net.com Adds Significant Multicast and VPN Support to SCREAM Platform
November 17, 2004 – Orlando, FL – net.com (NYSE:NWK) announced today the general availability of SCREAM release 3.1, featuring the addition of IP multicast functionality, advanced IP-VPN (virtual private network) support and upgraded platform security.
IP multicast enables the efficient delivery of video content and broadcast television services across DSL access infrastructures. SCREAM can now support the simultaneous multicasting of individual video streams to residential IPTV customers – a market that Datamonitor, a provider of business intelligence, projects will grow to 15 million subscribers by 2007. SCREAM is the only subscriber management platform in the broadband video space to offer both ATM and IP multicast support, thereby fulfilling a number of key roles in network based content distribution.
SCREAM 3.1 also delivers MPLS IP-VPN (RFC 2547) functionality to service providers looking to migrate their DSL access infrastructures from ATM to IP. Using virtual route forwarding (VRF) for Layer 3 VPN support presents a simplified alternative to tunneled hand-off mechanisms (L2TP), and also enables Internet and applications service providers to offer tiered IP quality of service (QoS) guarantees to their subscribers. When deployed in these subscriber management applications, SCREAM can also be used to provide network based IP-VPN solutions for enterprise customers. These IP-VPNs can use a full range of routing protocols, including BGP, OSPF, RIP and EIGRP (widely deployed in private enterprise networks). This allows seamless migration from an enterprise-owned to a network-based, VPN model.
According to Infonetics Research, worldwide VPN service revenues totaled $18 billion in 2003, and are expected to grow to over $30 billion in 2008. Infonetics research indicates that for every $1 spent on VPN products, roughly $10 are spent on VPN services, indicating a tremendous opportunity for service revenue growth for carriers and service providers worldwide.
SCREAM 3.1 also includes the introduction of high speed OC48/STM16 interfaces to provide both ATM and packet over SONET (POS) uplinks. This reinforces SCREAM’s position as a key edge component in the evolution of ATM to IP transport networks.
Finally, SCREAM has upgraded platform security in response to requests from enterprise, carrier and government customers. Broad enhancements were made to meet the most stringent U.S. government and defense security requirements while allowing operators to flexibly deploy any security policy to their own organizations.
About net.com
Network Equipment Technologies, Inc., doing business as net.com, develops and delivers service creation platforms for broadband, Internet protocol telephony, and multiservice networks. An architect of the networking industry, net.com has been supplying service providers, governments and enterprises around the world with bulletproof networking technology for more than 20 years. net performance. net results. net.com.