Stories by Stephen Lawson

100 Gigabit Ethernet by 2010: IEEE

Ethernet will keep accelerating, speeding up to 100Gbit/s in the next few years, the head of an IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) standards study group says.

US government clears Alcatel-Lucent deal

U.S. President George Bush has accepted a recommendation that he not suspend or prohibit the planned merger of Alcatel SA and Lucent Technologies Inc. on security grounds after an agency that oversees foreign investment said the deal should be allowed, apparently clearing it to go forward.

Verizon unveils Flash Lite for mobiles

Adobe Systems Inc.'s Flash made its first splash on mobile phones in the U.S. on Wednesday as Verizon Wireless Inc. introduced it on four handsets and announced games and applications that use it.

Home area networks drive Linksys deal

The integration of broadband gateways into home networking takes a big leap forward with the recent acquisition by Cisco’s Linksys division of the intellectual property and selected assets of Ashley Laurent, which develops software for DSL gateway devices.

Sprint's next leap in wireless: WiMax

Sprint Nextel Corp. has given WiMax technology a green light, becoming the first major U.S. carrier to back WiMax for its fourth-generation (4G) wireless data network. Sprint, the third-largest U.S. mobile operator, plans to start rolling out the WiMax network in late 2007 and hopes to reach as many as 100 million people with the service by the end of 2008. Offering downstream speeds of 2M bps (bits per second) to 4M bps, WiMax promises new power for bandwidth-hungry applications like mobile videoconferencing and large enterprise file transfers.

Alcatel, Lucent shareholders approve merger

Shareholders of Alcatel and Lucent Technologies approved the companies' merger plans Thursday, clearing one of the last hurdles to a mammoth consolidation in the communications equipment business.

Alcatel-Lucent deal faces legal test

Alcatel and Lucent Technologies's plan to form a global communications equipment giant may run into a roadblock next week in a state court in New Jersey.

Wiretapping suit against AT&T can go forward

A federal judge has denied motions by the US government and AT&T to stop a lawsuit over alleged participation by the carrier in an illegal wiretapping program by the US National Security Agency (NSA).

Nokia to sponsor free wi-fi in New York parks

Nokia has signed on as a sponsor of free wireless LAN access in some New York City parks and will let users of Nokia devices access a special mobile portal with multimedia content.

SF wi-fi idea draws mixed response

While backers say free wi-fi in San Francisco will bring a wide range of benefits and critics fear a Googlistic Big Brother, ordinary locals and visitors to the city have another take on the controversy — or don’t even know about it.

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