In brief: Equant unveils IP videoconferencing

Plus: MCI wins federal contract to build a GSM net in Iraq.

Equant recently announced its IP Video Solution service bundle, which the company says includes everything needed to support videoconferencing. The carrier is teaming with Cisco, Genesys Conferencing and Polycom to support its service, which runs over its multinational IP Multi-protocol Label Switching network. Cisco is providing edge routers, Polycom is providing videoconferencing gear and installation, and Genesys is providing video-bridging services.

Although Equant would not provide exact pricing, it compares the cost to that of ISDN services, which primarily are priced based on usage. The company says eight hours or more use of IP Video Solution should cost less than ISDN video service.

MCI has won a U.S. government contract to build a GSM digital cell phone network in Iraq as part of a postwar rebuilding effort, the GSM Association said last week. The contract authorizes MCI, formerly WorldCom, to build a small network used mostly for humanitarian relief efforts. That the network is based on GSM is “absolutely critical,” according to the association, which noted that many of Iraq’s neighbors and most of the Arab world operate on the standard.

The matter of which wireless technology would be used became a political issue when a California lawmaker sought reversal of an Army plan to use GSM instead of Code Division Multiple Access technology, which is more prevalent in the U.S.