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SBC Vendor Edgewater Branches Out To The Data Center

Edgewater Networks is expanding its reach into the data center with a new line of session border controllers (SBCs) that connect, protect, optimize and monitor IP-based communications. Together with Edgewater Networks' EdgeMarc branch offering, EdgeProtect Enterprise Session Border Controllers "provide a VoIP and video-aware NAT/firewall, protocol harmonization for interoperability of VoIP and video devices, active VoIP line testing, call quality monitoring, survivability and QoS," says the company.

Edgewater Networks has shipped more than 150,000 units since starting up in 2002, and controls 21% of the enterprise SBC market measured in sessions. It says the unified communications (UC) infrastructure market will reach $4.8 billion by 2015, and that just over half of enterprises plan to invest in UC projects in the data center in 2011.

In May, Edgewater targeted the SMB and branch-office segments with its EdgeMarc 250 SBC offering, and now it wants to grab a piece of the data center market. The EdgeProtect family comprises the 5300LF2 (1 x 10/100/1,000-Mbps Ethernet WAN, 1 x 10/100/1,000-Mbps Ethernet LAN and 1 x 10/100/1,000-Mbps Ethernet secure out-of-band management port), which supports up to 300 concurrent TLS connections, 300 concurrent VoIP calls or 25 Mbps of video traffic; the 4550 (1 x 10/100-Mbps Ethernet WAN and 4 x 10/100-Mbps Ethernet managed LAN switch), which supports up to 10 concurrent TLS connections, 10 concurrent VoIP calls or 1 Mbps of video traffic; and the 4552 platform (1 x T1/E1 WAN interface, 1 x 10/100-Mbps Ethernet WAN and 4 x 10/100-Mbps Ethernet managed LAN switch), which can be used to terminate T1 access links directly and supports up to 10 concurrent TLS connections, 10 concurrent VoIP calls or 1 Mbps of video traffic. Now shipping, the systems' prices range from $2,495 to $19,995, depending on configuration.

With EdgeProtect deployed in the data center and EdgeMarc at branch/remote offices, Edgewater is offering more of a complete solution, says Rob Arnold, senior industry analyst, unified communications and collaboration, Frost & Sullivan. "Whether deploying multivendor or single-source solutions, we know that enterprises are expecting better interoperability and tighter integration between platforms in their communications networks. Unlike many bolt-on solutions, these Edgewater products are designed to work in concert. Enterprises will appreciate that both product lines are supported by common management, monitoring, reporting and other tools that will help to more efficiently analyze, diagnosis and trouble-shoot on both the LAN and WAN side of the UC environment."

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