Just when you thought it was safe to forget about the super router start-ups, word leaks that Procket Networks is a strong contender for Lucent's distribution business. Lucent was expected to tap Juniper as the source for its wireline IP routing offerings, but stealthy Procket has emerged as a viable option, according to an investment banking firm. So much for Internet routing being only a two-horse race… My bet? Lucent sticks with a known commodity and awards the business to Juniper. Despite the all-star lineup of engineers and managers, 4-year-old Procket is still a start-up with nothing yet to show and everything to prove. Lucent's made too many wrong moves with start-ups over the past few years. This time, it won't blow it. (Read the story)

Stash the loot! Alleged IP pirate Huawei has reportedly pulled its Cisco-compatible… make that, Cisco-identical routers and switches from the U.S. market and from customer sites just weeks after Cisco filed suit in a Texas court claiming intellectual property theft. Cisco says the product recall does not address its complaint, which charges Huawei with copying everything Cisco developed, even down to the software bugs. Cisco even filed additional court papers on Feb. 4 claiming that Huawei's recall was an effort to remove evidence that could support Cisco's case. Huawei has sold only a handful of products in the U.S., however; the real damage is done in China and Asia/Pacific. Regardless, Cisco is hoping for a favorable outcome here that will have ripple effects there. (Read the story)

Winning/losing lucrative resale business, intellectual property piracy… onto more exciting matters. Tellabs is offering customers a way to add optical and data interfaces to its 5500 cross-connect, one of the company's workhorse platforms. In the second quarter, the company will ship the 5500 NGX, a shelf that brings optical and Gigabit Ethernet interfaces plus add-drop multiplexer functionality to the older 5500 platform. Tellabs claims there are more than 4,000 of the devices in incumbent carrier networks. (Read the story)