Peeking at the RFPs

RFPs issued by the Bells for IP, optical and multiservice switching technology are focused on products that will let them incrementally add services while gradually enabling them to consolidate all services onto a common backbone.

The idea is to maintain current investments and revenue streams while paving the way for new packet-based IP services and infrastructures.

RBOCs are evaluating gear from incumbent vendors such as Cisco, Fujitsu, Juniper, Lucent and Nortel, as well as newer ones such as Laurel Networks and WaveSmith Networks.

"They're looking to build out core networks with IP, or a combination of IP and MPLS, that are really meant to consolidate all of their data traffic, maybe not from day one, but that's clearly the direction," says Charlie Giancarlo, a senior vice president at Cisco, which recently landed a core router deal with SBC.

Equipment vendors are responding to RFPs for IP edge router buildouts from all of the RBOCs. MPLS is also a requirement for this equipment as an aggregator of Layer 2 services, such as ATM and frame relay, and as an enabler of IP services such as VPNs.

Laurel Networks is seeing a lot of interest from RBOCs for equipment that can extend Ethernet transparent LAN services across inter-local-access-and-transport-area boundaries without greatly increasing operational costs.