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The WAVE Report on Digital Media
3D --- Media Creation --- Shared Space ---Published by 4th Wave, Inc.--- Issue #0322------------------7/3/03 |
The WAVE Report is Searchable on
http://www.3dlinks.com
http://www.wave-report.com
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0322.1 Hot Topics
- Immersion Introduces Mac Support for the MicroScribe G2
Digitizer - Intersil, ViXS Collaborate to Deliver Video Over 802.11g
Networks - LSI Logic Offers Integrated ADSL, VoIP and Ethernet in
Gateway Design
0322.2 Story of the Issue
0322.3 3D
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***Immersion Introduces Mac Support for the MicroScribe G2
Digitizer
(June 30)
Immersion Corp., a developer of 3D and force-feedback products
and technologies, today released a MicroScribe Software
Development Kit (SDK) for the Mac platform. The new SDK
integrates Mac software with the MicroScribe digitizer to create
applications that run on Apple computers.
Immersion's MicroScribe G2 digitizer is an articulated arm that
design engineers, game developers, animators and industrial
designers use to convert physical objects into digital 3D models
for virtual manipulation and editing.
Immersion's Mac-based SDK for the MicroScribe system provides the
files and information needed to collect positional and
orientation data from the digitizing hardware. Developers can
create their own digitizing routines and custom applications. The
Mac SDK is compatible with Mac OS X (v.10.2.1).
Following are the initial companies that plan to implement the
Mac OS MicroScribe digitizer support:
-- Eovia Corp. (product - Amapi Pro 7 - www.eovia.com)
-- Ashlar-Vellum, Inc. (products - Argon, Cobalt, Graphite, Neon,
& Xenon - www.ashlar-vellum.com)
-- EVOQE s.r.l. (product - solidThinking - www.solidthinking.com)
-- auto.des.sys, Inc. - (product - form.Z - www.formz.com)
-- PiXELS Digital, Inc. - (product - PiXELS3D - www.pixels.net)
The MicroScribe SDK for the Mac platform will be available for
free download starting July 2nd from Immersion's Web site.
Founded in 1993, Immersion Corp. develops, licenses and markets
haptic technology and products. Immersion and its wholly owned
subsidiaries hold over 185 issued patents worldwide.
***Intersil, ViXS Collaborate to Deliver Video Over 802.11g
Networks
(June 30)
ViXS Systems, a developer of video networking chipsets and
software, and Intersil Corporation, a designer and manufacturer
of analog and wireless networking solutions, today announced
their collaboration in offering design tools for the transmission
of video over standardized 802.11g. The result is a software
development kit (SDK) that combines ViXS' XCode with Intersil's
PRISM GT chipset and PRISM Nitro technology. The combination of
the two chipsets is intended to help consumer electronics
manufacturers bring products to market that have interoperability
with existing 802.11b systems, but offer digital video over the
same wireless network.
ViXS' XCode integrated circuit can adjust the bit-rates,
resolutions and formats of multiple MPEG video streams in real
time, adapting each stream to changing network bandwidth. As a
result, products such as digital video recorders (DVRs), media
gateways or set-top boxes can distribute digital video to
networked display devices in the home, such as HDTVs, plasma and
LCD TV monitors, PDAs, personal computers, or personal video
recorders (PVRs). By managing the video stream, XCode states they
can guarantee 30 frames per second over any type of Internet
protocol (IP) network, including 802.11. The XCode SDK is
currently available and being used by consumer electronics
manufacturers to develop video wireless products.
Intersil's PRISM GT chipset solution incorporates Intersil's
SingleSource Driver Suite with PRISM Nitro technology. Intersil
claims this delivers up to a 3x improvement in throughput for
802.11g clients operating in mixed-mode wireless networks, and up
to 50 percent greater throughput performance in 802.11g only
networks.
http://www.vixs.com
http://www.intersil.com
***LSI Logic Offers Integrated ADSL, VoIP and Ethernet in Gateway
Design
(June 30)
LSI Logic Corporation today introduced a gateway design, the
HomeBASE VoIP/ADSL Gateway, that combines the company's HomeBASE
ADSL modem chipset with their LSI403LP open architecture ZSP
digital signal processor (DSP). LSI stated that the gateway is
intended to offer manufacturers of customer premises equipment
(CPE) a package with hardware and Voice over Packet (VoP)
application software that supports both Voice over Internet
Protocol (VoIP) and ATM (VoATM) designs.
The VoIP/ADSL Gateway is designed to provide a pre-integrated
product to manufacturers of high data rate systems with voice
capabilities, to help minimize time-to-market. In addition to the
hardware, the gateway includes software such as router, NAT, and
firewall based on the Linux operating system. A VoIP software
suite is also included with multiple voice codecs including
G.711, G.723.1, G.726, G.728 and G.729 and supporting signaling
protocols such as SIP (Session Initiation Protocol) and MGCP
(Media Gateway Control Protocol).
Featuring interoperability with many DSLAMs, the LSI Logic
gateway solution uses SpeedREACH transport technology and a
network processor for data throughput and software performance.
LSI stated that the rate/reach performance exceeds TR-048
requirements. The chipset is compliant and interoperable with
industry standards T1.413, G.992.1 (G.dmt), and G.992.2 (G.lite),
and supports Annex A and Annex B.
The HomeBASE chipset (includes the SpeedREACH AFE AR8202, the
AR900 network processor and Ethernet PHY L80225) along with the
LSI403LP is priced at $25 in 10,000 piece quantities and is
immediately available through local LSI Logic sales
representatives.
***SuperComm 2003
By John Latta and James Sneeringer
June 2-5
Atlanta, GA
Georgia World Congress Center
Despite the lingering slump, and tension surrounding the FCC
Triennial Review release, the ILECs put on a brave face at
SuperComm this year. Their focus was firmly on the future, with
discussions of fiber to the home (FTTH), the triple play, and
focusing on customers. Yet, they could not ignore the past and
present, and a melancholy tone undercut presentations such as
those by Patricia Russo of Lucent, and Duane Ackerman of
BellSouth. These shadows were thrown into sharp relief by the
Wednesday keynote, entitled simply "Cable Has It All."
In the rest of the world, DSL outnumbers cable 2 to 1, but in the
US these numbers are reversed. FTTH stands forth as the new ILEC
response, based on the unbundling relief given to new fiber by
the FCC announcement. FTTH will provide the basis for the triple
play, the combination of voice, data, and video on a single pipe
to the home. But cable has a head start, and they are realizing:
bundling reduces churn but does not add value. When both ILEC and
MSO offer the triple play it will quickly become a commodity. No
one, including cable, can guess what the actual value-added,
profitable applications will be over a ubiquitous high-speed
converged network to the home. The ones with the most experience
are likely to figure it out first, and DSL is behind.
SuperComm has traditionally been the best place to tap into the
ILEC mindset. Their continuing stature was reinforced by the
sheer size of the conference: 3 buildings, 2 exhibit floors,
thousands of exhibitors, and hundreds of sessions. Supercomm is a
complex event. A co-located "educational" conference was being
conducted by IEC, International Engineering Consortium, at the
same time, and the WAVE Report bounced between the two depending
on the sessions and speakers.
AT&T Keynote
The opening keynote was given by David Dorman the Chairman and
CEO of AT&T. We heard David give the keynote at CompTel and he is
effective in conveying his leadership of AT&T. Yet, he presented
a totally different side here at Supercomm. Here it was all about
AT&T's worldwide network and what he was doing to make the
transition to a single IP -MPLS based network. His key points,
which also played to this audience, included the following:
Capital has fled this sector. We are caught up in a ever
receding recovery. There are expectations that this cannot
go on forever.
When I joined AT&T in 2000 a decision was made
to reduce
debt. We went from $65B to $12B and in the process sold both
our cable and wireless assets. Now we have our credit
quality back up.
Our top priorities are to improve the long neglected
customer experience and to deliver simplified and fully
integrated networking environments. We are making a $500m
investment on the customer side. For example, we seek to
lower our billing defects by 25% by the end of 2003.
An example of our transition is that in 2000 we had 67
billing systems, now have 30 and will go to 1 by the end of
2004.
At AT&T we are on the path reduce all our networks
to one-
IP based with MPLS. This one physical network will create
many logical networks based on the products and services
that will ride on it. The creation of these logical networks
will happen at the edge. We are working with a number of
suppliers. Cisco is supplying a multi-service edge device
which we are using now. These edge devices will be fully
deployed on a world wide basis by 2005.
AT&T will make WiFi access to its network available
at many
hotels and airports and be on a global basis by 2004. Our
partner in this venture is Comedia Networks.
AT&T is the largest carrier of IP data. We transport
1
petabyte a day and this is up 2X since May 2002.
We also receive over 50,000 attempts to hit our network
servers a day. We have some of the most effective tools to
combat cyberterrorism.
IEC British Telecom Presentation
Sitting here in the US we are blinded by our own narrow view of
the world. No other country is so lucky to have these endless
debates about policy and where every new attempt to make it is
bogged down in endless court challenges. In spite of its own
strong legal system, England offers a contrast.
Paul France gave a BT perspective of the situation in the UK. It
has been stated that the British culture is such that they will
vehemently oppose the imposition of direction but once the
decision is made will move ahead with speed and commitment. Thus,
when BT finally accepted the need to compete and provide a
wholesale business they did it with full intent. Paul's
presentation reflected this:
There are 289 ISPs that gain access to customers using BT
Wholesale IP Streams. In spite of this BT still has 52% of
the retail market.
There are 1,250 exchanges supportive of DSL and this is 69%
of all the homes.
The total number of broadband homes is 1.8m, with 950K on
ADSL and 920K on cable. The add rate difference is
significant. ADSL is taking on 100,000 per month and cable
only 20,000 per month.
As required by the regulator in the UK there is an open
market for ISPs.
The goal in the UK is 100% coverage and currently BT is
seeking to expand DSL coverage and to use other technologies
including Mesh Radio, Broadband Fixed Wireless and satellite
to reach these homes.
The contrast here is striking. In the UK the arguments of ROI,
fiber to the home, line sharing and protection for BT have
passed. The result is that BT has made broadband both a wholesale
and retail business. Yes, BT has lost share, barely holds to its
monopoly status but the big gains are to consumers.
IEC Lucent Presentation
If any one company has been battered by the bad times in
telecommunications it is Lucent. At least it is still operating
but one has to keep in mind that this was at one time the
equipment arm of AT&T and the Bell System. Lucent has endured lay
off after lay off as it seeks to stay in business. The industry
looks to Pat Russo for her perspective on the status of the
industry. But being a public company she at the same time has to
be cautious. The best words she had to offer were:
It appears that the slope of the decline is getting less.
There was also a clear message coming for a major supplier of the
telephone companies and this included:
Equipment providers must address both CapEx and OpEx issues.
The ILECs are being driven by rapid returns in any
investment they make.
Hot areas include: wireless, broadband, and security.
We no longer have the luxury of one source for a complete
solution and technology set, as was the case when the Bell
System existed. Now this industry must do what has not
traditionally done in the past - partner.
IEC Executive Workshop: Broadband Services - ILEC Compelling
Plans
On this panel were:
Augustine Cruciotti
Executive VP, Network Services
Qwest Communications
Ross Ireland
Senior Executive VP, Services
SBC Communications
Paul Lacouture
President, Network Services Group
Verizon Communications
William Smith
Chief Product Development and Technology Officer
BellSouth
The common threads included:
They all spoke multiple times in their presentation on the
upcoming triennial review order by the FCC. This is rumored
to be 800 pages. Each ILEC stated that the wording on the
fiber investment portion of the order will have a
significant impact on what they will do with future
infrastructure investments, especially to the home.
On May 30th, Verizon Communications, SBC Communications and
BellSouth, the three largest U.S. local telephone companies,
agreed on standards for BPON (Broadband Passive Optical
Networking). This was characterized as a set of common
technical requirements and specifications for fiber to the
premises (FTTP) technologies. The announcement took the form
of a letter issued to vendors and stated that they would be
seeking requests for proposals soon based on those
requirements. BellSouth, SBC, and Verizon will independently
finalize their FTTP deployment plans for 2004 and beyond,
based on the evaluation of these proposals, ongoing internal
studies, and on the resolution of related regulatory issues.
This will form the basis of a common buying pool for this
equipment. The RFP is expected to be released on June 19th.
It was very interesting to hear the comparison made between
value added services and CLASS services now being widely
sold by the ILECs. This is a pure cash cow and they are
seeking the same "class" of broadband services that will
drive both revenue and profits.
Each of the presenters discussed how they must be focused on
customer needs not just supplying telecommunications
services. However, how each ILEC interprets this is
different. It could be said that they are being forced up
the value chain in order to sustain or grow the business.
Certainly IP transport is changing how the ILECs see the
communications opportunities. For example, VPN, Internet
access and VoIP are seen as additional services.
There is a new buzz word - Capital-Success Based. This means
that any capital funds spent will be evaluated on its
overall ability to improve not only ROI, but OpEx and
generate new high margin revenue streams. One criteria
applied is that 75% of the capital investment would fit this
criteria and the other 25% would be risk based, i.e., the
more tradition capital investment.
Now to the individual presentations.
Qwest
Qwest has provided DSL since 1997 and has 535,000
subscribers at year end 2002.
It will spend $75m to deploy additional DSL capacity
where the demand is strong. This will increase customer
availability by 20%. As a part of this they will be
removing bridge taps, load coils and UDCs to increase
the reach of DSL.
Qwest sees the top broadband applications being:
- Home Networking
- Online Music
- Online Gaming
- Online Video
- Network Based Services
-- Firewall
-- Access Controls
-- Home Controls
It has been Qwest's experience that the greater the
number of services the lower the churn rate.
Qwest has gone one step beyond the Triple Play. They
call it the Grand Slam and it includes:
- Long distance
- Phone and Features
- Broadband
- Video and
- Wireless
SBC
The strategy was quite interesting:
- Circuits to Packets
- Electrical to Optical
- Seamless Wireless/Wireline Integration
VoIP was described as the business "killer app."
Supporting this are enhanced business features
including web-based user management.
SBC has deployed 7,400 RTs (Remote terminals) which
have the effect of being like a mini-CO (central
office). This brings the node closer to the home.
Supporting these RTs is 2.1m miles of fiber. As SBC
stated - "this is our DSL build."
SBC was very bullish on BPON. They expect to achieve on
the 1st generation: 20Mb/s down; 5Mb/s up.
To implement BPON they are looking for economies of
scale from the suppliers.
SBC also stated they are looking for ideas from the
supplier community.
Verizon
Verizon was strong in its support of FTTP. They see
Ethernet as a key part of the interface to both small
business and the home.
Verizon presented a very interesting view of the
broadband services platform and this was done in tiers:
Complete Voice Services
- Local/Long Distance
- Packet Telephony
- Instant ADLs
Basic and Advanced Data Services
- Broadband - 1Mb/s to 10Mb/s and beyond
- Customized Bandwidth
- Data and Video convergence - including a
web pad
- Home Networking
Basic and Advanced Video Services
- Broadcast and Premium Channels
- Pay Per View and VoD
- High Definition TV
It has been Verizon's experience that the customer
tolerance for outages with broadband is much less than
telephone service. That is, if broadband goes out they
know about it immediately and the customers want repair
at the same rate.
Verizon placed some important requirements on the
systems and processes to support the new broadband
access technology. This included:
- Graphical interfaces for Verizon internal
operations, maintenance and provisioning;
- Remote provisioning;
- Web-Based Customer Access;
- Auto-Inventory Discovery;
- Bandwidth Allocation and
- Proactive Performance Monitoring.
Verzion's plans for FTTP or BPON are:
- RFP - June
- Select Network Suppliers - Q3
- Deploy in 1st Phase Cities and wire centers - Q1
2004
In a marked shift from the past this sound bite says
much:
- Access Changes the Game
- This is where the dollars are.
Verizon, in response to a question, stated that they
have 200 Class 5 switches in the Boston area. By going
to softswitches it will be possible to reduce this to
18 fiber based switches.
BellSouth
BellSouth had the most pragmatic view of the future. It
is what they called multi-faceted. It was made clear
that their future cannot wait until fiber comes - a
more near term solution is required. That is,
- FTTP
- DSL Expansion
- VDSL and
- DBS.
Technologies being considered for this include:
- Deeper penetration of DSLAMs including:
-- FDI based solutions
-- DSLAMs on Customer Premise
-- ADSL over Fiber in the Loop
- ADSL 2
- ADSL +
- VDSL (3 - 50Mb/s)
- G.shdsl
- Fixed Wireless
- First Mile Ethernet over copper
- ADSL 2 Pair Bonding
It was cautioned that not all this would make it but
this is what is being considered.
BellSouth has 15m homes passed. There are 3 - 3.5m new
home starts per year. To date approximately 1m homes
have FTTC. There are 1m DSL customers. There are 40,000
RTs in the BellSouth network and they intend to put
DSLAMs in these. This places a heavy emphasis on DLC
and the result is a short copper loop. The net result
is much flexibility to deploy extensions on DSL
technology.
Of special note was the $10/month Home Networking
offering now being sold by BellSouth. This was credited
with reducing churn. Product support is 7/24. The
service uses 802.11b. The take rate is 17%. An
independent study showed the wireless was easy to
accomplish. BellSouth emphasized that the next step is
networking PCs, TV, phone, security and home
appliances.
BellSouth feels that when they reach 4 - 5Mb/s this is
the foundation for video delivery - VoD and PPV. Also a
part of this is expected to be a PVR element. BellSouth
will have a VoD trial in 30 days.
The industry views CableLabs with envy. The CableModem
spec has been critical to setting the standard for what
all the cable industry will use. If we in the carrier
space had not used a common purchasing function for DSL
we would not have had a similar effect. (This is news
to me). It is that same advantage that we are hoping to
realize with the BPON specifications and purchasing
function.
Hawks Descend on SuperComm -- Cable Keynote
In a one two punch, Patrick Esser, EVP of Operations, Cox
Communications, and Richard Green, President and CEO of CableLabs
gave the keynote on Wednesday.
Patrick's presentation was arrogant and in-your-face. Reduced to
the essence it was:
We have the platform to deliver broadband and are running
all over DSL. Today our market share is 2 times DSL and we
are available, reliable and simple. When consumers have a
choice between cable and DSL in the Cox serving area we get
70% share. DOCSIS is a huge success. The prices have gone
from $400 to $40 for a modem. In the Cox system, 70% are
purchased at retail. We are moving to do the same with the
set top box. We are the 12th largest phone company in the US
and will grow to 1m phone lines by the end of 2003.
The most important portion was an announcement of two
applications. One is in trials now and the next one coming. The
trial is for a home web cam that provides video over the Cox
system. Users can access this remotely to determine when kids
come home from school and many other uses. Secondly, coming soon
will be a health application of the Cox network. This will allow
for the measurement of weight, blood pressure and other important
vitals. The interaction with the system is via the TV including
with the medical provider. But in probably the only statement
that had a tinge of humility, Patrick stated:
We are not sure what the killer app is.
Richard Green began by touting the cable modem. There are now 350
models and these are installed in 12m households the US and 18m
worldwide. Cable broadband is growing by 100,000 subscribers per
week. Broadband has 25% penetration in households that have a PC.
CableLabs are working to make cable voice a primary line service
and this relies on VoIP. It is currently in trial. Another major
effort is to eliminate the set top box. This fall there will be
televisions that have plug in modules to do just this. Cable Home
is to solve the networking problem in the home. Richard used the
analogy that the fox has entered the chicken house by coming by
SuperComm. It was a wake up call to the telephone industry that
cable will be aggressive with technology and marketing to protect
is market share. Hawks are more a more fitting predator.
DSL Forum -- Announcing DSL Home
It was fitting, the same day that cable came to Supercomm, that
the DSL Forum announced its DSLHome initiative--a clear response
to CableHome. Details on DSLHome are scant. We picked up the
following:
- The intent is to enable managed home networking with DSL
as the outside transport;
- There will be a spec - most likely under a year and could
be as soon as 6 months;
- The effort will include testing and such items as
provisioning and QoS will be evaluated;
- DSLHome is packet based and looks a lot like CableHome;
and
- DSLHome is in-home transport agnostic - HPNA, Wireless,
HomePlug, take a pick.
Cisco Inverts the Network -The User is the Center
At an IEC Workshop, Cisco presented one view on the nature of
broadband to the home as a whole and in a larger context the
entire ecosystem. Currently the value is based on always-on and
better-than-dial-up speed, where the food chain stops at the
carrier. The view by many, especially carriers, is based on
hardware. Broadband is the connection between a home and a CO or
headend, with a fast, persistent data rate. Or is it?
Roland Acra, Senior VP and CTO, Service Providers, Cisco,
emphasized the point that the focus must shift to the user, away
from the hardware. From this he sees that broadband is no longer
a connection from site to site, but from user to network. As he
stated:
Broadband subscriber access rides above varying access
methods such as ISDN, DSL, cable, Metro, FTTX, and wireless
last mile options and dynamically binds the subscriber to
revenue generating services.
Dynamic refers to the varying contexts in which users will access
the network. These include public contexts, such as the Internet
or public applications, private contexts, such as VPNs or private
applications, and walled gardens such as video or other content,
or voice. The key to providing value to users will be the ease
with which they can switch their context. Thus service providers
must provide dynamic policies that enable a high degree of
flexibility in how the user accesses the different contexts of
services offered on the network. The key to profits will
therefore be adequate back-end systems-those that enable simple
self-service, while providing service providers with a variety of
billing options.
The user must be identified and authenticated as they move into
different contexts. This involves varying amounts of personal
information. Who the user will entrust with that information will
determine who provides the gateway to services, and control of
the revenue stream. The telecomm industry will compete with
others such as other broadband providers, content providers, or
ISPs, for this relationship.
Triennial Review and a Visit by FCC Commissioner Kevin Martin
Kevin Martin was seen as a champion here at Supercomm. In a
packed room he came to deliver an old speech and answer a few
questions. Yes, the Triennial Review order is due any day he
stated in response to a question. We are all waiting for 827
pages to get clarity and prepare for the next round of legal
challenges.
Following Kevin's brief remarks, Jeff Linder of the law firm of
Wiley, Rein and Fielding gave an overview of the recent actions
at the FCC with an emphasis on the Triennial Review. The TIA, as
reflected in the work done by Wiley, Rein and Fielding, sees the
review as a big win. How could this be when the opposite camp,
represented by CompTel has the same view?
The answer is simple. It is all about preserving your own
markets. In the case of CompTel they wanted to keep UNE-P in
order to sustain the business of their members. With the
regulatory responsibility shifting to the states they see this as
a big win, compared to loosing all of UNE-P. Yet, much to my
surprise UNE-P was largely dismissed. The major emphasis was on
eliminating bundling for advanced services, i.e., the Internet,
and getting exclusive rights over services which use new fiber
builds. Jeff saw this decision as a very bold one for the FCC as
it normally does not place such strong exemptions in a market.
Thus, the ILECs feel that the impact of UNE-P decision will erode
with time and especially in their ability to wear down the
states. But most importantly, they have a clear path to
maintaining monopoly status in what is seen as their future.
Network Protocols
This SuperComm Industry Update session looked at the protocols
used in networking today, and what will be needed for the future.
Larry Roberts, founder and CTO of Caspian Networks, addressed the
protocol that he helped implement onto the ARPANet 20 years ago-
IP-in
the context of new, time-sensitive applications. IP by
itself is simply a way to packetize and send data. Two protocols
run on top:
TCP is a protocol for file transfers. IP packet routers
handle each packet independently, discarding some when the
saturation point is reached. The transmitting terminal
begins slowly and picks up transmission speed until it
begins to detect packet loss, at which point it slows down
and retransmits lost packets. In this way the network
automatically and dynamically manages its own load, and no
packets are lost. Zero packet loss is holy and speed is
negotiable.
Less well known, UDP is a protocol for real-time data
streams such as voice or video. The transmission data rate
is static and set by the transmitting terminal. UDP is
assigned a separate queue or queues on an IP packet router,
and when the queue(s) fill up, the router drops packets
equally from all flows. Packets are not retransmitted and
represent signal degradation in a real-time stream, and
perhaps destruction of compressed or encrypted streams.
Speed is holy, and packet loss negotiable.
Larry presented the premise that there is a third option for
dynamic network traffic management-flow routing. This is not a
protocol change, but rather a change in the way that routers
handle the IP packets that pass through them. Unlike current IP
routers, flow routers would be cognizant of flow state-the
relationship between packets in one file or one real-time stream.
This would allow a flow router to do things like route once per
flow (rather than once per packet), to police promised flow
rates, and to reject new UDP flows when limits are reached. The
last point is the key to avoiding packet loss from real time
flows, while controlling network traffic--by prioritizing
established flows over new ones. In this way, QoS controls are
available for IP, without using protocols such as MPLS, which,
according to Larry, is too slow for today's compressed VoIP
calls.
Bob Tye approached the VoIP protocol question from a different
perspective-that of the carriers. Phone carriers already use IP
extensively for trunking, but some are looking at pushing the IP
signal all the way into the home. For carriers, SIP could have
disadvantages. It depends on an intelligent terminal on both
ends, which has the dual negative effect of making CPE expensive,
while reducing the network between the terminals to dumb
transport. To a carrier used to charging for call control, this
is a negative. Bob stated that in some cases, carriers may
instead opt for a more centralized IP telephony standard such as
MGCP (the basis for CableLabs' VoIP standard) or the similar
Megaco ITU standard. This approach would allow a carrier to
maintain centralized control over calls, and provide affordable
CPE. But, SIP will certainly have a place, especially for
communication between softswitches.
Tidbit - China and Broadband
There are 90m cable subscribers in China but the government
prohibits these connections from carrying data. If this rule is
overturned China could very rapidly jump to the largest country
with broadband connectivity.
China is expected to grow the deployment of DSL very rapidly in
2004.
On the Floor
SIP Forum
Rather than a booth, the SIP Forum hosted a SuperDemo--an area of
the floor for SIP vendors to set up their equipment,
interconnect, and conduct demos for whoever passed by. The WAVE
Report spoke to both Ed Keegan, Manager of the SIP Forum, and
Chairman of the Forum Jorgen Bjorkner, VP of Concept Development
at Hotsip.
- The SIP Forum holds SIPit events twice per year. These are
informal gatherings of vendors to interconnect products and
test the compatibility. From the events come a
classification of interoperability--either basic,
intermediate or advanced.
- The SIP Forum is moving to formal certification of
interoperability, similar to that provided for WLAN products
by the Wi-Fi Alliance. This move is intended to increase the
attractiveness of SIP VoIP products to service providers and
carriers.
- SIP is more popular as a VoIP protocol with ISPs than with
telcos. However, some telcos are talking to SIP vendors--
because they
have to, according to Jorgen. Centrally
controlled protocols like Megaco are more familiar to
telcos, but have no future for advanced services such as
video, IM, and presence. SIP does.
- The WAVE tried out the Hotsip soft client on a call to the
company headquarters in Stockholm, across the public
Internet. The quality was astonishingly clear.
SDR Forum
Tucked away in the mobility section of the show floor was a booth
for the Software Defined Radio Forum. This has been a pie in the
sky concept driven in the public sector by the FCC. The concept
is getting real. The forum holds its annual conference in
November. What struck us was that the next step - Cognitive
Radios - are now developing. These are radios that have
intelligence, including the ability to seek out and use available
spectrum. There have, in fact, been conferences on the topic. On
Thursday, the White House announced its Spectrum Policy
Initiative, which has the long term potential to make additional
but disparate spectrum available. Thus, the value of cognitive
radios becomes all the more important.
GoDigital
This company has an ADSL range extension product. Basically it
converts 4 ADSL lines to run over one copper pair and will go up
to 25 miles with repeaters. Without repeaters it will go 12,000'.
The company also has a 8:1 telephone line multiplexer. Thus, by
using two phone lines and their technology is it possible to
support 8 phones and 4 DSL broadband users. The technology used
is G.shdsl. Their equipment intercepts the ADLS lines right after
the DSLAM to reformat it and then does the deformatting on a
pedestal box outside the home. Thus, in terms of the external
interfaces this product is very simple - ADSL signals in and ADSL
signals out but over a much longer distance than previously
available. Key points include:
- The core buyer is the rural telephone company. They have
sold to 220 ILECs and this DSL product has been bought by
100 ILECs.
- A viral marketing approach is used when there is doubt
expressed by the ILEC. Install the unit and try it. No units
have been returned.
- GoDigital has a strong ROI argument - without repeaters
the ROI is 1 year and with repeaters it is 2 years.
- GoDigital stated that the ILECs do not care what happens
between the DSLAM in the CO or RT and the pedestal
termination on the customer premise.
D-Link
We had several conversations in the booth including an extended
discussion with Steven Joe, President. Here are key points.
Cox is buying some of the equipment they need for their
broadband application trials from us.
Product support is critical to the profitability of
business. Every support call means that the profits have
been lost on the device that generated the call.
i2eye Video Conferencing Hardware
- We are only on the first generation of these
products. What makes i2eye significant is that it is
the only single chip implementation of this technology.
In addition to the existing model we have a wireless
one and a business model coming. We have yet to go mass
market. It is critical to get all the issues worked in
advance. Today we have sold to early adopters. Mass
market sales are expected to begin in July.
- The reason we do not support video output to a PC is
cost. The price point when price does not influence the
sales of this product is $99. This is where we are
heading but we are not there yet.
- A potential major market is schools.
- H.323 compatibility has not been an issue. In spite
of the fact that the codec is not a part of H.323 we
have been able to support most implementations.
- We are seeing the emergence of home technology
installers. They will install networks and even our
camera. Prices range for an installer to come to they
home for electronics installation $120 - $300.
- We see wireless as an important addition to the
product line in that is enables uses to accomplish much
easier installs.
FinePoint Technologies
FinePoint Technologies offers a variety of service management
products to both broadband and dial-up ISPs. We spoke with
Antonia Townsend, VP of Marketing, at some length. She stated
that their PPPoE products were the core business of the company,
and that FinePoint had a 60% share of the US market with their
WinPoET product. Customers include Verizon and Earthlink DSL. The
company is primarily involved in the US and UK markets, but they
are starting to sell into South America and Africa as well. The
products include:
CyberTRUCK - Subscriber management software package for
broadband ISPs, including PC qualification, installation,
diagnostics, messaging, portal generation, and a client-side
firewall application
Total Internet - This is subscriber management for a dial-up
ISP, very similar in purpose to CyberTRUCK. Antonia referred
to both this and CyberTRUCK as "ISP in a box."
WinPoET and ServPoET - These are PPPoE (Point to point
protocol over Ethernet) management products. WinPoET is a
Microsoft-certified Windows PPPoE driver (the Mac version is
MacPoET). ServPoET is a hardware/software solution for the
provider's office, to take the broadband PPPoE load off of
routers.
TestPoint - This technology allows customer-initiated,
automatic loop qualification for DSL. The customer loads the
TestPoint CD (sent out by the SP), and sits back. The
software works by placing 3 calls to the FinePoint servers
(which must pass through the local CO) and analyzing the
line screech as it connects. FinePoint claims over 99%
accuracy on the qualifications. After the qualification, a
notice given to the customer, and a detailed line report
sent to the service provider.
The advantage that TestPoint provides to SPs is in the
increased foot print that is possible. The capability to
easily individually test each line allows the SP to
advertise to a larger geographic area. Since most SPs do not
characterize each line, they define their footprints
conservatively to manage customer expectations. When
customers can accurately self-qualify, the marketing
footprint can be expanded based on the aggregate results of
those tests.
At the show, FinePoint announced the launch of TestPoint
server. This allows the TestPoint technology to terminate
calls in the SP's own office, rather than at FinePoint. A
managed solution is still available.
FinePoint also provides a solution for ISPs to implement Amber
Alerts, the automatic alerts of missing children recently
approved by Congress, as small pop-up windows on the customer's
machine.
***Kaydara Announces MOTIONBUILDER 5
(June 30)
Kaydara Inc. today announced the upcoming release of
MOTIONBUILDER 5, the latest version of the company's real-time 3D
character animation software. Building on ten years of experience
working with production companies, Kaydara stated that
MOTIONBUILDER 5's technology can make animation attainable
without the large teams and budgets traditionally associated with
high-end projects such as blockbuster feature films.
Kaydara MOTIONBUILDER 5 is a solution for feature film, series
broadcast, television commercial, FX, game and interactive 3D
artists. With a real-time rendering engine and Kaydara's "smart"
character technology (HumanIK), character set-ups and animation
can be created in minutes.
MOTIONBUILDER 5 is a 3D animation solution that includes many of
the same character animation tools designed for larger
professional production houses--but with a customized toolset for
the unique needs of smaller production studios. New character
animation features in MOTIONBUILDER 5 include:
* The New Story-Timeline allows users to edit 3D animation tracks
in combination with audio, video and constraints. A new
independent camera track allows producers, special effects
directors and 3D artists to work out camera shots and timing
independently of the animation timeline.
* Enhanced Character Animation functionality includes added
support for quadruped characters, hand floor constraints, finger
and toe controls, squash and stretch and additional neck bone
controls.
* Photorealistic Real-Time Rendering is built upon Kaydara's
real-time architecture for accurate feedback as well as fast
final renders. MOTIONBUILDER's rendering engine takes advantage
of hardware capabilities available through OpenGL and nVidia
technologies.
* Natural Usability and Workflow improvements include enhanced F-
curve
and property editors, comprehensive undo and customisable
shortcuts.
* Built-In Clipart Library provides characters, environments,
textures, motions and more.
* File Format Support for moving 3D assets in and out of
MOTIONBUILDER. New support in version 5 includes OBJ, DXF, 3DS,
mp3, AAC file format as well as new FBX partners including
Wings3D and RealViz.
MOTIONBUILDER 5 natively supports Kaydara's FBX file interchange
format, a format for 3D data. FBX is supported by 3D content and
streaming media vendors such as 2D3, Alias|Wavefront,
Autodesk/Discreet, Softimage, NewTek, DI-O-Matic, Digimask,
ElectricImage, InSpeck, Maxon, Motek, Face2Face ,QEDsoft,
Virtools, Reflex3D, Turbosquid, Vicon, Wings3D and Zygote.
Kaydara will also provide a Professional Edition of MOTIONBUILDER
5, which will include support for advanced motion capture editing
tools, a software development kit (SDK), integration with asset
management systems, and personalized customer support and product
development.
Kaydara MOTIONBUILDER 5 will be available August 2003 on Windows
2000, Windows XP, and Mac OS X 10.2 and higher. MOTIONBUILDER 5
is priced at $995 USD and MOTIONBUILDER 5 Professional is priced
at $3,495 USD.
***Sense8 Launches WorldToolKit Release 10
(June 25)
Sense8 Incorporated today announced the availability of
WorldToolKit Release 10. The new release builds on WorldToolKit's
framework by enabling rendering effects such as dynamic shadow
casting and texture blending, while adding a keyframe animation
system and flexible plug-in development architecture.
WorldToolKit is Sense8's portable, cross-platform software
development system used for building 3D applications for
scientific and commercial use.
Sense8 stated that WorldToolKit Release 10 will enable developers
to improve the visual quality of their simulations, while taking
advantage of development productivity enhancements such as the
keyframe animation system and plug-in development architecture.
WorldToolKit builds upon its strong foundation by providing the
following enhancements:
• Texture Blending - multiple textures blended
on the same
polygon.
• Dynamic Volumetric Shadow Casting - automatically cast shadows
from light sources on to surfaces in the scene.
• Enhanced Runtime Type System - comprehensive type (class)
hierarchy of WTK objects.
• Plug-in Architecture - ability to create modular additions to
WTK.
• Comprehensive Geometric Shape Support - geometric properties
are defined and maintained
• New Sound Support - enhanced audio support integrating sound
into the scene graph for several file formats.
• New Sensor Drivers - InterSense, Ascension,3Dconnexion and
DirectInput
• Texture Maps from Video/Movie files - apply movie files as
dynamic textures
• Time-based Animation System - timers and interpolators
coordinate animation of objects in the scene.
• XML Scene Graph File Format - save entire scenes with this new
XML-based format
• 3ds max Plug-in - Export from 3ds max to WTK scene file format
including animations.
• Support for Sense8's new Terrain Module - Import and optimize a
variety of terrain formats for WTK
Release 10 will support Windows 98/2000/XP, sgi, Sun, and linux.
--------------------------------------
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