Press release
ntl:Telewest Business has become the first European service
provider to achieve compliance with the Metro Ethernet Forum’s
service provider certification program
- National Ethernet product demonstrates true interoperability
leading the trend towards global carrier Ethernet services
27th April 2006 - ntl:Telewest Business has become the first
European service provider to receive certification for its National
Ethernet product from the Metro Ethernet Forum (MEF), a global
alliance of 70 telecommunications organisations. ntl:Telewest
Business, which has also become a member of the alliance, joined
AT&T, Bell South, Cable Vision Lightpath, Qwest and Verizon as
the first batch of service providers to receive certification
confirming compliance with MEF’s global Carrier Ethernet Service at
Light Reading’s Ethernet Expo Europe 2006 event in London.
ntl:Telewest Business’ National Ethernet product, which brings
LAN performance to the WAN, underwent three stages of
certification, covering analysis of the product offering and
stringent lab and field testing to prove that its (EPL) Ethernet
Private Line and (EVPL) Ethernet Virtual Private Line met the
MEF's nine specifications. MEF’s key criteria required the
offerings to be truly interoperable to enable global networking. In
order to meet Carrier Ethernet service standards, ntl:Telewest
Business’ National Ethernet product had to demonstrate rapid
service creation, smooth scalability to 10 Gbps, end-to-end
protection, robust service level agreements and flexible support
for voice, Internet and multicast traffic.
“The dedication and commitment from the ntl:Telewest Business
team to demonstrate their strategic, operational, architectural and
service expertise was phenomenal,” said Bob Mandeville, president
and founder of Iometrix, the company responsible for the
conformance testing. “ntl:Telewest Business completed the
testing programme in record time and showed true commitment to
ensuring the way forward for global networking.”
“We are absolutely delighted that ntl:Telewest Business has
achieved certification to MEF’s global Carrier Ethernet Service -
it is the highest testament to our engineering capability and is
formal endorsement of services offered over the world’s first true
next generation network,” said Paul Rusby, Director of Service
Providers, ntl:Telewest Business. “It is crucial for us to be
able to be part of the world’s first service provider programme -
enabling us to deliver MEF quality assured services to our
customers.”
Carrier Ethernet provides businesses with simplicity, savings
and flexibility. The global certification programme enables
the end user to choose a suitable service provider, guaranteeing a
consistent, end-to-end service between regions, nations and
continents.
About ntl:Telewest Business
ntl:Telewest Business, part of the UK’s second
largest fixed-line telecommunications company, is a leading
communications provider to businesses, public sector organisations
and service providers in the UK. It delivers a complete portfolio
of voice, data and internet solutions nation-wide.
ntl:Telewest Business sales and support
teams are located across the UK, in close proximity to our
customers, as part of a commitment to deliver superior customer
service.
ntl:Telewest Business delivers services over
the Group’s £13bn investment in its state-of-the-art
infrastructure giving business customers access to the largest
alternative network in the UK.
ntl:Telewest Business is trusted to provide
critical communications to high profile customers
including: Heathrow's Terminal 5, Birmingham City Council and
Cambridgeshire County Council.
For further information go to http://www.ntltelewestbusiness.co.uk/
About The Metro Ethernet Forum
The Metro Ethernet Forum (MEF) is a global industry alliance
comprising of approximately 70 organizations including
telecommunications service providers, network equipment/software
manufacturers, semiconductors vendors and testing organizations.
The MEF’s mission is to accelerate the worldwide adoption of
Carrier-class Ethernet networks and services. The MEF develops
Carrier Ethernet technical specifications and implementation
agreements to promote interoperability and deployment of Carrier
Ethernet worldwide.
For more information about the Forum, including a complete
listing of all current MEF members, please visit the MEF web site
at www.MetroEthernetForum.org
For photos and PPT presentation, please visit www.zonicgroup.com/press_resources/MEF
For further information
ntl:Telewest Business press contacts: