Network News: Avaya, Ciena, Interxion, AboveNet

Here’s a roundup of some of this week’s headlines from the network industry:

Avaya introduces new edge switches.  Avaya announced an updated portfolio of  Ethernet switches that will bring the capabilities of Avaya's Virtual Enterprise Network Architecture (VENA) to the edge of the campus network. The new Ethernet Routing Switch (ERS) 4800s enable enterprises to optimize networks for communication and collaboration, and simplify the convergence of voice, video and data communications. The new switches will consume upwards of 50 percent less energy, handle five times more traffic and allow a total cost of ownership that is up to 50 percent lower than competing solutions. "Enterprises want data networking solutions that they can forget about. Solutions that make it effortless for them to connect new IP phones, secure new devices and users, and add more capacity," said Steve Bandrowczak, vice president and general manager at Avaya Networking. "Avaya's collaboration-ready ERS 4800 switches deliver these features to enterprises today. They also provide support for advanced Avaya VENA capabilities like network virtualization and wireless integration that will allow enterprises to simplify their networks and the deployment of next-generation applications and services in the future."

Ciena selected for 40G New York to Europe network.  Tata Communications, in partnership with Ciena (CIEN) announced the launch of 40 gigabits per second enabled services on its TGN-Atlantic subsea cable system from New York to London. The deployment of 40G coherent optical technology on the TGN-Atlantic cable is the first on Tata Communications’ global submarine network. This upgrade allows for four times the capacity of traditional 10G wavelengths to give bandwidth and flexibility to carriers and enterprise. TeleGeography expects the demand for trans-Atlantic capacity to increase nearly 9-fold between 2010 and 2017. Tata's high capacity optical network will be based on Ciena's 6500 Packet-Optical Platform with 40G/100G coherent technology and will be fully compliant with International Telecommunication Union (ITU).  “The deployment of 40G technology on our TGN-Atlantic cable system is a hugely significant step for us in cementing our leadership in global network infrastructure. It will ensure our network is future proof and will bring maximum long-haul transmission bandwidth, lower latencies, higher uptimes and seamless scalability to carriers and enterprises, while ensuring a low cost of ownership for our customers," said John Hayduk, President, Product Management and Service Development at Tata Communications.

Interxion to host Hibernia submarine cable from North America to Ireland.  Interxion (INXN) announced an agreement with Hibernia Atlantic to host a Point of Presence (POP) for its high-capacity fiber optic cable system at Interxion’s Dublin 2 (DUB2) data centrer. Interxion's DUB2 facility offers connectivity with access to over 25 carriers. The new Hibernia link offers the only direct, submarine cable to connect North America to Ireland, delivering competitive advantage to Interxion’s customers. "The fact that this is the only direct, submarine cable to connect North America and Ireland further reflects our commitment to delivering the best possible connectivity options to our customer base, Hibernia’s high-capacity fibre optic cable system is especially relevant for our digital media community, such as content delivery providers and social media engines, that require high-capacity bandwidth," said Tanya Duncan, Managing Director of Interxion. "Our secure facilities were specifically designed to support mission-critical applications and IT systems, and Hibernia’s diverse, high-speed connectivity is another true value-add for our clients," she concluded.

AboveNet offers core wave services in San Francisco.  AboveNet (ABVT) announced that its Core Wave services are now available to enterprise and carrier customers in the San Francisco Bay Area and Silicon Valley. The new offering provides customers with a flexible, dedicated and cost-effective data transport solution for point-to-point connections in and between top metro business hubs. Connectivity between key data centers or enterprise locations in key locations including San Francisco, Santa Clara and San Jose will enable 1Gbps, 2.5Gbps, and 10Gbps service and the benefits of a dedicated wavelength service. Utilizing ROADM (Reconfigurable Optical Add/Drop Multiplexer) technology, Core Wave solutions provide dynamic wavelength add/drops and inter-ring connectivity with flexible traffic routing.