Forty-two DSL vendors interoperate at SuperComm
 
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A vast interoperability demonstration is leading the advances in DSL technology on display at the SuperComm 2000 show in Atlanta this week.
Some 42 DSL vendors are participating in an eye-catching demonstration around the SuperComm show. Each of the vendors' gear interoperates with equipment made by all of the other 41.
This is a major advance from last year when gear from participating vendors was less ubiquitous. Also, this year the interoperability showcase features two flavors of DSL: asymmetric DSL with downloads up to 8M bit/sec, and DSL-Lite, with a 1.5M bit/sec download. Last year the showcase just tested DSL-Lite.
Meanwhile, DSL vendors set up a mesh of separate interoperability demonstrations among booths at the show. For example, Tollbridge Technologies set up demos between its voice gateway and DSL gear from five other DSL vendors.
Also, General Bandwidth demonstrated its G6 voice gateway working with Efficient Networks' integrated access devices (IAD) to deliver ATM-based voice service. The demo also included IADs from Accelerated Networks, which also makes a voice-over-DSL gateway.
Even as DSL is becoming more interoperable, vendors are looking ahead to adapting to other access technologies and adding more functions to their equipment.
For instance, Nortel Networks and Tollbridge announced a way to deliver voice over IP on a cable network, highlighting the fact that carriers are trying to reach customers with any broadband-access technology, not just DSL.
In fact, Tollbridge is demonstrating at its booth the ability to handle packet-switched voice to circuit-switched voice translations over DSL, packetcable and wireless access networks.
CopperCom outlined its roadmap for migrating its CopperCom Gateway, currently a packet-to-circuit-switched gateway, toward a combination gateway and voice switch. The program is called CopperComplete and is scheduled to roll out throughout next year.
Incorporation of a software-based voice switch in the gateway will enable it to link packet voice traffic from local access links to the public phone network. That is scheduled for early next year.
Next spring, CopperCom will add ports to let the gateway switch connect directly with ATM-based and IP-based voice networks.
By the end of next year, the company will have customer site gear called CopperCom MXR that will enable carriers to support voice features - such as call hold and transfer - without using local network bandwidth to draw those features from a local switch.
Syndesis, which makes automated provisioning software and hardware, announced it is working on automating voice and data services over DSL links. The Syndesis NetProvision platform can configure the devices necessary to setting up these DSL packaged services. That means shorter times between ordering a DSL service and when it is actually turned on, the company says.
Syndesis is working directly with CopperCom, Jetstream Communications and Tollbridge, makers of DSL voice gateways, to speed along its voice-over-DSL effort.
CopperCom teamed up with service providers Focal Communications and NorthPoint Communications, as well as equipment vendors Efficient Networks and Copper Mountain Networks, to demonstrate voice over DSL. Calls from four phones connected to an Efficient IAD are carried over a DSL link to a DSL Access Multiplexer in NorthPoint's network. The calls are backhauled to Focal's public phone network. There the ATM voice calls are converted to traditional phone traffic via a CopperCom gateway.
CopperCom also announced it can conserve bandwidth on local DSL links by compressing a 64K bit/sec phone call to 16K bit/sec, leaving more room for data or for more phone channels. It also makes voice channels possible on longer phone lines where DSL bandwidth drops, leaving little room for voice traffic.
Copper Mountain announced that carrier equipment vendor Marconi will resell Copper Mountain gear under the Marconi name.
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