TOKYO - October 20, 2003 - Cisco Systems, Inc., (NASDAQ: CSCO) today announced that U's Communications Corporation (U's Communications) will begin a 1-gigabit-per-second (Gbps) Internet service using Cisco® 7600 Series routers. With a 10-Gbps core, 1-Gbps access and intelligent packet processing, U's Communications will be better able to support broadband application use by its customers.
In July 2003, Japanese broadband users exceeded 11 million, according to Japan's Ministry of Public Management, Home Affairs, Posts and Telecommunications. Also, the number of asynchronous digital subscriber line (ADSL) users have reached to 9,000,000 with the upgrade of access speeds up to 26-megabit-per-second (Mbps). Fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) services up to 100 Mbps also have recently recorded 15-percent monthly growth in subscribers according to the same source. Corporations also are increasing broadband use in their networks, and increasingly adopting Ethernet-based broadband services in their network infrastructures, according to Nikkei communication's survey of Aug. 25, 2003.
To take advantage of these market conditions, U's Communications, which has been providing 100-Mbps Internet services, will add a new 1-Gbps Internet service to its lineup at a cost of 480,000 yen per month. In U's network, the Cisco 7600 Series Router has been selected to construct a 10-Gbps core in the Tokyo backbone, bundling together access at 1 Gbps.
With the launch of 1Gbps service, U's Communications plan to fully migrate current user housing edges to Border Gateway Protocol version 4 (BGP4) completely, in order to extend its IP routing core network. U's Communications has also begun the planning process for the adoption of Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) technology over Cisco 7600 Series routers.
"Our company is somewhat unusual in the carrier industry in that we have been a pioneer in FTTH and FTTO (fiber to the office), providing services that combine Internet access and optical fiber." says Yoshinari Minami, Vice President of the IP Carrier Division of U's Communications.
Continues Minami, "In providing a 100-Mbps access environment, we thought that each user must be as an ASP (application service provider) and directly allocated static global addresses to these users. These IP CIDR blocks must be routed accurately in high speed. This means our network must be configured with a full Layer 3 routing environment to enhance its scalability and flexibility. Moreover, newly launched 1-Gbps service will be required much higher routing capabilities. Our network configuration has already reached a stage that cannot be covered by OSPF (Open Shortest Path First Protocol). Therefore, we have adopted BGP4 and are utilizing LPM (Longest Prefix Matching) to control divided IP CIDR blocks for each user. The reason we have insisted upon using LPM is based on our experience with recent IP applications and the fact that they require more accurate control. Moreover, we felt that there are architectural limitations and challenges in the use of flow switching for processing complex and high-volume traffic. In order to control the high volume of traffic with LPM, we selected Cisco technology which has a proven track record of successfully enabling Internet scalability."
"Ethernet is a truly flexible offering for the service providers. The Cisco 7600 delivers intelligent Ethernet aggregation with advanced security and routing and a rich set of quality-of-service capabilities. This enables service providers to realize service differentiation and business agility at the edge of the network." says John Doyle, director of Product and Technology Marketing at Cisco Systems.
The start of this 1-Gbps service signals an expansion of the relationship between U's Communications and Cisco Systems® to create the infrastructure to support Japan's broadband services.
About the Cisco 7600 Series
The Cisco 7600 Series is the industry's first router to offer integrated, high-density Ethernet switching, carrier-class IP/MPLS routing and 10-Gbps interfaces coupled with robust broadband aggregation allowing providers to deploy the next generation of high-performance entertainment, communications and broadband applications over Ethernet-based access technologies.
Please visit http://www.cisco.com/en/US/products/hw/routers/ps368/index.html for more information about the Cisco 7600 Series Router.
About U's Communications Corporation
U's Communications Corporation (U's Com) operates networks and servers for the BROAD-GATE high-speed Internet access service using optic fiber offered by usen Corporation (USEN). The scope of services provided by U's Com spans from upper-tier Internet backbones to supporting routes to media converters installed in customers' homes. For a corporate profile and details on the company, visit the U's Com Web site: http://www.fttx.co.jp/en/index.html
