AUCKLAND, NEW ZEALAND: Endace Ltd, a leader in high speed, packet capture networking technology, and Vixtel, specialists in network monitoring, lawful intercept and mobile network analysis and optimisation, have entered into a technology partnership agreement.
Based in Hong Kong, with offices in China and Taiwan, Vixtel develops network monitoring software for mobile and fixed-line network operators, large enterprise corporations and national security departments with a strong focus on mobile network operators. Vixtel customers include Alcatel, China Mobile, SmarTone and i-Cable in China and Hong Kong, and CHT (Chunghwa Telecom) and Siemens in Taiwan.
Under the terms of the agreement, Vixtel will deploy software-based network monitoring and management solutions powered by Endace's DAG cards and Ninjabox platform.
Endace's unique packet capture technology enables guaranteed capture and sub-millisecond accurate time-stamping of all network packets, of any size, on any network interface, up to speeds of 40Gb/s.
"The collaboration with Endace enables us to leverage Endace's proven expertise in high-speed packet capture," says Michael Sie, Sales and Marketing Director of Vixtel. "We tested hardware from a number of companies, and Endace's DAG technology was the only solution that provided us with the accuracy and performance we needed for our real-time, high-speed, packet capture solutions."
"Our customers operate some of the fastest and most technically advanced networks in the world and require network monitoring and management solutions that can scale to meet their needs. Endace's technology provides us with an edge-to-core solution that will enable us to deliver faster, more scalable solutions," Sie says.
Phil Stone, Endace's VP Asia Pacific, says Endace is delighted to welcome Vixtel as a partner.
"Vixtel has tremendous expertise in working with large network operators –- particularly mobile operators –- to provide them with sophisticated monitoring solutions, and brings a great deal of experience to this partnership," Stone says.
"We look forward to working closely with them to help them leverage Endace's high-speed, packet-capture technology in their V1000 NetVista, V2000 NetInsight and V3000 NetGuard solutions."
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
Infosys BPO inks five-year deal with T-Mobile UK
BANGALORE, INDIA: Infosys BPO, the business process outsourcing subsidiary of Infosys Technologies, today announced that it has secured a five-year contract with T-Mobile UK.
Infosys BPO has been engaged by T-Mobile UK to support several core processes for its finance directorate –- covering customer finance, commercial finance and accounting (F&A) and procurement operations.
This strategic partnership is significant as Infosys BPO is taking responsibility for specific transactional activities, allowing T-Mobile to concentrate on financial issues that are strategically important or which deliver competitive advantage.
Over the past year, Infosys BPO has been focusing on acquiring domain expertise across industries to enable it to address industry-specific pain points faced by clients, using a combination of process and technology levers to improve efficiencies.
Infosys BPO’s continued focus on process excellence and operational scalability has been key to forging this strategic partnership.
“We are pleased to have been selected by T-Mobile UK. Our strong F&A capabilities combined with osur understanding of the telecom industry helps us successfully transform businesses of our clients.” said Gopal Devanahalli, VP and Head, Communications, Media and Entertainment (CME), Infosys BPO.
Tim Spence, Head of Customer Finance, T-Mobile UK, said: “We were keen to partner with a company that possessed a good understanding of our requirements and business needs. Infosys BPO has shown deep telecoms experience and is widely recognised as a leader in business process outsourcing. We are confident of gaining immense value through our partnership with Infosys BPO.”
Infosys BPO has been engaged by T-Mobile UK to support several core processes for its finance directorate –- covering customer finance, commercial finance and accounting (F&A) and procurement operations.
This strategic partnership is significant as Infosys BPO is taking responsibility for specific transactional activities, allowing T-Mobile to concentrate on financial issues that are strategically important or which deliver competitive advantage.
Over the past year, Infosys BPO has been focusing on acquiring domain expertise across industries to enable it to address industry-specific pain points faced by clients, using a combination of process and technology levers to improve efficiencies.
Infosys BPO’s continued focus on process excellence and operational scalability has been key to forging this strategic partnership.
“We are pleased to have been selected by T-Mobile UK. Our strong F&A capabilities combined with osur understanding of the telecom industry helps us successfully transform businesses of our clients.” said Gopal Devanahalli, VP and Head, Communications, Media and Entertainment (CME), Infosys BPO.
Tim Spence, Head of Customer Finance, T-Mobile UK, said: “We were keen to partner with a company that possessed a good understanding of our requirements and business needs. Infosys BPO has shown deep telecoms experience and is widely recognised as a leader in business process outsourcing. We are confident of gaining immense value through our partnership with Infosys BPO.”
Hopes of upturn in 2Q09 telecom financial deal flow despite unfriendly public markets
MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA: According to a new study from Ovum, the global analyst and consulting company, telecom sector financial deal activity in 2Q09 reflects a modest, but tangible, increase in confidence among the major players: carriers, vendors, their financial and legal advisors, and the investment institutions looking for reasons to pull their money off the sidelines.
Based on Ovum’s report, titled Financial Deals Industry Insight -– Telecommunications (2Q09 edition), public stock offerings remain nearly nonexistent even as market volatility lowers, and venture capital (VC) investments in telecom continue in similar volumes but at a much lower average deal size: from $13.0M per deal in 2Q08, the 2Q08 average was $9.8M.
However, the private placement market -– issuance of debt securities for fundraising –- has actually picked up nicely as public markets have fallen: 19 deals in 2Q09, in line with the quarterly average since 4Q07 –- but the total deal value increased again, nearly double 1Q09 to $18.0B, up from $3.6B in 2Q08.
One significant deal as of yet unclosed –- South Africa-based MTN’s pending merger with Indian carrier Bharti Airtel (partly funded by a separate private placement deal) –- does sway the average upwards, but there were three other closed deals above $1B in 2Q09: Qtel, Crown Castle, and Cricket/Leap.
Matt Walker, Ovum principal analyst and author of the report, noted that there is also promising news from the world of mergers and acquisitions: “We are starting to see more big, complex deals; these often entail long negotiation cycles and carry regulatory uncertainties. In late 2008 the financial market’s volatility killed interest in such transactions.”
For 1H09 overall, M&A deal count in telecom was 315, down significantly from the 391 deals announced or closed in 1H08. But total deal value for 2Q09 was roughly $35B, or twice the average seen in the previous three quarters.
Watching the announced but not yet closed deals will also help gauge market stability, especially MTN-Bharti, but also Verizon’s sales of select assets to (in separate deals) Frontier and AT&T; Greece’s sale of a 5 percent stake in OTE to DT; and Russia-based Rostelecom’s sale of a 40 percent stake in itself to two separate investment entities.
In addition, Walker noted that governments and deep-pocketed vendors are helping to close the gap as public markets remain tough. Governments are doing this by directly funding broadband infrastructure buildouts, licensing new wireless spectrum at favourable terms, subsidizing private sector R&D (e.g. at the European Investment Bank), and lending money in special cases, as when Export Development Canada offered NSN $300M for its initial bid on Nortel’s CDMA and LTE assets.
As for vendors, Cisco is one example: it is using its Cisco Capital unit to leverage its notoriously rich cash horde -- over $33B of cash and short-term investments on the balance sheet -- to offer financing to customers and channel partners. In 1H-FY09, it was responsible for $2.1B in lease and long-term loan arrangements.
In addition, Chinese vendors ZTE and Huawei both have billions of dollars in either explicit or implicit credit lines with various Chinese banks: the China Development Bank, the Export-Import Bank, and the Bank of China.
Walker said: “This subsidized financing helps these Chinese vendors’ carrier customers expand more easily and quickly, which also facilitates deal activity (e.g. cross-border M&As to grow wireless footprint).”
On net, Walker concluded that, while the outlook remains cloudy, steps taken in 2Q09 by vendors, governments, and private financiers to compensate for weakness in the macroeconomy and public equity markets bode well for the remainder of the year in telecom.
Based on Ovum’s report, titled Financial Deals Industry Insight -– Telecommunications (2Q09 edition), public stock offerings remain nearly nonexistent even as market volatility lowers, and venture capital (VC) investments in telecom continue in similar volumes but at a much lower average deal size: from $13.0M per deal in 2Q08, the 2Q08 average was $9.8M.
However, the private placement market -– issuance of debt securities for fundraising –- has actually picked up nicely as public markets have fallen: 19 deals in 2Q09, in line with the quarterly average since 4Q07 –- but the total deal value increased again, nearly double 1Q09 to $18.0B, up from $3.6B in 2Q08.
One significant deal as of yet unclosed –- South Africa-based MTN’s pending merger with Indian carrier Bharti Airtel (partly funded by a separate private placement deal) –- does sway the average upwards, but there were three other closed deals above $1B in 2Q09: Qtel, Crown Castle, and Cricket/Leap.
Matt Walker, Ovum principal analyst and author of the report, noted that there is also promising news from the world of mergers and acquisitions: “We are starting to see more big, complex deals; these often entail long negotiation cycles and carry regulatory uncertainties. In late 2008 the financial market’s volatility killed interest in such transactions.”
For 1H09 overall, M&A deal count in telecom was 315, down significantly from the 391 deals announced or closed in 1H08. But total deal value for 2Q09 was roughly $35B, or twice the average seen in the previous three quarters.
Watching the announced but not yet closed deals will also help gauge market stability, especially MTN-Bharti, but also Verizon’s sales of select assets to (in separate deals) Frontier and AT&T; Greece’s sale of a 5 percent stake in OTE to DT; and Russia-based Rostelecom’s sale of a 40 percent stake in itself to two separate investment entities.
In addition, Walker noted that governments and deep-pocketed vendors are helping to close the gap as public markets remain tough. Governments are doing this by directly funding broadband infrastructure buildouts, licensing new wireless spectrum at favourable terms, subsidizing private sector R&D (e.g. at the European Investment Bank), and lending money in special cases, as when Export Development Canada offered NSN $300M for its initial bid on Nortel’s CDMA and LTE assets.
As for vendors, Cisco is one example: it is using its Cisco Capital unit to leverage its notoriously rich cash horde -- over $33B of cash and short-term investments on the balance sheet -- to offer financing to customers and channel partners. In 1H-FY09, it was responsible for $2.1B in lease and long-term loan arrangements.
In addition, Chinese vendors ZTE and Huawei both have billions of dollars in either explicit or implicit credit lines with various Chinese banks: the China Development Bank, the Export-Import Bank, and the Bank of China.
Walker said: “This subsidized financing helps these Chinese vendors’ carrier customers expand more easily and quickly, which also facilitates deal activity (e.g. cross-border M&As to grow wireless footprint).”
On net, Walker concluded that, while the outlook remains cloudy, steps taken in 2Q09 by vendors, governments, and private financiers to compensate for weakness in the macroeconomy and public equity markets bode well for the remainder of the year in telecom.
10 Gbps Ethernet LAN on motherboard to surpass adapter cards by end 2009
REDWOOD CITY, USA: According to a newly published report by Dell’Oro Group, 10Gbps Ethernet LAN on Motherboard (LOM) shipments are forecast to surpass those of network adapter cards by the end of this year.
The report, which provides a five-year market forecast, indicates that blade servers will be the catalyst for driving the initial ramp of LOMs, with rack and tower servers contributing to subsequent volumes.
“Although blade server shipments are a small portion of overall server unit shipments, the volumes on this class of server as projected through 2011 are still large enough to drive 10 Gbps Ethernet LOM shipments above that of 10 Gbps Ethernet adapter card shipments,” said Seamus Crehan, Vice President at Dell’Oro Group.
The report, which provides a five-year market forecast, indicates that blade servers will be the catalyst for driving the initial ramp of LOMs, with rack and tower servers contributing to subsequent volumes.
“Although blade server shipments are a small portion of overall server unit shipments, the volumes on this class of server as projected through 2011 are still large enough to drive 10 Gbps Ethernet LOM shipments above that of 10 Gbps Ethernet adapter card shipments,” said Seamus Crehan, Vice President at Dell’Oro Group.
Symbian's dominance fading, says Strategy Analytics
BOSTON, USA:The high R&D costs involved in developing a brand new mobile OS –- and building an ecosystem around it -– could potentially consolidate the smartphone OS market, according to the Strategy Analytics Handset Component Technologies service report, “Symbian's Dominance Fading as Mobile Software Platform Market Becomes More Crowded.”
However, this doesn’t mean that the door is closed for new entrants, and Strategy Analytics predicts that Nokia’s Linux based Maemo platform could potentially feature in future smartphones.
The majority of smartphone manufacturers lack their own OS and ecosystems, and are using a common platform to rapidly build market share in the high-growth smartphone market.
Stuart Robinson, Director of the company’s Handset Component Technologies service commented: “Strategy Analytics believes that smartphone Operating Systems with a strong consumer focus and a strong R&D budget will sustain competitive advantages and take huge market share in the future. In this respect, we place our bets on Android, iPhone OS and Symbian.”
Sravan Kundojjala, Analyst, adds: “Strategy Analytics estimates that smartphone OS vendors currently spend $100-$200 million on R&D on average. This, along with the arduous work involved in creating an ecosystem around the OS, could potentially force handset vendors to consolidate their efforts around one or two third-party licensable Operating Systems.”
However, this doesn’t mean that the door is closed for new entrants, and Strategy Analytics predicts that Nokia’s Linux based Maemo platform could potentially feature in future smartphones.
The majority of smartphone manufacturers lack their own OS and ecosystems, and are using a common platform to rapidly build market share in the high-growth smartphone market.
Stuart Robinson, Director of the company’s Handset Component Technologies service commented: “Strategy Analytics believes that smartphone Operating Systems with a strong consumer focus and a strong R&D budget will sustain competitive advantages and take huge market share in the future. In this respect, we place our bets on Android, iPhone OS and Symbian.”
Sravan Kundojjala, Analyst, adds: “Strategy Analytics estimates that smartphone OS vendors currently spend $100-$200 million on R&D on average. This, along with the arduous work involved in creating an ecosystem around the OS, could potentially force handset vendors to consolidate their efforts around one or two third-party licensable Operating Systems.”
SatNav in strategic alliance with three large format retail chains in India
HYDERABAD, INDIA: SatNav Technologies, pioneers in GPS Navigation in India, today entered into a strategic alliance with HCL Digilife, Reliance Autozone and Reliance Digital.
With these alliances, SatGuide products will now be available in over 100 stores situated at prime locations across 15 key cities including, Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi, Noida, Ghaziabad, Faridabad, Gurgaon, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Kolkata, Lucknow, Mumbai, Pune and Vadodra.
SatNav witnessed a two-fold growth last year, largely owing to the product sales at a number of retail stores and online portals. With the increase in the consumer touch points across the company’s target markets, SatNav now looks forward doubling this growth in this fiscal.
“At SatNav we aim at providing innovative and user friendly products at a reasonable price. Our products have always been within easy consumer reach. We plan to further increase penetration and sustain momentum in major cities across nation by partnering with leading large format retail chains”, said Amit Prasad, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, SatNav Technologies.
“We are sure that the alliance with HCL Digilife, Reliance Autozone and Reliance Digital will help us expand further and more easily reach out to our end users”, he added.
SatNav offers multiple GPS navigation devices including the award winning Moov300. SatGuide products can also be bought from other large format retail stores like Ezone, Croma, Car Plus, XCite, Bilt, Gizmos, Hypercity, Jumbo, Staples, Landmark and leading shopping portals like Indiatimes.com, HomeShop18, Gadgets.in and Items of Desire.
In addition, Garmin distributors in India also offer Garmin devices loaded with SatGuide map software at most of their stores.
SatNav’s products include the popular GPS Navigation Product -- ‘SatGuide’ that helps users enjoy hassle free road navigation. SatGuide product variants include navigation solutions for PNDs, PDAs, Phones, Laptops, Desktop and a SatGuide Logger.
With these alliances, SatGuide products will now be available in over 100 stores situated at prime locations across 15 key cities including, Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi, Noida, Ghaziabad, Faridabad, Gurgaon, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Kolkata, Lucknow, Mumbai, Pune and Vadodra.
SatNav witnessed a two-fold growth last year, largely owing to the product sales at a number of retail stores and online portals. With the increase in the consumer touch points across the company’s target markets, SatNav now looks forward doubling this growth in this fiscal.
“At SatNav we aim at providing innovative and user friendly products at a reasonable price. Our products have always been within easy consumer reach. We plan to further increase penetration and sustain momentum in major cities across nation by partnering with leading large format retail chains”, said Amit Prasad, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, SatNav Technologies.
“We are sure that the alliance with HCL Digilife, Reliance Autozone and Reliance Digital will help us expand further and more easily reach out to our end users”, he added.
SatNav offers multiple GPS navigation devices including the award winning Moov300. SatGuide products can also be bought from other large format retail stores like Ezone, Croma, Car Plus, XCite, Bilt, Gizmos, Hypercity, Jumbo, Staples, Landmark and leading shopping portals like Indiatimes.com, HomeShop18, Gadgets.in and Items of Desire.
In addition, Garmin distributors in India also offer Garmin devices loaded with SatGuide map software at most of their stores.
SatNav’s products include the popular GPS Navigation Product -- ‘SatGuide’ that helps users enjoy hassle free road navigation. SatGuide product variants include navigation solutions for PNDs, PDAs, Phones, Laptops, Desktop and a SatGuide Logger.
Monday, August 3, 2009
ZTE among 'Top 3' global LTE network infrastructure vendors
SHENZHEN, CHINA: ZTE Corp. has been named a 'Top 3' LTE Network Infrastructure Vendor by Gartner.
In its latest industry report, “Dataquest Insight: Scorecard for Vendors of Long Term Evolution Network Infrastructure,” Gartner uses an item-by-item rating method to comprehensively evaluate the performance of global LTE vendors.
Gartner divides market performance into seven criteria including: Product or Service, Market Understanding, Offering/Product Strategy, Geographic Strategy, Sales and Marketing Strategy, Market Responsiveness and Track Record.
In addition, the report also employs a 5-level rating for each criteria to review the major telecom equipment vendors, including Alcatel-Lucent, Ericsson, Huawei, Nokia Siemens Networks and ZTE and among others. ZTE rated as a strong performer, was at the top of list in “Geographic Strategy” and has zero “Risk” rating.
According to Gartner, ZTE is a strong player in the LTE industry with a quality product portfolio and a growth strategy that is both prudent and sustainable.
ZTE is continually improving its marketing and business reach outside of China, while also strengthening its regional market presence, as Asia/Pacific offers good growth opportunities for mobile infrastructure vendors. In addition, its strong financial position has allowed it to maintain its R&D spending at 10 percent of revenue.
The report also forecasts that 70% of UMTS vendors will gradually upgrade to HSPA+ and LTE, and that most CDMA operators will choose LTE.
In its latest industry report, “Dataquest Insight: Scorecard for Vendors of Long Term Evolution Network Infrastructure,” Gartner uses an item-by-item rating method to comprehensively evaluate the performance of global LTE vendors.
Gartner divides market performance into seven criteria including: Product or Service, Market Understanding, Offering/Product Strategy, Geographic Strategy, Sales and Marketing Strategy, Market Responsiveness and Track Record.
In addition, the report also employs a 5-level rating for each criteria to review the major telecom equipment vendors, including Alcatel-Lucent, Ericsson, Huawei, Nokia Siemens Networks and ZTE and among others. ZTE rated as a strong performer, was at the top of list in “Geographic Strategy” and has zero “Risk” rating.
According to Gartner, ZTE is a strong player in the LTE industry with a quality product portfolio and a growth strategy that is both prudent and sustainable.
ZTE is continually improving its marketing and business reach outside of China, while also strengthening its regional market presence, as Asia/Pacific offers good growth opportunities for mobile infrastructure vendors. In addition, its strong financial position has allowed it to maintain its R&D spending at 10 percent of revenue.
The report also forecasts that 70% of UMTS vendors will gradually upgrade to HSPA+ and LTE, and that most CDMA operators will choose LTE.
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