Verizon Offers HomeFusion Broadband Service Nationwide
Posted by Jesse Ward on Monday, May 7, 2012 · 
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On May 3, Verizon launched HomeFusion Broadband service nationwide, whereby subscribers can use an LTE router in their homes to connect up to four wired and 20 wireless devices to the web through Verizon’s LTE network.
The service is priced at $60 a month for 10GB of data, $90 per month for 20GB of data and $120 a month for 30GB of data. The company will charge customers an additional $10 per each GB over their monthly allowance. Verizon also is charging a one-time equipment fee of $199.99 per installation. In comparison, other national home broadband providers offer more data at lower prices. Read more
AT&T Partners with VRI on Remote Medical Monitoring Service
Posted by Jesse Ward on Friday, May 4, 2012 · ·
According to the market research firm Kalorama Information, chronic conditions – such as asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder, coronary heart disease, congestive heart failure and diabetes — account for nearly 80% of physician visits, more than 80% of hospital inpatient stays, 90% of prescriptions and 95% of home healthcare visits. Further, patients recently hospitalized with one or more of these conditions are at significantly higher risk for re-admission.
Thanks to advances in technology, caregivers can efficiently care for patients outside of the hospital walls. With the aging population, chronic diseases on the rise and a shortage of healthcare workers, remote patient monitoring solutions can help reduce the amount of time patients spend in hospitals by enabling caregivers to continuously monitor their health.
Remote patient monitoring devices remotely collect, store and communicate biometric health information to health care practitioners. As I discussed in NTCA’s “The Smart Rural Community“ white paper, and more in depth in NTCA’s telemedicine ePaper, remote patient monitoring has widespread applicability, from those who suffer from chronic illnesses to monitoring infants and the elderly. Kalorama projects the market to grow 26% overall, from $6 billion in 2011 to more than $18 billion by 2014. A more recent and conservative report by Technavio estimates that the global patient monitoring market will reach $9.3 billion by 2014. Regardless of the exact figure, the nascent market is poised for exponential growth.
AT&T is capitalizing on this business opportunity, announcing May 1 it will partner with Valued Relationships Inc. (VRI) for the national rollout of a new remote patient monitoring service, designed to manage chronic diseases and help reduce hospital re-admissions. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Read more
GWI to Build 1 Gbps Network in Maine
Posted by Jesse Ward on Wednesday, May 2, 2012 · ·
GWI Inc. announced today that it plans to build a 1 Gbps fiber to the home (FTTH) network in the Old Town and Orono communities surrounding the University of Maine campus.
The project, called Gigabit Main Street Internet Network, sprung from the efforts of the Gig.U initiative, a group of 37 research universities across the United States seeking to accelerate the deployment of ultra-high-speed networks to U.S. universities and their surrounding communities. Gig.U is hopeful that the creation of these networks will drive economic growth and stimulate innovation.
The GWI-built network will be the first gigabit Internet network commercially available to both business and residential customers in the state of Maine. It also is the second Gig.U. network to be built in the United States, following on the heels of an announcement in March by Michigan State University stating that it had received a commitment from a local carrier to build a 1 Gbps network in East Lansing. Read more
5GB of Cloud Storage
Posted by Steve Fravel on Friday, April 6, 2012 · ·
Several of the online trade publications were buzzing on April 3 about a screen shot at TalkAndroid.com of a rumored new service in development at Google.
Called “Google Drive,” the thought is that Google will soon offer a free storage locker in the cloud for users to safely store and access files of all kinds. It is believed that Google will provide 5 gigabits of storage when the service is rolled out, probably mid April.
According to the online trades, reports of the new feature from Google began to surface in February.
The major advantage to cloud storage is access regardless of location. Files stored in Google Drive may be accessed from your computer’s desktop, or from mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets. While 5 gigabits is not a huge amount of storage, speculation suggests that additional storage will be made available with stipulated requirements.
Cisco Launches App-Enabled Routers to Support Smart Home
Posted by Jesse Ward on Friday, April 6, 2012 · ·
Earlier this week, Cisco unveiled a new line of Linksys Smart Wi-Fi Routers with application-enabled capabilities. The new router models are EA4500, EA3500 and EA2700, with the “A” designation being short for “app-enabled.”
The routers offer the latest WiFi technology, true dual-band wireless-N, each with 4 Gigabit ports and support for IPv6. The routers also support Cisco Connect Cloud, a Web-based portal that is designed to enable users to easily and securely manage multiple home networks from their smart mobile devices, tablet applications or Web browser. Users can give guests Internet access, set parental controls and add devices to their network through Cisco Connect Cloud’s password-protected site. Read more
Google Fiber: 100 Miles and Counting in Kansas City
Posted by Jesse Ward on Friday, April 6, 2012 · ·
The New Edge has been closely following the developments of Google’s experimental 1 Gbps fiber network the company is deploying in Kansas City, Kan., and Kansas City, Mo.
In early February, Google announced that it was finally ready to start stringing fiber on utility poles throughout the city, having resolved any outstanding issues with the local utility company. This week, Google issued an update on its construction progress, announcing that its crews have already hung more than 100 miles of fiber.
John Toccalino, a manager for Google’s Kansas City fiber project, provided this basic diagram (view the image after the jump) showing the network architecture. Google is building several equipment aggregation centers — or “Google Fiber Huts” – from which the fiber cables will travel along utility poles into neighborhoods and homes. Google also is installing some fiber underground. Read more
Australia Says No to Huawei
Posted by Steve Fravel on Friday, March 30, 2012 · ·
According to a March 27 Reuters article, Huawei Technologies Co. LTD of China has been asked not to provide project bids and contracts for the $38 billion Australian National Broadband Network (NBN). The Reuters article explains that cybersecurity concerns about Huawei are the primary reason.
The articles cites security analyst speculation that concerns are focused on Internet theft of Australian government and commercial secrets than on the company itself. Read more