Nortel starts roadshow for Metro Ethernet

With the advent of internet protocol TV (IPTV) and technologies such as WiMax and 3G making their presence felt in the country, the network architecture of Indian telecom companies will need restructuring.

Nortel in a bid to address the issue kickstarted its roadshow in Mumbai showcasing the Metro Ethernet Network(MEN) technology. A similar roadshow will be held in Delhi next month.

The roadshow will provide a forum to the service providers and the partner fraternity to understand how the products work and how they best suit the growing requirement of the upcoming applications.

Anup Changaroth, director, Asia Wireline Networks, said the biggest case in favour of MEN is cost effectiveness of the system along with the scalability option.

"For organisations with local offices spread across the country, routers would be the obvious choice for connectivity. However, a router from any good company will cost anything between $5,000-10,000 but Nortel's Metro Ethernet-based edge switch will cost under $1,000. At the same time, this is compatible with any legacy-based system," reasons Changaroth.

Nortel is now approaching service providers such as Tata, BSNL, Bharti and Reliance. Ravi Chauhan, managing director, Nortel India, claimed, "We have approached all the service providers and everyone is quite interested."

According to the recent IDC report, service providers in the Asia-Pacific are rapidly implementing carrier-grade Ethernet solutions to support a range of residential, enterprise and wholesale applications.

The total APEJ Metro Ethernet equipment market reached $359 million in 2005, up 79 per cent from 2004. IDC expects the market to increase at a CAGR of 27.2 per cent from 2005 to 2010, reaching a size of $1.2 billion by 2010.