Juniper Network, a provider of high-performance networking and cybersecurity solutions, has been selected by the UK’s telecoms giant British Telecommunications (BT) to deliver its Network Cloud infrastructure initiative. This arrangement will help support the rollout of BT’s upcoming unified cloud networking platform, which will integrate the company’s networks, including 5G, Wi-Fi and fixed-line, into one virtualized service and enable more efficient infrastructure management and implementation. This new and more flexible network infrastructure will also generate a range of innovative applications that support services such as Internet access, TV and business network functions, improved voice and video delivery, and scalability. The Network Cloud platform will be built according to a common framework, and shared across BT’s offices throughout the UK and globally. “This move to a single cloud-driven network infrastructure will enable BT to offer a wider range of services, faster and more efficiently to customers in the UK…
Telecommunications and data services vendor BullsEye Telecom and the cloud-based VoIP networks security solutions provider RedShift Networks have announced a new partnership to deliver innovative cybersecurity solutions for protecting and securing enterprise VoIP and SIP-based networks. BullsEye Telecom is adopting RedShift’s VoIP security, threat intelligence analytics and proactive fraud prevention technologies to ensure industry-specific compliance for regulatory sensitive clients in the healthcare, financial and government services industries. Vilas Uchil, Vice president of Technology and Engineering for BullsEye, said, “Our clients now have access to an incredible portfolio of cloud, voice and unified communications security protection through our partnership with RedShift Networks. Together, BullsEye and RedShift offer clients proven solutions and security to protect their VoIP and UCaaS networks against expensive malicious attacks. We are preventing theft, fraudulent transactions and service downtime.” As stated in the announcement, RedShift’s Unified Communication Threat Management (UCTM) platform works to establish communication baselines…
Samsung Electronics is striving to remain at the forefront of technological innovations and is challenging the boundaries by making more powerful smartphone cameras – the company has introduced two new 0.8-micrometer (μm) pixel image sensors, the 64-megapixel (MP) Samsung Isocell Bright GW1 and 48 MP Isocell Bright GM2. These image sensors will expand Samsung’s 0.8μm image sensor lineup from the existing 20 MP to ultra-high 64 MP resolutions, thus bringing new standards of photography to smartphones. Yongin Park, executive vice president of the sensor business at Samsung Electronics, said: “Over the past few years, mobile phone cameras have become the main instrument for recording and sharing our everyday moments. With more pixels and advanced pixel technologies, Samsung Isocell Bright GW1 and GM2 will bring a new level of photography to today’s sleekest mobile devices that will enhance and help change the way we record our daily lives.” The…
Global satellite operator Telesat, the Vodafone Group and the University of Surrey in the UK, have successfully accomplished the world’s first 5G backhaul demonstration deploying a Low Earth Orbit (LEO) communications satellite. This successful trial demonstrates that LEO satellites are able to provide efficient backhaul transport channels for mobile network operators (MNOs), including for 5G advanced services. During the live test conducted by these partners in April, Telesat’s Phase 1 LEO satellite was connected to the University of Surrey’s 5G testbed network, with the support of specialist Vodafone engineers. Vodafone also provided some funding and arranged licensing for the demonstration system. John Miller, Head of Satellite Engineering at Vodafone, said: “The use of LEO satellites provides an additional mobile backhaul option and can be an important part of the delivery system particularly to customers in our markets who live in rural areas.” Professor Barry Evans, University of Surrey, said: “The University of Surrey is very…
Norwegian telco Telenor Group and Malaysia-based Axiata Group have announced their discussions regarding a prospective non-cash merger of their telecom and infrastructure assets in Asia, in which Telenor would take a majority stake. Telenor and Axiata’s jointly owned telecommunications giant MergeCo would combine the two companies’ operations in South and Southeast Asia, and in its headquarters in Malaysia would serve almost 300 million customers using approximately 60,000 communication towers located across Asia. Gunn Wærsted, Chair of Telenor Group, said: “Today we announce that Telenor and Axiata are in discussions on joining forces in Asia, one of the most dynamic and innovative regions in the world. Together, we aim to create a leading and well-diversified pan-Asian telecom and infrastructure company with substantial synergy potential and strong regional operations. It is Telenor’s strategy to develop and create value from our core telco assets in the Nordic and Asian region. This potential merger…
The current telecommunications market is abundant with a variety of business phone systems carefully designed to improve day-to-day communications and handle the complex needs of various organizations. Among the different existing types of telephone systems appropriate for use by small-to-medium size businesses, VoIP-related phone solutions are currently the most common and are growing in popularity. VoIP phone systems operate using broadband Internet connections and generally include quick and easy installation, cost effective pricing, high scalability and advanced features with options to cater to any entity size, ranging from a small business to a multi-service enterprise. A comprehensive VoIP solution should include a range of voice functions needed by the organization, and support both external and internal communications as required. Finding the most suitable phone system may be overwhelming, so for those currently on the lookout, here are the top ten VoIP phone systems to investigate. Nextiva VoIP Software…
American technology companies Ribbon Communications and Neustar have announced an expansion of their cooperation to provide a comprehensive solution designed to tackle the issues of robocalling and call spoofing. Ribbon, a global software leader providing IP-based real-time communications security and software solutions, is working in partnership with Neustar, the exclusive host of the ATIS Robocalling Testbed, to develop and support an integrated platform for their STIR-SHAKEN implementation. Secure Telephone Identity Revisited (STIR) standards and the Signature-based Handling of Asserted information using toKENs (SHAKEN) framework were developed by the IETF and ATIS/SIP Forum NNI Task Force, respectively. STIR-SHAKEN is a major industry initiative set up to help service providers protect consumers against illegal robocalls and caller ID spoofing. The Ribbon session border controller, as well as policy and routing products coupled with the Neustar Certified Caller platform will enable service providers to promptly detect suspicious calls and inform business and…
Europol, the European Union’s police agency, has published a report stating that telecoms fraud is costing over 29 billion Euros every year. The survey on cyber-telecom crime was conducted by Europol’s European cybercrime center (EC3) and cyber security specialist Trend Micro. This report underlines that telecom fraud is becoming a low-risk alternative to traditional financial crime, and due to the reduced cost and increased availability of hacking equipment, this type of fraud is on the rise. According to Europol, the most common methods of telecom fraud are vishing, where people are persuaded to disclose personal details, Wangiri, where people are tricked into calling back to expensive numbers, and international revenue sharing fraud (IRSF) that is claimed to be “the most damaging fraud scheme to date”. Describing IRSF, Europol stated: “It involves transferring monetary value from one carrier to another, based on the inter-carrier trust between telecom operators. Patient fraudsters…
Apple has recently acquired the Italian startup named Stamplay, a company offering an API-based backend development platform that aims to simplify the cloud-based development of apps for businesses. Stamplay specializes in building a “low code workflow automation” platform, and could assist the iPhone-maker in providing improved backend tools for iOS and macOS developers. In a press release, Italy’s Roma Tre University confirmed that Apple had acquired its startup, although the tech giant itself has not yet issued the customary statement on this acquisition. According to Italian media reports, the deal was worth around five million euros, which equates to roughly $5.6 million. Stamplay, which was founded by Nicola Mattina and Giuliano Iacobelli of Roma Tre’s computer engineering and business economics departments, provides a task automation platform geared toward enterprises. With a slogan “automate your business”, the startup enables companies to create workflows for handling monotonous, labor-intensive chores such as…
The extensive lineup of desktop SIP phone systems has been supplemented by yet another cordless solution, as Panasonic Systems Solutions Company of North America has announced the release of their new SIP cordless KX-TPA68 communication terminal. The phone was designed “for intuitive use and added flexibility as a member of the KX-TGP600 SIP cordless phone system family”. The Panasonic KX-TPA68 facilitates collaboration among staff members and enables real-time shared call appearance. The communication terminal allows users to pick up calls, retrieve held calls and join calls from lines shared across multiple KX-TPA68 cordless desk phones that are registered to the same base unit. The included features allow users to monitor the status of up to six phone lines on the same screen in real-time, and complete actions with a single touch. The new solution features an enhanced user interface and is equipped with a 3.5-inch color LCD, 18…