the credit union had explored options to modernize its communications and was more than ready to execute its first IP telephony rollouts. Today, the credit union’s IP communications solution consists of the UNIVERGE NEAX 2400 IPX with FUSION Call Control Signaling, which allows the system to network between offices. The system includes NEC Dterm IP phones and NEAXMail AD-120, a Microsoft Windows-based unified messaging for mid-to-large enterprises. Unified messaging allows employees to retrieve voice, e-mail and fax messages in a single inbox.
Visit www.necunified.com.
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Partnership

Dialogic and OnMobile announce global technology partnership
Dialogic Corporation ("Dialogic"), a global provider of world-class products and technologies for media and signal processing, announced that OnMobile Global Limited (“OnMobile”), a leading India based Value Added Service provider, will become a customer for both the Dialogic MSP 1010 Multi-Services Platform and the Dialogic IMG Integrated Media Gateway Platform. The parties will collaborate on leveraging Dialogic R&D and technology leadership into OnMobile’s deployments in telecom Value Added Services around the world, including the huge Indian market where OnMobile has a significant market share. “We are pleased that we’ll be partnering with OnMobile to enable the company to utilize a full featured platform base on which to build its world class Value Added Services offerings,” said Nick Jensen, Dialogic CEO and President. “We see Mobile Value Added Services such as color ring back tones, voice portals, mobile marketing, and emerging video applications as important growth drivers particularly in the highly competitive and rapidly growing Asian mobile market.”
Visit www.dialogic.com.
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Power

Emerson Network Power addresses impact of post-Katrina FCC mandate
More than a year after the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC)—responding to the Hurricane Katrina disaster—issued a mandate to improve backup power at telecommunications sites, telecom providers continue to confront challenges related to the major infrastructure overhaul. That was the assessment of Dusty Becker, vice president of engineering, Emerson Network Power’s Energy Systems business, as he addressed the continuing efforts of the telecommunications community to meet the FCC’s requirements during a presentation at the Emerson Communications Conference. Becker said in many cases, making the upgrades isn’t as easy as adding traditional backup power sources. “Some structures can’t accommodate the added size and weight of additional batteries or generators,” Becker said. “The FCC mandate is forcing us to be creative in finding ways to meet the new requirements—changing industry thinking on everything from alternative power sources like fuel cells to the cabinets and enclosures we use to house those power sources.”

Katrina exposed flaws in the telecommunications infrastructure that led to a complete communications breakdown. The result was a mandate, issued in early 2007, directing telecommunications providers to ensure their sites maintain a minimum of 24 hours emergency backup power for assets inside central offices/switch sites and eight hours for Outside Plant (OSP) facilities such as cell sites, remote switches and digital loop carrier system remote terminals.  With about 200,000 cell sites in the United States, estimates for the cost of such backup power upgrades often approach hundreds of millions of dollars.
Visit www.emersonnetworkpower.com.
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SIP trunking

Technology Assurance Group (TAG) signs strategic partnership with Broadvox
Technology Assurance Group (TAG), an international organization of independently owned business communications companies representing over $350 million in products and services, announced a new strategic partnership with Broadvox, a leading provider of SIP Trunking solutions for SMBs and enterprises. The agreement enables TAG Members to provide feature-rich, cost-effective SIP Trunking solutions to U.S. and Canadian businesses. SIP Trunking is a viable cost-saving move for small to medium sized companies because it offers several tangible opportunities to increase profits through unlimited local calling, lowered long distance rates and by utilizing existing and new IP PBXs. The reduction in cost per minute for communication provided by SIP Trunking gives SMBs an almost immediate ROI. The Broadvox GO! SIP Trunking solutions provide the flexibility to satisfy virtually any requirement needed by distributed business environments.
Visit www.broadvox.com or www.tagnational.com.
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SMB

ADTRAN announces new opportunities for SMB resellers
ADTRAN, Inc. announced that the company has enhanced its ADTRAN ADvantage Partner Program. The changes are designed to strengthen relationships with mid-tier ADvantage partners. Through these program enhancements, partners will benefit from access to additional product lines, increased revenue incentives and certification training programs for ADTRAN’s award-winning family of NetVanta routers, switches and IP Telephony (IPT) solutions. The ADTRAN ADvantage Partner Program is a three-tier program (ADvantage Plus, ADvantage and Registered) with two main goals – to increase partners’ ability to win in the Small and Mid-size Business (SMB) segment and to increase their profitability when doing so. The combination of NetVanta solutions that are specifically geared to solve critical SMB challenges and a strong channel support program allow resellers and solution providers to satisfy customers and to find new opportunities to grow their businesses.
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Unified communications

Foundry, Sun and Mitel collaborate with Microsoft
Foundry Networks Inc. announced it will deliver state-of-the art unified communications (UC) solutions that bring enterprise customers real business benefits by integrating technology developed by industry peers Microsoft, Mitel and Sun Microsystems. From Foundry's open, high-performance infrastructure and Mitel's reliable, vertical-based UC solutions to Sun Microsystems' easy-to-deploy virtual display clients and Microsoft Office Communications Server application delivery solution, this alliance delivers a tested, best-of-breed end-to-end UC solution.  A Foundry BigIron RX backbone Layer 2/3 switch, ServerIron application delivery switch, and compact FastIron Power over Ethernet (PoE) Layer 2/3 switch will connect to Sun Microsystems' Sun Ray virtual display client powered by the Mitel Communications Suite, Microsoft's Office Communications Server 2007 and Network Access Protection (NAP) technology. A demonstration at Interop allowed visitors to understand how a best-of-breed UC solution can work seamlessly to deliver business-critical performance and value.
Visit www.foundrynet.com, www.sun.com or www.mitel.com.

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