Path to Gigabit Multipoint Microwave Backhaul Announced

VectaStar Radio Controller launched to deliver ultra-high capacity and low latency performance

Cambridge, UK, 8th February 2011: Cambridge Broadband Networks Limited today launched its 10Gb/s multipoint microwave backhaul platform. VectaStar Radio Controller (RC), the latest development of the company’s VectaStar microwave backhaul and access solution, is designed to meet the growing capacity requirements of mobile operators around the world.

The RC is a native Ethernet VectaStar hub that currently supports doubling of sector performance to 300Mb/s, with planned upgrades this year to deliver 600Mb/s and 1Gb/s. The small footprint RC can control up to 8 VectaStar sectors and aggregate traffic from up to 240 Remote Terminals in a single 1U hub. Those features exceed the requirements of network planners designing the dense backhaul networks required to support exponential growth in demand for mobile data services.

“According to Cisco, mobile data traffic nearly tripled in 2010 but until now operators have been stuck between a rock and a hard place when it comes to backhauling that traffic,” said Graham Peel, CEO of Cambridge Broadband Networks. “They tell us that, for a significant proportion of cell sites, fibre isn’t practical for cost or operational reasons and we know that traditional microwave technologies don’t have the flexibility to manage peak traffic demands efficiently.

“The VectaStar Radio Controller solves the problem with 300Mb/s sector performance immediately available, and an upgrade path to 1Gb/s before year end. Additionally our point-to-multipoint platform architecture is inherently efficient, both in the way it manages mobile data, and in its use of human and capital resources. Those elements combine to create the industry’s most cost effective mobile backhaul and access platform.”

The RC is based on a Gigabit Ethernet backplane supporting up to 10Gb/s sustained operation and is a software upgradable platform to allow for planned performance enhancements and new network standards.

John Naylon, Head of Development at Cambridge Broadband Networks, commented: “Higher capacities and latencies well under 1ms are a must for both HSPA and LTE backhaul. So is the ability to support IP traffic and all-IP architectures. VectaStar Radio Controller gives network designers all of these things in a small, efficient platform; the flexibility and performance of the radio controller gives our existing and future customers a backhaul platform for the future.”

With the introduction of the Radio Controller, designers can plan their high speed data networks with backhaul performance measured in 100’s of Mb/s aggregated seamlessly to 1Gb/s or 10Gb/s network interface ports, confident in the knowledge that they have a system to support their needs into the future.

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Notes to editors:

• All VectaStar Radio Controller traffic interfaces are Small Form-Factor Pluggable (SFP) based to provide maximum interface flexibility. Eight Gigabit Ethernet (GigE) ports are used to connect VectaStar Gigabit Access Points and two more for core network interconnections. Two SFP+ 10 Gigabit Ethernet (10GE) ports are also provided for core network interconnection since the total aggregate rate from a full set of sectors may exceed 1 Gb/s.

• Features available at launch include a novel protected sector capability that permits the simultaneous operation of two access points in a sector – thereby increasing the sector capacity of a VectaStar system to 300Mb/s. The platform is software upgradable and a roadmap of future features is available on request.

• VectaStar Radio Controller is compatible with VectaStar Gigabit and VectaStar 2 Multipoint Radios.

About Cambridge Broadband Networks Limited

Cambridge Broadband Networks Limited provides telecommunications operators with carrier-class wireless point-to-multipoint transmission equipment. The company’s unique approach to backhaul means that its technology provides operators with a highly compelling business case, reducing backhaul costs by up to 60%.

To date, Cambridge Broadband Networks products have been commercially deployed and technically proven in more than 30 countries, and the company continues to expand into new geographical markets as wireless networks become more widespread throughout the world. Privately-held, Cambridge Broadband Networks has headquarters in Cambridge, UK, with offices in Malaysia, Nigeria and South Africa and manufacturing facilities in China.

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