AT&T Upgrades with Cisco
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Growing Traffic
AT&T said the network upgrade was in response to growing Internet traffic as more consumers use the Web to make phone calls and to watch online videos, activities requiring higher connection speeds. The new network will also be used to deliver AT&Ts advanced Web and video service, called U-verse.
"As the demand for Internet and IP-based applications continues to explode, IP traffic on the AT&T network has doubled throughout the past two years, and we fully expect this substantial growth to continue in the future," said John Stankey, AT&Ts group president of telecoms operations.
AT&T said it chose the CRS-1 after comparing it with similar equipment from other vendors. The upgrade helps to quadruple the speed of the backbone network to 40 gigabits per second. Analysts forecasts on Internet traffic growth vary, but Cisco expects Internet protocol (IP), or Web-based, traffic to nearly double every two years through 2011. Cisco says Web-based video, including webcam traffic and advanced video services like U-verse, is expected to lead the traffic growth, supporting demand for its network equipment. Kelly Ahuja, vice president and general manager of Ciscos core routing business unit, said one key advantage of the CRS-1 over competing products is its ability to gradually expand without disrupting the network.
"One of the things we talk about with the CRS-1 is the unprecedented scalability. The system is designed to scale in capacity ... you dont need to rip it out for a very long time," he said. Analysts said the CRS-1 was likely replacing routers by Avici Systems Inc. Avici announced in April that it was discontinuing its core router development. Lehmans Singh said Avici typically generated between $30 million and $50 million a year in revenue, with a majority coming from AT&T.