Saturday, January 30, 2010

Avaya Unveils Roadmap for Future of Business Communications

Integration of former Nortel Enterprise Solutions portfolio accelerates company’s vision of communications powering enhanced business effectiveness


Avaya today unveiled its vision for the future of communications and a roadmap that integrates products and services from the recently acquired Nortel Enterprise Solutions (NES) to create a new standard for business communications.

Avaya’s vision is based on open standards, communications-enabled business systems and effective, contextual, real-time communications. Using Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) organizations, large to small, can make smooth transitions to new capabilities at their own pace while protecting existing communications investments. Avaya’s communications-enabled business systems streamline business processes by injecting real-time communications where they can provide value. Users are able to be more effective by having access to information based on the context of the task at hand.

“The integrated roadmap we’re outlining today supports Avaya’s commitment to providing customers with the advanced communications capabilities they need to manage and grow their organizations,” said Alan Baratz, senior vice president and president, Global Communications Solutions, Avaya. “In developing the portfolio, our guiding principle was to deliver the most compelling and cost-effective systems and services to customers and partners.”
Roadmap Highlights

The new roadmap builds on the existing Avaya portfolio with capabilities integrated from Nortel Enterprise Solutions. The roadmap highlights include:
Unified Communications

The centerpiece of the unified communications (UC) portfolio is Avaya Aura, a SIP-based communication platform that unifies complex communications networks. With proven abilities to reduce infrastructure costs and easily deploy centralized collaboration and customer service applications, Avaya Aura provides an upgrade path for all existing Nortel voice and UC customers. The roadmap expands the value of Avaya Aura with the addition of Avaya (formerly Nortel) Agile Communications Environment (ACE). ACE uses Service-Oriented Architecture and Web Services to facilitate the rapid development of communications enabled applications.
Contact Center

Avaya Aura is also be at the center of Avaya’s contact center portfolio. With this foundation, contact centers will move to a SIP-based, service-oriented architecture, simultaneously supporting multiple modes of communication. The new contact center solution will be based on a new and collaborative work assignment model that will connect customers, agents, and information. The new capabilities will enable businesses and organizations to stay ahead of growing customer care demands for tighter integration and lower costs. The integrated roadmap will seamlessly extend the combined Avaya and Nortel Enterprise Solutions market-leading portfolio with capabilities for agent desktop, work assignment, experience management, and analytics that will scale from mid-range to large contact centers.
Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) Communications

Avaya IP Office, BCM, Norstar, PARTNER and Integral 5 all remain for sale with a plan to converge the platforms to the company’s flagship hybrid IP offering, IP Office. Avaya will blend Nortel features, interfaces and phones with IP Office to create a richer solution with strong investment protection benefits. This approach follows the model Avaya has successfully implemented with other systems into IP Office.

The company also now offers the Avaya Software Communication System, a SIP-based offer from NES for small and medium enterprise customers who want to manage unified communications from their data center.
Data Products

As previously announced, Avaya will adopt the current roadmap of NES data products in its entirety. Avaya believes that the technology, customer base and innovative product roadmap represent a compelling value proposition for global customers. A key component of plug and play communications is the underlying, enabling network and the new Avaya data portfolio brings significant advantages of "Always-On" reliability, network efficiency and scalability to grow with customers’ business needs. Included in the Avaya data portfolio are solutions for Ethernet Switching, Routers, Wireless Networking, Access Control and Unified Management.
About Avaya

Avaya is a global leader in enterprise communications systems. The company provides unified communications, contact centers, and related services directly and through its channel partners to leading businesses and organizations around the world. Enterprises of all sizes depend on Avaya for state-of-the-art communications that improve efficiency, collaboration, customer service and competitiveness. For more information please visit www.avaya.com.

Sunday, January 24, 2010

Iridium Unveils Smaller, Lower-Cost Satellite Data Transceiver

New Product Will Provide Global Two-Way Data Links for Remote
Tracking and Monitoring Devices

Iridium Communications Inc. (Nasdaq:IRDM) today unveiled its next-generation "Iridium 9602" satellite data transceiver at its annual Partners Conference in Phoenix, Ariz.

The Iridium 9602 is a full-duplex short-burst data (SBD) transceiver designed for embedded applications in the rapidly growing market for remote asset tracking and monitoring solutions. The product, which is the culmination of a two-year R&D program, has completed prototype testing, and Iridium expects to begin commercial deliveries in June.

"The smaller, lower-cost Iridium 9602 will serve as the data communication engine for a wide range of portable tracking and monitoring devices, leveraging Iridium's global coverage and low-latency, two-way data links," said Don Thoma, executive vice president for marketing at Iridium. "Our service partners are already testing prototypes in their Iridium 9602-based solutions for applications such as tracking soldiers and military vehicles in the field, telemetry from unattended sensors, fleet management, enterprise logistics and supply-chain visibility, as well as personal two-way navigation and mapping devices."

"The matchbox-sized Iridium 9602 is 69 percent smaller, 74 percent lighter and considerably less expensive than the first-generation Iridium 9601 SBD modem, which we designed the Iridium 9602 to replace," said Thoma. "The very small form factor and low power consumption will offer greater flexibility to value-added manufacturers (VAM) and resellers (VAR) embedding the Iridium 9602 into their products."

"The Iridium 9602 focuses on highest overall value of price and performance offering global, real-time service combined with new lower pricing," said Patrick Shay, vice president, data services, Iridium. "The Iridium 9602 is the highest value in the industry."

A unique feature of the Iridium 9602 is its built-in GPS input/output ports which will permit system integrators to interface with an external GPS receiver, using a single dual-mode L-Band antenna for GPS and Iridium SBD, saving the cost of an antenna in their applications.

The duplex data links provided by the Iridium 9602 will permit two-way communications to and from the remote devices, allowing users to reprogram the unit, adjust its reporting intervals and send on-demand queries for specific data updates. It will also enable first responders and search-and-rescue authorities to respond to emergency distress signals from personal location and tracking devices.

"Prototype evaluations from Iridium's service partners have been positive," Thoma said. "More than 90 companies are working on plans to embed the Iridium 9602 in their next-generation products."

"Our phase-out program for the Iridium 9601 will allow for ample overlap with the Iridium 9602, to ensure that our VAMs and VARs will be able to transition seamlessly to the new technology," said Thoma.

According to a November 2009 report by TMF Associates, the number of low data rate mobile satellite service (MSS) devices is projected to grow from 1.5 million active terminals at the end of 2009 to more than 3.1 million active terminals by the end of 2013, a compound annual growth rate of 21 percent. Tim Farrar, a satellite industry analyst and author of the report, said, "Low-cost portable satellite tracking and messaging devices are an important new opportunity, and represent one of the fastest growing parts of the low data rate MSS market. The introduction of two-way connectivity will further stimulate market growth, particularly among professional users who may have been reluctant to rely on one-way satellite devices offering no assurance that a message has been received."
About Iridium Communications Inc.

Iridium Communications Inc. (www.iridium.com) is the only mobile satellite service (MSS) company offering coverage over the entire globe. The Iridium constellation of low-earth orbiting (LEO) cross-linked satellites provides critical voice and data services for areas not served by terrestrial communication networks. Iridium serves commercial markets through a worldwide network of distributors, and provides services to the U.S. Department of Defense and other U.S. and international government agencies. The Company's customers represent a broad spectrum of industry, including maritime, aeronautical, government/defense, public safety, utilities, oil/gas, mining, forestry, heavy equipment and transportation. Iridium has launched a major development program for its next-generation satellite constellation, Iridium NEXT. The company is headquartered in Bethesda, Md., U.S.A. and trades on the NASDAQ Global Market under the ticker symbols IRDM (common stock), IRDMW ($7.00 warrants), IRDMZ ($11.50 warrants) and IRDMU (units).