Bse Sets Up Own Satellite Hub

The Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) yesterday launched its own master earth station (satellite hub) and managed leased data network (MLDN) lines.

The exchange has implemented a new trading network based on advanced local area network (LAN) and wide area network (WAN) technology from Nortel Networks of the US under a $2.5 million contract.

It has also roped in Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd (MTNL), Hughes Escorts Communications Ltd and Ramco Systems Ltd as its technology partners for setting the hub.

The hub will help in speedier execution of orders and dissemination of information through low delay private networks, multiple services from a single communication channel, centralised network monitoring and control for faster proactive response to faults and no single point of failure in the backbone of entire networks.

The 11-metre private very small aperture terminal (Vsat) earth station has been installed by Hughes Escorts Communications will use the recently launched INSAT 3B satellite to initially cater to around 1000 Vsats with approximately 1,500 trader workstations (TWS) in over 300 cities of the country.

Anand Rathi, president of the BSE, said that with hub now installed the exchanges intends to expand its reach to 750 cities with over 3,000 Vsats. "This newly installed network is a total solution to LAN, WAN and network management, designed to be fully redundant without any single point of failure. The exchange has been witnessing high levels of activity with the Sensex languishing between 5,000 mark earlier this calender year. This growth in business and our plans to augment it with sophisticated new products and capabilities required new network concept which Nortel Networks delivered," said Rathi.

The leased line network is set-up by consortium of leading network solution providers. The exchange credited MTNL for the setting-up in record time the required high speed leased line infrastructure while Nortel Networks provided the networking equipment at the exchange and at the member end. The network integration services was provided by Ramco Systems Ltd.

"A trading network is critical to the success of a stock exchange - the network is the business," said Joseph Samuel, managing director of Nortel Networks in India. "In today's competitive environment downtime means lost opportunity and lost revenues. Nortel Networks is positioned at the heart of the Internet and has experienced in telephony and data communications unmatched in our industry" he added.