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Oxford Networks to Deliver IPTV Using Siemens’ SURPASS SolutionTMCnet Associate Editor
Oxford Networks, one of Maine’s leading providers of communications services, has reportedly selected the Siemens SURPASS Home Entertainment portfolio of IPTV solutions for the delivery of its new IPTV service. “The flexibility of the Siemens SURPASS Home Entertainment solution is ideal for fiber infrastructures,” said Craig Gunderson, chief operating officer, Oxford Networks, in a news release “The Siemens solution enables us to tailor the customer interface and provide an array of innovative IP video services and grow these services to match emerging customer demands for more interactive entertainment and communication home networks.” Oxford Networks, which owns and operates its own fiber optic network, is now equipped to provide IPTV services to more than 7,000 of its customers, many of whom have already been enjoying new interactive services such as on-demand entertainment, long distance learning from the home and video conferencing. Many service providers are turning to FTTH networks to support emerging services, including HDTV and VoIP. FTTH is considered ideal for IP Multimedia Systems (IMS) that bring together the home network with game consoles and other home devices, as well as Wi-Fi connections. Siemens claims its SURPASS Home Entertainment solution provides flexibility for service providers to interoperate with fiber, copper and mixed infrastructure deployments. According to company literature, the SURPASS Home Entertainment portfolio is built on an open, standards-based architecture that enables efficient back-office management tools and building blocks for the convergence of entertainment, communications and smart home solutions. The solution includes IPTV middleware from Myrio, a Siemens company. User-friendly IPTV gateways, middleware and home network convergence are the key components of the Siemens LifeWorks vision for anytime and anywhere access to digital media. Siemens provides end-to-end IPTV solutions to more than 75 U.S. regional operators as well as many more worldwide, including national operators such as KPN Royal Dutch Telecom and Belgacom in Europe and Advanced Datanetwork Communications (ADC) in Thailand. In December, China’s Shanghai Telecom Co., Ltd., and Shanghai Media Group (SMG) announced it will be collaborating with Siemens to offer IPTV services to a market that includes 25 million broadband users and 360 million television viewers. Globally, Siemens IPTV contracts cover more than 38 million broadband lines. For more information about Siemens, visit www.usa.siemens.com. Patrick Barnard is Associate Editor for TMCnet and a columnist covering the telecom industry. To see more of his articles, please visit Patrick Barnard’s columnist page. |