SEPTEMBER 17, 2008 -- GPON semiconductor and software supplier BroadLight (search for BroadLight) is collaborating with Atheros Communications to provide complete, turnkey reference platforms that integrate BroadLight's GPON technology with the Atheros XSPAN, the industry's most widely-adopted 802.11n Wi-Fi technology.
Based on BroadLight's BL2348 GPON VoIP residential gateway system-on-a-chip (SoC) and Atheros' XSPAN 802.11n offerings, the new Aspen reference platform will enable equipment suppliers to meet the needs of service providers worldwide for high-performance, wireless-enabled GPON gateways supporting triple-play applications in the home, say the companies.
Atheros is the newest participant in BroadLight's Synergy+ program, which establishes strategic alliances with industry leaders that complement the company's product offerings.
"The combination of Atheros and BroadLight technologies creates a compelling solution for customers and enables them to quickly bring to market wireless-enabled GPON home gateways," explains Doron Tal, vice president of business development and product management for BroadLight. "Wi-Fi is a must-have requirement for residential gateways to enable wireless distribution of new high-speed services such as IPTV in the GPON-connected home, and we are confident Atheros' 11n will provide a superior wireless networking experience."
"11n is the clear choice for wirelessly distributing media content and services throughout the home," adds Ali Hariri, Atheros' vice president of broadband carrier networking. "GPON significantly increases broadband performance on the LAN, driving the need for similarly robust wireless capabilities. New home gateways based on BroadLight's GPON combined with Atheros XSPAN Wi-Fi can deliver the performance and reliability consumers demand when streaming media and latency-sensitive content."
The joint reference designs feature Atheros' 802.11n single-band and dual-band 2x2 MIMO options. Atheros says its AR9220 XSPAN family comprises the most integrated options for residential gateways, combining the radio, baseband/MAC, and PCI interface into a single chip. New residential gateway designs based on these devices will deliver up to 10 times the end-user throughput and nearly twice the range of legacy 802.11g and 802.11a/g networks, claim Atheros representatives.
The new BroadLight and Atheros-enabled GPON VoIP Gateway reference designs are now available.
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