React Technologies Ltd Newsletter - October 2007
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Welcome to the Secure Wireless & Voice Over IP Newsletter
from React Technologies.

WiFi-enabled devices could bring change to hotspot owners
Must public hotspot providers prepare for an onslaught of mobile WiFi-enabled devices? According to Motorola, Apple's iPhone is forcing mobile operators to seriously consider selling devices with WiFi capability included. And last week, Apple announced the WiFi-enabled iPod Touch, which offers the same music selection and pricing as its desktop counterpart. Apple has teamed with Starbucks, where users will receive free access to the iTunes Store over the in-store WiFi.

This momentum could bring WiFi mainstream, which means hotspot providers may find themselves grappling with the prospect of heavy use and difficulty monetizing it. But just think of the new business models that can be created through enhanced hotspot partnerships with mobile operators around services and content. We very well could see a metamorphosis of the WiFi market.

Chipmaker Broadcom revised its outlook for 802.11n chips,
Broadcom say the standard is not likely to replace 802.11g as the dominant WiFi standard this year. Michael Hurlston, vice president and general manager of Broadcom's WLAN business unit, said the price difference between 802.11n chips and 802.11g solutions was a significant factor in Broadcom's change in outlook. Prices for 802.11g products are dropping due to competition, he said.

Broadcom originally anticipated 802.11n to account for about 25 percent of global WiFi chip sales by the end of 2007, but has revised the ratio downward to 20 percent due to slower-than-expected sales of 802.11n chips, Hurlston revealed. The market share gap between 802.11n and 802.11g could still narrow but 802.11g chips will continue to hold a 50 percent share of the global WLAN chip market, he said.
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Wi-Fi goes green
U.S. startup Solis Energy announced technology that enables WiFi routers to run in remote places using solar energy. The company's Solar Power Plant is touted as being able to supply 12, 24 and 48 DC volts for use in applications such as video surveillance cameras and outdoor WiFi. The system claims to be able to power such devices for up to seven days without sunlight to recharge its batteries.

The company also has a separate "tap adapter" that can be used to feed 120 volts of AC power to WiFi, WiMAX and other outdoor systems from ordinary street lights. A third product, the Outdoor UPS, can be used to provide solar-generated battery backup for critical infrastructure and municipal WiFi.

Wi-Fi MESH sees strong growth
The WiFi mesh networking equipment market grew more than 100 percent in terms of shipments during 2006 and is expected to have more than 90 percent growth in 2007, according to In-Stat. Strong growth will continue for WiFi mesh access points (APs) for the next several years, as shipments grow more than three-fold between 2006 and 2011, the firm said. Most of that growth however will come between 2006 and 2008, with growth rates rapidly declining starting in 2009 because of business model concerns

Entertainment devices to spur 802.11n demand
ABI Research predicts the growth of 802.11n connected entertainment devices will outstrip other networking technologies as WiFi-enabled consumer electronics proliferate. Demand from consumers and device manufacturers to unleash video entertainment around the home will create a need for high-speed networking technology, leading to 216 million 802.11n chipsets being targeted toward consumer electronics devices by 2011

Skype tested on jets
A VoIP aircraft antenna has been tested successfully by Starling, a firm in Yoqneam, Israel, according to reports. Starling specializes in low-profile, broadband antennas for aircraft. Starling's Mijet antenna was mounted on the fuselage of a Boeing 737 and tested with simultaneous video conference calls, Skype calls, downloads, emails and Web searches, according to a release from the company.

Wee-Fi: “Hint” of Risk from Cell Phones; Broadcom’s Tiny Modules
The BBC reports that a study based on six years of research finds small chance of higher risk in long-term cell phone use: As I wrote Monday, when credible connections between health and wireless are made, I’ll link to them. This appears to be one such case. The researchers found no short-term link between use of mobile phones and one’s health using several different measures and no link emerged. The study did find a slightly aberration in the numbers for certain forms of brain and ear cancers, but it’s only technically in the realm of statistical significance. (Other, similar studies focused on ear cancer found no link.) They plan more research, especially into longer-term use.

 

ARUBA NETWORKS REINS IN THE SECURITY RISKS OF MOBILE DEVICES
Interoperability with Third-Party Network Access Control Solutions, Complemented by Aruba’s New Endpoint Compliance System, Controls and Mitigates Wayward Mobile Devices.

By verifying interoperability with the leading NAC solutions for managed devices, Aruba ensured that its network could be successfully integrated with all three major platforms. These platforms are Microsoft’s Network Access Protection (NAP), Juniper’s Unified Access Control (UAC), and Cisco’s Network Admission Control (NAC). The identity-based access feature of Aruba’s Mobility Controller authenticates users through the Active Directory, RADIUS, and LDAP databases used by these platforms. As a result all three NAC platforms, in addition to Aruba’s new ECS system, can compare device security settings against enterprise security policies such as the anti-virus software version, firewall settings or operating system patches. The Mobility Controller correlates this policy information with its knowledge of user behavior, environmental factors such as time and location, and third-party in-line security appliances such as IDS/IPS systems or anti-virus devices. Any discrepancy will be flagged and the device quarantined or blacklisted.

Colubris LMP: Extending hotspot reach
Despite competition from 3G and WiMAX, the Wi-Fi hotspot market continues to grow, fuelled by mobile worker demands for high-speed Internet access to both data and voice services. But, in many public access venues, network infrastructure costs and complexities make it hard to expand hotspot capacity and coverage.

To simplify this, Colubris Networks recently added a new Local Mesh Protocol (LMP) to its MultiService Access Points (MAPs) and MultiService Controllers (MSCs). Using LMP, they created a 5-node Colubris hotspot, interconnected by a self-healing Dynamic Wireless Distribution System to a single wired backhaul link. However, they were unable to centrally provision or monitor the local mesh hotspot—a key enhancement that Colubris expects to ship this October.

Enterprise FMC Grows Up
Enterprise FMC contender DiVitas Networks has just inked a new partnership deal with Microsoft Corp. (Nasdaq: MSFT - message board), linking Divitas's mobile Instant Messaging and Presence with Microsoft Office Live Communications Server 2005. The California startup also delivered on an announced hook-up with Nokia Corp. (NYSE: NOK - message board), which is shipping DiVitas software on its E Series corporate handsets. That bundle includes the ability to make VOIP calls over WiFi as well as allowing wireless IM and roaming between 802.11 and cellular networks.

Full details of these Articles can be found at www.unstrung.com – www.fiercewireless.com and other industry sources

Copyright, © 2007 React Technologies Ltd. Registered in England under no.4703238.
All trademarks and registered trademarks recognised.
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