TELECOM Digest Wed, 27 Apr 94 01:50:00 CDT Volume 14 : Issue 183 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson International Telecomunication Union to Sponsor Digest (TELECOM Editor) Other Telecom-Related Services to be Discontinued (TELECOM Digest Editor) Interactive and Broadband Strategy Development (ritim@uriacc.uri.edu More Information Needed on Motorola 550 Programming (Lance Ware) Link Budget for Fiber Optic LAN (Marcial Dumlao) Busy Hour Erlang (BHE) Capacity of Mobile Cellular System (Aamer Soomro) South Africa Voting Information (Carl Moore) Telephony/Data Integration Recommendations Wanted (Scott Sanbeg) AT&T vs. Ameritech (Chicago Tribune via Van Hefner) Cellular Bust (Van Hefner) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and GEnie. It is also gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup 'comp.dcom.telecom'. Subscriptions are available at no charge to qualified organizations and individual readers. Write and tell us how you qualify: * telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu * The Digest is edited, published and compilation-copyrighted by Patrick Townson of Skokie, Illinois USA. You can reach me by postal mail, fax or phone at: 9457-D Niles Center Road Skokie, IL USA 60076 Phone: 708-329-0571 Fax: 708-329-0572 ** Article submission address only: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu ** Our archives are located at lcs.mit.edu and are available by using anonymous ftp. The archives can also be accessed using our email information service. For a copy of a helpful file explaining how to use the information service, just ask. ************************************************************************* * TELECOM Digest is partially funded by a grant from the * * International Telecommunication Union (ITU) in Geneva, Switzerland * * under the aegis of its Telecom Information Exchange Services (TIES) * * project. Views expressed herein should not be construed as represent-* * ing views of the ITU. * ************************************************************************* Additionally, the Digest is funded by gifts from generous readers such as yourself who provide funding in amounts deemed appropriate. Your help is important and appreciated. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 27 Apr 94 01:01:09 CDT From: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu (TELECOM Digest Editor) Subject: International Telecomunication Union to Sponsor Digest The International Telecommunication Union in Geneva Switzerland has agreed to help underwrite the costs involved in producing TELECOM Digest. The ITU will be providing me with a generous monthly stipend intended to offset some of the increasing expenses I incur here, and to relieve me of some of the burden I was faced with over the past few months in attempting to work elsewhere while producing the Digest. Their grant to me, or stipend arrived at a time when the need was greater than ever before. The ITU has not requested, nor have they been granted any control over the editorial content of the Digest. Their announcements and messages from staff members there who participate in the Digest will continue as in the past with no more or less frequency than before. The following announcement will appear in the masthead of each issue of the Digest beginning with the issue you are reading now (if you are reading the Digest version -- instead of via Usenet -- please go back and read it now for changes in case you skipped over it.) ------------------------ TELECOM Digest is partially funded by a grant from the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) in Geneva, Switzerland under the aegis of its Telecom Information Exchange Services (TIES) project. Views expressed herein should not be construed as representing views of the ITU. ----------------------- May I respectfully request that you take a moment to send a note of thanks to the ITU for their ongoing support of the Digest? Write to: Lucio Goelzer Chief, Information Services Dept, ITU Place des Nations 1211 Geneva 20 Switzerland Tel: +41 22 730-5333 FAX: +41 22 730-5337 X.400: S=goelzer; P=itu; A=arcom; C=ch Internet: goelzer@itu.ch Additionally, my thanks to to several other readers and supporters who have sent gifts in recent days; some payable to 'Ameritech' and others payable to either 'Northern Illinois Gas' or 'Edison'; some simply to TELECOM Digest with a note to 'use where need is greatest'. All have been put to use as intended and I continue to be amazed by the generosity so many of you have shown. Once again, to the ITU, my sincere thanks for your commitment to a generous monthly stipend on an ongoing basis. Patrick Townson TELECOM Digest Editor ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 27 Apr 94 01:18:18 CDT From: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu (TELECOM Digest Editor) Subject: Other Telecom-Related Services to be Discontinued As most readers of the Digest know, for the past year or so I have attempted to fund the Digest through the sale/resale of telecom- related services such as Telepassport, Orange Card, 800/Inwats numbers and similar. Although I believe I handled these things at arms-length to the Digest itself and with fairness, there were from time to time questions raised about the propriety of the whole thing while editing the Digest. The monthly stipend from ITU announced in the message before this has made it possible to discontinue active involvement in those other things. I request that users of Telepassport begin directing their inquiries to the company itself rather than my office; likewise I can no longer supply 800 numbers. Residuals due me as commissions from Orange Card will continue to be received on a monthly basis. I believe in fairness to my new patron that I should devote my energies to the Digest as much as possible given financial realities. I'll still be doing other things to earn a living, but now the Digest is provided for and that has relieved me of a tremendous burden that I dealt with the past year. My thanks to all of you who supported the various sale/resale programs over the past year. Indeed, my deepest thanks. Patrick Townson ------------------------------ From: ritim@uriacc.uri.edu Date: Tue, 26 Apr 94 16:06:05 EST Reply-To: ritim@uriacc.uri.edu Subject: Report: Interactive and Broadband Strategy Development The following is a brief outline of a report that we at the institute are very excited about. I believe that many members of this list will also be interested in the subject. Please be advised that this is not a RITIM publication and all inquiries should be directed to: Paul M. Orme 482 North Salem Road Ridgefield, Connecticut 06877 (203) 438-6828 INTERACTIVE AND BROADBAND STRATEGY DEVELOPMENT IN A CHANGING COMMUNICATIONS ENVIRONMENT "In their rush to get into the multimedia business, America's Baby Bells are spending a fortune on acquisitions and new technology. This may help to crate an industry, but does it make financial sense?" - Economist, December 4, 1993 Over the last decade, we've worked with companies to develop consumer electronic, interactive information, communications, entertainment transaction and shopping services. Never has there been so much turmoil in the industry, never has there been a greater need to prepare for the future. We've examined the industry, technologies, competition, the consumer, new major markets/opportunities and want to share our analysis, projections and conclusions with you. TABLE OF CONTENTS Executive Summary I. Overview of Telecommunications Distribution/Delivery Methodologies A. General B. Telephone Companies C. Cable Companies D. 1 Wire or 2 into Each Home E. Interactive Television F. Future Competitive Environment II. Deployment and Potential Displacement and/or Competition Among the Methodologies A. Twisted Copper Pair/Current Telephone Technology B. Cable Coaxial and Fiber-to-the-Neighborhood C. Direct Broadcast Satellite (DBS) D. Wireless Cable E. Broadcast Television F. E-On Technology III. Estimated Adoption of Interactive TV and Video-on- Demand A. Initial Indication of Demand for Interactive TV and Video-on-Demand B. Data Transmission Bandwidth Issues C. Supporting Technologies -- Converter Boxes IV. Cost of New Technology Deployment, Penetration Estimates and Timelines A. Cost Estimates to Deploy Various Technologies B. Market Penetration Estimates -- Consumer Acceptance/Penetration of Video-on-Demand and Interactive Television C. Relationships between Telephone Companies and Cable Companies D. Summary Timeline of Estimated Roll out of Largest Media Companies' Full Service Networks V. New Growth Opportunities for Interactive and Broadband A. Home Shopping B. Work at Home C. Telecommuting D. Gaming/Gambling E. Education F. Health Care (ed. this is an abridged TOC and does not contain the many exhibits and graphics) Author: Paul Orme has over 25 years experience in consulting, general management, business development and marketing. He has served in telecommunications and information companies, financial services organizations, and consumer packaged goods companies. For the past 10 years, he has focused on the definition and application of new technologies in interactive voice, data and video services. In the early 1980's, Paul Orme was President of Knight-Ridder's Viewtron, the interactive information, banking, entertainment and shopping service, which was delivered through telephone lines to household television sets. He led the redesign of Viewtron to serve PC users, and expanded the service nationally. At Citibank, Mr. Orme was Vice President of Electronic Delivery Systems where he led a department of over 120 project managers and business strategists to create, prototype, test market and introduce new electronic delivery capabilities to serve the consumer bank. Products included home banking/bill payment, screen phone/enhanced telephone and human factor design. Prior to his focus on the electronic delivery and interactive services business, he was regional Vice President and General Manager for Europe/Middle East/Africa for a consumer goods company and was responsible for over $100 million in revenue. Mr. Orme is a former consultant with McKinsey & Co. where he directed consulting assignments in the United States and International markets. He led the marketing evaluation of the McKinsey study which resulted in the creation of the Universal Product Code for the grocery industry. He is a frequent speaker at industry forums including the 8th Annual Interactive Services Association (Interact 93). He has served as Chairman of Electronic Services Division of the Information Industry Association and as a member of the board of Directors. ------------------------------ From: lware@voxel.com (Lance Ware) Subject: More Information Needed on Motorola 550 Programming Organization: VOXEL Date: Wed, 27 Apr 1994 00:00:21 GMT Earlier I requested general programming info on the Motorola 550. I am now looking for more info on the 61#, 66#, and 69# functions pertaining to ESN and identity transfer. If anyone can assist me I would appreciate it greatly. Specifically I wish to place the ESN from my already registered Fujitsu Mobile phone into my handheld motorola. This is a legitimate use and is not illegal. Lance Ware IS Manager & VOXEL Guru VOXEL ------------------------------ From: dumlao@cs.nps.navy.mil (Marcial Dumlao) Subject: Link Budget for Fiber Optic LAN Organization: Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey Date: Wed, 27 Apr 1994 01:16:56 GMT I'm researching single-mode fiber optics in LAN. I'm fairly new on this subj. Is there any text or reference that can guide me thru the analysis of system design aspects in terms of fibers, fiber cables, sources and detectors. My goal in this project is to analyze a system by calculating and applying numerical aperture values, fiber xmsn losses, describe pulse propagation properties; select light emitters, detectors, connectors, and fiber cable to match system specs; and to compare commercial fiber links. I'ld like to be able to validate manufacture specs on LANs and create a "link budget". Any help or guidance is appreciated. VR, mbdumlao@nps.navy.mil -or- dumlao@cs.nps.navy.mil ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 26 Apr 94 12:26:22 EDT From: asoomro@bass.gmu.edu (Aamer Soomro) Subject: Busy Hour Erlang (BHE) Capacity of Mobile Cellular System Hello everyone, I am writing a paper on the Erlang capacity of the Mobile Cellular System and investigating the effects of cell radius on the system capacity. This analysis involves average Channel Hold time (for a call within a cell) as apposed to average call hold time used in fixed networks. Can someone please give me references to the studies on the Channel Hold time (Its distribution), and cellular system capacity analysis. Thank you for your time. Aamer Soomro (703) 273-4813 George Mason University Electrical Engineering Dept. Farifax, Va. ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 27 Apr 94 01:48:28 EDT From: Carl Moore Subject: South Africa Voting Information This appeared under HOW TO VOTE (information for voting in the South Africa election for eligible voters who are absentee) in the {News Journal} (Wilmington, Delaware), page A-12, April 24, 1994. I am sending it only for the interest in the phone system (NO COMMENT intended on the election). The number given for "international" is apparently Johannesburg area, and I do not see how it can be toll free or where the 09 prefix would be used. Here goes: More information Call the Independent Electoral Commission toll free at (09-27-11) 401-2000 (International) or 0800-11-8000 (South Africa). The toll free line is operational 24 hours a day, seven days a week. [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: It would appear the paper simply reprinted the PR item it got from the Electoral Commission without bothering to adjust as required for local consumption. PAT] ------------------------------ From: ssanbeg@hebron.connected.com (Scott Sanbeg) Subject: Telephony/Data Integration Recommendations Wanted Date: Wed, 27 Apr 1994 00:58:42 -0700 Organization: Connected INC -- Full Service Internet Providers(tm) Hello All, We are in the process of upgrade our mid-70's mainframes to a new platform altogether. For this I am looking to install a fiber backbone, leaving the currently installed Cat5 copper alone which runs out to 100 workstations. So I'm looking for answers to several questions and any gotcha's I should be aware of. The diagram looks like this: Internet--------- \ \ 155 Mbps Equip. Rm. PSTN-------------------> Telco CO <--> Fiber MUX <--> POP ---| / (SONET) | Subscriber / | Connections---- Bandwidth /------------------------ Mangm't / Unit | | ACD Voice Processing \ |------- & FAX | / MEGA Router / Server / Modem --------/ UNIX HOST Pool (DNS) Video (Internet) Teleconferencing Without further ado, the fiber backbone connects the Router, Mega Server, UNIX Host and Video Teleconferencing together with the LAN side of the modem pool and Voice Processing Host. Not showing are, off the ACD, digital phone lines out to the one hundred agent workstations and the Cat5 copper LAN connections to each of the one hundred stations also. The copper plant is going into a Ethernet Optical Tranceiver (not shown) on the rack; the fiber is going into a fiber device (DACS?); bridging is done between the two. First question: Will the router, a Cisco 7000, be okay to function as our main router and route, instead of bridge, the FDDI and Ethernet traffic too? Second question: I've been looking at FDDI for the fiber side of things. Yet ATM looks attractive over SONET. Some vendors are reluctant to deploy ATM at the moment, like I am, because standards are still being written. We are seeing, nonetheless, some of the universities and corps. deploying ATM across their backbones. What are the thoughts here from netland? Third question: If using FDDI for the fiber side, is CDDI a solid solution to the agent stations over the Cat5? If using ATM for the backbone, are there ATM solutions to the workstations (PC's)? If using ATM for the backbone, is CDDI to the stations bridgable/routeable? Fourth question: Will someone recommend a modem pool solution that will take port routing from the ACD instead of T1's directly, give us 144 ports to start *and* acknowledge rlogin, telnet, ftp, PPP/SLIP, etc.? (The ACD routing allows us to assign ports, move them around, add to them and so forth as needed.) Fifth question: What functionality will a DACS, an Ethernet Optical Tranceiver and/or an Ethernet Switch give us over routing between FDDI/CDDI/ATM on a Cisco, the above gear and 3Com Linkbuilder Hubs on the Cat5 side of things? Sixth question: Is it recommended to have that Cisco serve as both our firewall *and* main router? If not, is it generally better to but in some- thing like a Cisco 2500 as the firewall in addition to the 7000? Last question, maybe: Who can recommend a vendor for the Bandwidth Management Unit? For background info, I have worked quite a bit with copper; am learning and am amazed by optical fiber. We already have the SONET MUX in our equipment room and our T1's are currently sent to us over fiber -- all in all we have the bandwidth requirements covered with 24 fiber strands. My intention is to perform no, or as little as possible, electro-optical conversions and use only digital equipment through the telephony parts (no analog). Thanks, Scott Sanbeg Computer Systems Engineer, Seattle, WA ssanbeg@hebron.connected.com ------------------------------ From: vantek@aol.com Date: Tue, 26 Apr 94 19:23:44 EDT Subject: AT&T vs. Ameritech Open local phone service, AT&T urges Illinois By Jon Van Tribune Staff Writer Illinois should become a national showcase for local telephone service competition, American Telephone & Telegraph Co. said Tuesday in a petition filed before the Illinois Commerce Commission, but AT&T itself won't compete. The nation's biggest long-distance phone company said it would benefit because competition with Ameritech would reduce the fees it pays to complete long-distance calls. Ameritech, the regional Bell operating company based in Chicago that provides local telephone service to five Midwestern states, responded that AT&T's petition is really intended to delay competition, not promote it, because AT&T doesn't want Ameritech in the long-distance business. Ameritech has asked federal officials and the ICC for permission to enter long-distance service. In exchange, Ameritech is willing to allow competitors into its local-service arena. Both telecommunications giants did agree Illinois likely will become a test bed for phone-service competition and deregulation because of favorable state laws and an attractive market. Dudley Burgess, AT&T vice president for governmental affairs, said Ameritech's proposal is a step in the right direction, but doesn't go far enough, which is why AT&T filed its own petition. Issues such as allowing customers to keep their same telephone numbers when they change local telephone companies must be addressed if competition is to thrive, Burgess said, and Ameritech's proposal doesn't address them. AT&T also opposes Ameritech's requirement that it be allowed to offer long-distance service before it abandons monopoly control of its network. But, said Burgess, AT&T doesn't plan to enter the local-service market. MCI Communications, the No. 2 long-distance carrier, announced last month that it plans to offer local service in several large cities later this year. Burgess didn't rule out the possibility that AT&T may one day seek to offer local service. "This business is evolving so dramatically anything is possible," he said. A decade ago, AT&T's monopoly in local- and long-distance service was split up by court order, with AT&T keeping the long-distance business and seven Baby Bells, including Ameritech, given local-service monopolies. Doug Whitley, president of Ameritech's Illinois service company, said AT&T's petition was filed primarily to divert the Illinois Commerce Commission from taking prompt action on Ameritech's requests to enter the long-distance market. "We think this filing is superfluous," said Whitley. "There's nothing they asked for in this petition that we haven't already addressed. I see no reason for AT&T to step in except for purposes of delay. Van Hefner Vantek Communications vantek@aol.com ------------------------------ From: vantek@aol.com Date: Tue, 26 Apr 94 19:24:29 EDT Subject: Cellular Bust Cellular phone fraud operation busted by law enforcement officials and BellAtlantic Mobile BRIDGEPORT, CONN. (APRIL 11) BUSINESS WIRE - April 11, 1994 -- State and local law enforcement officials in conjunction with the network and corporate security operations of Bell Atlantic Mobile today uncovered and shut down a cellular phone fraud operation similar to the ones that are costing the industry up to one million dollars per day. Police inspectors of the Connecticut Division of Criminal Justice, Office of the State's Attorney Donald A. Browne, Judicial District of Fairfield, in cooperation with Bridgeport Police Narcotic and Vice Officers executed a search and seizure warrant and arrested Teofila A. Torres, 26, at her residence at 810 Howard Ave. in Bridgeport. Ms. Torres is accused of defrauding Bell Atlantic Mobile and long distance carriers of services determined to be in excess of $50,000. The search warrant was executed on April 5, 1994 at approximately 5:45 p.m. Officials uncovered nine cellular telephones, mobile phone monitoring equipment, papers and notebook ledgers recording phone numbers and names of individuals alleged to have used telephone facilities through the scheme. State and local law enforcement officials acted after receiving a complaint from security officers of Bell Atlantic Mobile, following detection of unusual activity on the carrier's network. "Cellular fraud effects our customers in many significant ways," stated Gary Schulman, regional vice president, Bell Atlantic Mobile. "Operations such as this one could prevent customers from reaching emergency numbers or from completing calls. The additional costs to the carrier can ultimately effect our operations and our subscribers. Using a sophisticated computer system called "FraudTec", Bell Atlantic Mobile can detect abnormal usage as it occurs. In this case, a tip from Bell Atlantic Mobile led to further investigation by the State's Attorney's office with officers of the Bridgeport Police Narcotics and Vice Units. From this operation, numerous telephone calls were made throughout the United States and to the Dominican Republic. Inspector John F. Solomon, Supervisory Inspector for the office of the State's Attorney in Bridgeport praised the work of Bell Atlantic Mobile investigators and their technical tracking team. Ms. Torres was charged with larceny in the first degree: theft of utility services for profit. Also arrested was a juvenile, a relative of the accused. Three small children at the apartment were transported to the Bridgeport Police Department and later turned over to relatives of the defendant. Bell Atlantic Mobile's cellular operations constitute the largest carrier on the east coast and one of the largest carriers in North America, serving markets with a total population of 35 million. Bell Atlantic Mobile provides cellular service and equipment in Washington, D.C., and 15 states in New England, the mid-Atlantic, the Carolinas and the Southwest. The Northeast region is headquartered in Wallingford, Conn. CONTACT: Bell Atlantic Mobile Gary Schulman, 203/269-8858 or State Attorney's Office John F. Solomon, 203/579-6506 or Mason & Madison Inc. James S. Frawley, 203/393-1101 Van Hefner Vantek Communications vantek@aol.com ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V14 #183 ****************************** -------------------------------------------------------------------------------