Date: Wed, 03 Jun 1998 10:46:32 -0500 From: kbrown@primelink.com Subject: Sprint's New ION products To: nanog@merit.edu
I'm pretty sure I'm not the first to read about this in our local paper, but Sprint announced their new strategy for integrating voice, data, video over "standard phone lines." They are calling this the Integrated On-Demand Network or ION for short. It sounds an awful lot like ISDN services from perhaps an ESS switch (8 viable bonded channels max) versus the DMS100 (2 bonded channels max).
Naw. It sounds like XDSL (maybe with a POTS filter). Colocation with LECS (AT&T is proposing this after sueing Qwest for doing the same thing) and using the LEC copper. Voice and data switching in the colo pulling the stuff off the copper pair to the customer. Buy local telephone service from the LEC and do data and LD themselves.
Our local Sprint outlet, to whom I am contracted to administer several pieces of their local dial in access project has just about finished installed the DMS100 switch (yep...we don't have ISDN yet around here). According to the Sprint Internal press release "Sprint today" they intend to completely change their local technologies (scrap the old, in with the new) instead of upgrading their existing network like other carriers.
Announced also was the fact that Cisco Systems has been designing/testing/developing the hardware to make this project work, with BellCore doing the software for the project. Rollout to major business is expected to happen in large markets sometime yet this year with residential offerings happening sometime in 1999.
Has anyone heard any additional information or have any more insight into this announcement? I am curious how this might affect the remainder of the industry.
Kevin Brown Huber & Associates, Inc. Networking Technologies kbrown@primelink.com http://www.primelink.com/haa/lanwan
Dave Nordlund d-nordlund@ukans.edu University of Kansas 785/864-0450 Computing Services FAX 913/864-0485 Lawrence, KS 66045 KANREN