Rim Semiconductor/Embarq Corporation

[destiny1]

This information could be posted on a number of ticktock forum locations but I believe it has implications with regard to the Rim Semi/Embarq relationship.

You may remember a few days ago someone posted an article from the Kansas City Star similar to this one.

Embarq to try TV service package

Staff and wire reports


Embarq Corp., the fourth-largest local-phone service provider in the U.S., will test a television service in one of its markets to compete with cable companies.
Embarq, based in Overland Park, plans to offer TV with phone, Internet and wireless packages over its own network, said Harrison Campbell, president of consumer markets.
Embarq now offers satellite TV in packages through an agreement with EchoStar Communications Corp.’s Dish Network.
Cable companies such as Time Warner Cable have lured customers away from Embarq with packages offering home-phone service, leading to the loss of 146,000 subscribers in the second quarter.
That has prompted phone companies such as AT&T Inc. to introduce TV to win customers on another front.
“We think that the costs of getting into video are coming down and the economics are there,” Campbell said. “At this point we feel better about it, and we’re going to dip our toe in.”
However, in a statement Wednesday, Embarq stressed the importance of its partnership with EchoStar.
That partnership “enables us to provide a high-value quadruple play bundle to our customers,” the company said. “The Dish Network partnership is our strategy with respect to offering TV service.”
Embarq declined to identify the city where its television service will be tested.
TV is becoming a serious consideration for local phone companies. AT&T and Verizon Communications both offer TV service over phone lines in some markets.
AT&T’s U-verse television service, for instance, is offered in some neighborhoods in Johnson County.
Qwest Communications International Inc., the third-largest local-phone company in the U.S., said in June it may add a TV service if customers for AT&T’s U-verse TV package surge.
Denver-based Qwest now offers television through an arrangement with DirectTV Group Inc.

Embarq made a point of noting satellite as their strategyof choice with regard to offering TV service. This statement didn't make sense then and certainly doesn't make sense now.

I recently received this note from a ticktock member.

I thought you might like to share this information.
I'm a satellite internet and television subscriber. I can tell you that
I also do not believe Embarq really meant what they implied in their
recent PR.A few days ago, I began uploading some important family photos and
files to an off-site location for safe keeping. Due to the large files
that I uploaded, my internet connection was slowed to a snail's
pace. My service provider informed me I’ll have to wait 30 days
before they will (again)allow me to enjoy1.5 mbs again.
I've also been warned that I have to watch my monthly usage.
Satellite doesn't seem like the wave of the future to me. GO RIM!
I've enclosed Wildblue's fair access policy as they were so kind to
send it to me.
Take care.
http://www.rimsemitalk.com/fair_access_policy.pdf (http://www.rimsemitalk.com/fair_access_policy.pdf)

[destiny1]

1.5 mbs!! There is no way a telco can compete with cable, fiber offerings and consumer demand depending on such paltry performance.

Rim Semi just announced 35 mbs @ 8,000 feet! IMO, every DSL provider in the world would want this product within their network. Surely, Embarq and others are attempting to throw up smoke screens. The challenge is, based on reports like this, the need is so great, their true intentions cannot be hidden.

D1;)

[doughjo]

From PR
IPSL 1.0 also specifies data speeds of up to 35 mbps at distances that are as far as 8,000 feet from the nearest telephone company facility. Still very impressive!

[destiny1]

Thanks doughjo, typo

[deeba]

An article about Embarq in today's USA Today.

"We are in the business because we think there is an untapped need to have wireless and wireline work together."

And therein, he says, is the secret of Embarq's success to date. "What makes us different (from other local phone companies) is our focus on innovation," he says. "That's not necessarily the first thing people think of when they think of a local phone company."

"The carrier, which has about 6.8 million local lines, is losing about 6% each year. Revenue is down year-over-year.

Even so, Hesse thinks there's a lot of life left in the traditional phone business. The key, he says, is making the business relevant to modern-day consumers. "Common wisdom is that people like wireline or wireless. We think 80%-plus like to have both, because each has unique strengths."

Traditional phone service offers superior transmission quality, he notes. It's also cheap. Wireless offers unfettered mobility but costs more. By marrying the two, Hesse thinks he can shore up the local phone business and create new service categories."


http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/telecom/2007-09-10-embarq_N.htm?csp=34

deeba:cool:

[destiny1]

Embarq to test IPTV

August 21, 2007



Executives at Embarq, the nation's fouth largest landline phone company, are talking about launching IPTV tests. The Kansas City Star said the company is planning a quad-play over its own networks; it currently partners with EchoStar to offer TV and said it has no immediate plans to dump that arrangement. Qwest, the No. 3 phoner in the U.S. has a similar alignment with DirecTV, but is also looking into starting its own IPTV service.
Embarq, headquartered in Overland Park, Kans., was spun out of Sprint Nextel last year. It has local exchanges in 18 states and annual revenues of around $6.3 billion. It lost 146,000 landline subscribers in the second quarter of this year as more people opted for bundled telecom packages from cable competitors.
Details about network upgrades, the planned beta site or the launch timeframe haven't been disclosed. Meanwhile, the company declared a dividend of 62.5 cents a share on its common stock and refused approve an annual 3 percent pay increase for employees.
For More:
- The Kansas City Star coverage is here (http://www.kansascity.com/business/story/233585.html)
- The Southwest Florida News-Press covers the employee situation here (http://www.news-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070818/NEWS0110/70818009/1075)

[destiny1]

You may have seen notice the recent improvement in Embarq's share price. It appears associated with their equipment procurement agreement with Ciena.

The equipment is primarily for the metro Ethernet space. Carrier Ethernet is the big the business equivalent of FTTN high speed data transport to residential customers.

High speed fiber optic lines will carry the signal to the enterprise basement where it will connect to the existing copper infrastructure. From there the signal is carried over regular copper lines to the customer.

As you probably have already guessed, this is Extreme Copper's space.

D1 ;)



EMBARQ Selects Ciena's CN 4200 FlexSelect Advanced Services Platform for Deployment Throughout Network
Monday April 28, 7:00 am ET


Solution gives EMBARQ greater bandwidth and service flexibility to meet customers' growing communications needs
LINTHICUM, Md.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Ciena® Corporation (NASDAQ: CIEN (http://finance.yahoo.com/q?s=cien&d=t) - News (http://finance.yahoo.com/q/h?s=cien)), the network specialist, today announced that Embarq Corporation (NYSE: EQ (http://finance.yahoo.com/q?s=eq&d=t) - News (http://finance.yahoo.com/q/h?s=eq)), has selected the CN 4200® FlexSelect™ Advanced Services Platform for deployment throughout its network. The solution will support the aggregation and transport of a variety of residential and business services.

EMBARQ selected Ciena’s CN 4200 for its ability to dynamically increase bandwidth to handle growing capacity demands. For example, with CN 4200, EMBARQ can theoretically carry the entire collection of books in the Library of Congress – or the equivalent of more than three billion voice calls at 64 Kbps each – in approximately eight minutes across a single fiber.* In addition, the platform is capable of carrying multiple types of voice, video and data traffic, eliminating the need for additional equipment.
“Our customers are demanding new bandwidth-intensive products for their communications needs, and EMBARQ is committed to providing a network able to effectively meet those demands,” said Jim Hansen, senior vice president, Network Services at EMBARQ. “Our promise to customers is to offer practical, innovative solutions for their communications needs. This deployment gives us the added bandwidth we need to fulfill that promise within our current capital program.”
EMBARQ is installing the Ciena CN 4200 platform across its service territories. Currently, more than 100 nodes have been deployed.
“Customers like EMBARQ are making it clear that network and service flexibility is crucial in successfully implementing profitable convergence strategies,” said Mike Aquino, senior vice president of worldwide sales at Ciena. “This is consistent with our focus on delivering unprecedented network flexibility, adaptability and manageability with our FlexSelect Architecture, which is the only migration approach available today that provides the service-enabled transport for the delivery of any end-user service to any point on the network at any time.”
About Ciena’s CN 4200
With its unique FlexiPort technology and integrated Layer 0, Layer 1 and Layer 2 multiplexing capabilities, Ciena’s CN 4200 platform goes far beyond the functionality of conventional metropolitan WDM systems and SONET/SDH Multiservice Provisioning Platforms (MSPPs) with an architecture designed to support not only today’s advanced network services, but tomorrow’s as well. Optimized to manage the transition from TDM-centric to packet-centric environments, the CN 4200 family includes the CN 4200 MC for edge-optimized optical services from the customer premises, the CN 4200 for aggregating services onto rings at metro hubs, and the CN 4200 RS for highly-scalable aggregation, grooming and routing of traffic at major network interconnection points.
*Calculation made based on several assumptions, including that the Library of Congress holds approximately 32 million books – each on average with 250 pages, 40 lines per page, 80 characters per line and eight bits per character – equaling approximately 205 trillion bits. If running a 40-channel DWDM system at OC-192 speeds, EMBARQ could push 205 trillion bits in approximately 8.5 minutes.
About Ciena
Ciena Corporation is the network specialist, focused on expanding the possibilities for its customers’ networks while reducing their cost of ownership. The company’s systems, software and services target and cure specific network pain points so that telcos, cable operators, governments and enterprises can best exploit the new applications that are driving their businesses forward. For more information, visit www.ciena.com (http://www.ciena.com/).
About EMBARQ
Embarq Corporation (NYSE: EQ (http://finance.yahoo.com/q?s=eq&d=t) - News (http://finance.yahoo.com/q/h?s=eq)), headquartered in Overland Park, Kansas, offers a complete suite ofcommunications services. The company has approximately 18,000 employees and operates in 18 states. EMBARQ is included in the S&P 500 and is in the Fortune 500® list of America’s largest corporations.
For consumers, EMBARQ offers an innovative portfolio of services that includes reliable local and long distance home phone service, high-speed Internet, wireless, and satellite TV from DISH Network® -- all on one monthly bill.
For businesses, EMBARQ has a comprehensive range of flexible and integrated services designed to help businesses of all sizes be more productive and communicate with their customers. This service portfolio includes local voice and data services, long distance, Business Class High Speed Internet, wireless, satellite TV from DIRECTV®, enhanced data network services, voice and data communication equipment and managed network services.
For more information, visit www.embarq.com (http://www.embarq.com/).