Upcoming Meeting Notice

SPRING RECEPTION - LONDON, ENGLAND
THURSDAY, 19 MAY 2011
at 24 LONDON

(Click here for more information.)

NATD in the news
Avaya
Cloud
COMPTEL
Conferences
Counterfeit equipment
Mitel
Mobility
PoE

NATD in the news

NATD co-hosts Spring Reception in London
The Association of Service and Computer Dealers International (ASCDI) and the North American Association of Telecommunications Dealers (NATD) are two WORLDWIDE organizations made up of IT and Telecom companies who provide technology solutions, technical support, and value added services to the business community.  Our members deal in IBM, HP, SUN/ORACLE, CISCO, NORTEL, AVAYA, FUJITSU-SIEMENS, ALCATEL, and NETWORKING EQUIPMENT. 

The ASCDI and the NATD are coming together in London to give delegates an opportunity to explore common goals and opportunities in the IT and TELECOM marketplace.  Over 100+ Delegates from around the globe will be participating at this event. For more information, visit http://www.natdmeetings.com/london2011.htm.
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Avaya

Avaya launches Galway Customer Experience Centre
Avaya officially launched its Galway-based Customer Experience Centre and announced its plans to increase Avaya’s Galway-based employee base over the next year. The Customer Experience Centre is Avaya’s unique global R&D facility which offers customers direct access to developers who can create custom, customer-specific environments showcasing Avaya’s technology and allowing a view of future technologies. By offering real-time access to experts, the Centre is designed to help Avaya customers and prospects understand the true value of real-time collaboration, and see exactly how Avaya’s innovations can help them tackle new business opportunities. The Centre opened with a special ribbon-cutting ceremony led by Avaya’s Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) president Michael Bayer and Barry O’Leary, chief executive officer (CEO) of IDA Ireland, a key proponent for Avaya’s expansion in Ireland.
Visit www.avaya.com.


ISI solution now rated "Avaya Compliant"
ISI Telemanagement Solutions, Inc. announced that its Infortel Select 8.1 Telecom Reporting application is compliant with key IP Telephony solutions from Avaya Inc. Infortel Select 8.1 helps businesses monitor and manage their telecom usage across the entire enterprise. The application now is compliance-tested by Avaya for compatibility with Avaya Aura Communication Server 1000 Release 7.0. ISI Telemanagement Solutions is a member of the Avaya DevConnect program -- an initiative to develop, market and sell innovative third-party products that interoperate with Avaya technology and extend the value of a company's investment in its network. As a Gold member of the program, ISI is eligible to submit products for compatibility testing by the Avaya Solution Interoperability and Test Lab. 
Visit www.isi-info.com and www.avaya.com/devconnect.
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Cloud

TechAmerica Foundation announces new commissioners on CLOUD²
TechAmerica Foundation announced 71 experts from industry and academia who will serve on the new Commission on the Leadership Opportunity in U.S. Deployment of the Cloud (CLOUD²). The commission’s three-month mandate is to provide the Obama Administration with recommendations for how government could better deploy cloud technologies, and for public policies that will help drive U.S. innovation in the cloud and spur economic growth.

CLOUD² will be broken into public sector deployment and commercial policy considerations. Technology visionaries Marc Benioff, Chairman and CEO of salesforce.com and VCE Chairman and CEO, Michael D. Capellas, serve as co-chairmen of the commission of experts. CSC President of North American Public Sector Jim Sheaffer will serve as Vice Chairman and lead the public sector deployment recommendations. Microsoft Corporate Vice President of Technology Policy and Strategy Dan Reed, who also leads the company’s eXtreme Computing Group (XCG), will also serve as Vice Chairman and will lead the commercial policy considerations portion of the report. The Commission’s recommendations for government deployment will be presented to Federal Chief Information Officer Vivek Kundra. Commercial-facing recommendations will be shared with Commerce Secretary Gary Locke and Commerce Under Secretary for Standards and Technology Pat Gallagher. Joining co-chairmen Benioff and Capellas and representing academia will be John Mallery of MIT’s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, and Michael R. Nelson, visiting professor of Internet studies in Georgetown University’s Communication, Culture and Technology Program.
Visit http://www.techamericafoundation.org/cloud-commission.
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COMPTEL

COMPTEL warns of dangerous market dominance that will result from AT&T merger with T-Mobile
The following statement can be attributed to Jerry James, CEO of COMPTEL:

“Since divestiture in 1984, AT&T has been on a mission to regain its monopoly dominance through mergers and acquisitions – first in local and long distance telephony, and now the wireless market. Allowing a single company to control such vast market power in the landline, wireless and broadband markets will have devastating economic consequences – from the loss of jobs and fewer choices for consumers, to higher prices and less incentive to deliver innovative offerings. In addition, the concentration of network assets in the hands of one company will have a chilling effect on the growing wholesale marketplace.

The most immediate impact of the proposed merger is the impending loss of jobs as AT&T will no doubt build on its legacy of terminating tens of thousands of employees in its pursuit for market dominance. One only need to look at statements AT&T made in 2006, noting that upon closing the BellSouth acquisition the company would shed 10,000 jobs.

As regulators prepare to examine this latest mega-merger, they should consider the consequences it would have on the competitive market, as well as the negative effects on an economy struggling with nearly 9 percent unemployment.  This proposed consolidation represents a clear and present danger to competition and a recovering economy. There is no question that it should be rejected.

For 30 years, COMPTEL has been the trade association promoting competition in all aspects of the communications industry, including wireline, wireless and broadband. Our members promote job growth and continue to invest millions of dollars into facilities and new products and services, Consumers and businesses alike have benefited from innovation, personalized services and lower prices that are possible only because of competition. Should the AT&T-T-Mobile merger be allowed to proceed, the communications industry will take several more steps backward to the pre-divestiture days when ‘choice’ consisted of a single company deciding what was in the consumers’ best interests.”
Visit www.comptel.org.
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Conferences

The SIP Forum announces detailed conference agenda for SIPNOC 2011
The SIP Forum announced its conference agenda and detailed session descriptions for the first SIP Network Operators Conference (SIPNOC), to be held April 25-27 at the Hyatt Dulles Hotel in Herndon, VA. The two-day event, a first-of-its-kind international conference aimed at service provider operations personnel, includes key topics by network operators and engineering professionals related to SIP-based services and infrastructure including security, troubleshooting and monitoring, FoIP, performance metrics, large-scale SIP interoperability challenges, HD voice, SIP Trunking, application development, call routing and peering, and more. As previously announced, FCC Chief Technologist Dr. Douglas C. Sicker will provide the keynote address. A recognized leader in the industry, Dr. Sicker has chaired and served on the program committees of numerous technical conferences, including IEEE, DySPAN, ISART and TPRC.
For the full agenda of the SIPNOC event, including speakers and session descriptions, please visit: http://www.sipforum.org/content/view/378/279/.
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Counterfeit equipment

ASCDI membership adopts Reseller Anti-Counterfeit Policy to protect customers
Putting the safety and concerns of its customers first, the Association of Service and Computer Dealers (ASCDI) announced an industry-wide program to prevent the influx of counterfeit equipment into the IT supply chain, worldwide.  At its recent annual meeting, Members of the ASCDI adopted a sweeping Anti-Counterfeit Policy in order to eliminate, or mitigate the impact of, counterfeit IT goods and develop best practices and strategies to identify, inspect, test, properly dispose of and report encounters with counterfeit product.  Members pledged to quarantine equipment which is suspected or proven not to be authentic. Over the last two years the ASCDI has worked with law enforcement, manufacturers and technology resellers to establish the anti-counterfeit plan.  The non-profit organization continues to call upon all manufacturers to join the ASCDI in a partnership to eradicate the problem.  Besides pledging to work with the authorities and manufacturers when counterfeit equipment is discovered, the ASCDI will enforce its policy through the ASCDI Code of Ethics, which has been in place for over 30 years.  Customers of ASCDI Members can contact the ASCDI and file a complaint if they feel that they have not been treated fairly on a transaction with an ASCDI Member.  Violation of the ASCDI Code of Ethics is a serious offense which could lead to expulsion from the ASCDI.
Visit www.ascdi.com.
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Mitel

Mitel ranked the number two software provider in the 2011 Branham300
Mitel announced it has been ranked the number two software provider for Canadian ICT Companies in the 2011 Edition of the Branham300, a listing of Canada’s ICT industry leaders, as ranked by revenues. Mitel’s transition from a hardware company to a software solutions provider was solidified when the company unveiled the Mitel Freedom architecture in 2010. The Mitel Freedom architecture is a single, cloud-ready software stream that delivers an array of communications options for businesses looking to integrate a voice solution into best-in-class networks and applications. The Branham300 is currently operating in its 18th year. The top 300 publicly-traded and privately-held Canadian companies are included in multiple categories, including the top 250 Canadian ICT companies and several sub lists such as Top Software Providers.
Visit www.mitel.com/freedom and www.branham300.com.
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Mobility

Aruba Networks' MOVE architecture accelerates the enterprise access network mobility revolution
Aruba Networks, Inc. unveiled its Mobile Virtual Enterprise (MOVE) architecture, which provides context-aware networking for the post-PC era. With Aruba MOVE, IT organizations have a purpose-built but flexible solution for enabling mobility, and a clear path to shift expensive investments away from legacy wired access networks. At the heart of Aruba's MOVE architecture, ArubaOS Mobility Services enable the development, deployment and enforcement of a single set of network services that manage security, policy and network performance for every user and device on the network, regardless of access type. ArubaOS Mobility Services are centrally deployed, with private or public cloud-based management. Mobile Device Fingerprinting, another key innovation, enables the network to identify and monitor Apple iOS and other mobile device platforms. This capability, combined with Aruba Amigopod and Aruba Airwave Network Management, enable the Aruba MDAC solution, designed for zero-touch, secure provisioning of Apple iOS mobile devices.
Visit www.arubanetworks.com.
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PoE

Cisco has the power: PoE shipment growth approaches 45% in 2010, says In-Stat
Power over Ethernet (PoE) technology describes a system to safely carry electrical power, along with data, on Ethernet cabling. This technology is especially useful for powering IP telephones, wireless LAN access points, cameras with pan tilt and zoom (PTZ), remote Ethernet switches, embedded computers, thin clients, and LCDs. As a result, port shipments are on the rise to the point where Cisco has seen a 45% gain in 2010, according to In-Stat. “After a sluggish 2009, Cisco’s Power over Ethernet port shipments took off in 2010,” says Brad Shaffer, an industry analyst with In-Stat. “Industry wide, shipments of Power over Ethernet ports remained relatively flat in 2010 accounting for about 15.6% of total port shipments. While Cisco is by far the market leader in Power over Ethernet shipments, the other top vendors also experienced an increase in shipments. NETGEAR and HP Networking both also posted impressive gains in Power over Ethernet shipments, rising 36% and 33%, respectively.”
Visit www.cisco.com and www.in-stat.com.
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