News
Issue #2003 - 04 (February 2003)
(Updated Feb. 5, 2003)

INFRASTRUCTURE, PRODUCTS & SERVICES

Lucent & Cisco Warm Up Their Relationship

Lucent and Cisco announced in January, 2003 that Lucent will integrate and resell select Cisco packet data and media gateway products as part of Lucent's mobile networking product offer for the mobile service provider market. 

The multi-year, non-exclusive agreement between Cisco and Lucent will enhance and accelerate Lucent's ability to bring best-in-class, end-to-end mobile data networking solutions to wireless operators worldwide, while allowing Cisco's best-in-breed packet data and media gateway products to reach a broader segment of the market. 

Under this global supply agreement, Lucent will integrate and resell the following Cisco packet data and media gateway products: 

• Cisco Packet Data Serving Node (PDSN), which enables CDMA2000 operators to provide mobile data access to the Internet, as well as corporate intranets and extranets.
• Cisco Gateway GPRS Support Node (GGSN), which enables GSM and UMTS operators to optimize their networks to deploy high-quality mobile voice and data services.
• Cisco MGX8000 Media Gateway and ATM aggregation products, which allow mobile operators to provision voice-over-IP (VoIP) and voice-over-ATM (VoATM) service on their packet core networks.

"We believe the demand for high-speed mobile data and low-cost packet-based voice services, particularly in the business market, is the next big growth area for wireless service providers," said Cindy Christy, chief operating officer for Lucent's Mobility Solutions Group. "As a result of this agreement, we'll be able to leverage our unmatched expertise in mobile communications and Cisco's world-leading expertise in IP networking so our customers can begin to take advantage of explosive demand immediately." 

"We're pleased to work with Lucent, a leader in the development of mobile networks, to help speed the introduction of high-speed data, voice and video services to the wireless world," said Dan Scheinman, senior vice president, Corporate Development for Cisco. "The combination of these Cisco packet data and media gateway products with Lucent's mobile wireless infrastructure solutions will help mobile operators deliver profitable, new mobile services and reduce operating expenses as they introduce IP into their mobile networks." 

Lucent Worldwide Services (LWS), in cooperation with Cisco, will provide a full suite of services including deployment (installation), engineering, support and maintenance for the products covered under the agreement. Cisco's Customer Advocacy organization will be providing support to Lucent so that together, end customers will receive the highest levels of support. In addition, Lucent will offer consulting and network design services and will be qualified as a global systems integrator for Cisco as a result of this agreement. 

Lucent's Mobility Solutions Group is the global leader in spread-spectrum technology - the basis of 3G CDMA2000 and UMTS. To date, Lucent has deployed more than 70,000 CDMA base stations in commercial networks around the globe, more than 35,000 of which support 3G CDMA2000 1X service. Lucent has supported the launch of commercial 3G networks with mobile operators on the continents of North and South America, Asia, and Europe and in the Australia-New Zealand region. 

Source: Lucent Press Release
For more information: http://www.lucent.com

MobileInfo Comments and Advisory: We see a lot of synergy here. cisco and Lucent have their own strengths. Cisco initiated a major partnership with Motorola in 1999 but it did not achieve its objectives of creating a single unified switch that could support wireline and wireless. Cisco-Lucent partnership might just be the start of similar integration at component product level. We would like to see tighter integration under the cover. That might happen later if first baby steps give the duo some strength. This will advance the role of IP in mobile networks.

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