Not so long ago, reports Network Briefing, the consensus among engineers was that modems could never exceed a rate of 33.6Kbps. In recent weeks, however, three vendors have come up with techniques for making modems operate at 56Kbps – although only in one direction. In each case, the technology is targeted at Internet users, for whom the time taken to download large amounts of data is paramount. Rockwell International Corp was first off the block, announcing its technology back in September. Lucent Technologies Inc and US Robotics Inc followed shortly after announcing their own 56Kbps modem kit. Now, Lucent and Rockwell have agreed to make their systems interoperable, but concede there is as yet no decision on exactly how complete compatibility will be. Standards committees have been formed to look at the technologies, but, as is the way with such things , are unlikely to complete the process until at least a year from now. The principle behind all three versions is the same – traditional modulation techniques, designed for long distances over poor- quality lines, are not absolutely necessary for Internet access, where for most users the only analogue portion of the call is from the user to a local phone company switch. Thus, the analog- to-digital conversion really only needs to be performed once; and this, combined with the introduction of new encoding techniques, means that data be downloaded at 56Kbps. For transmission, however, the top speed remains 28.8Kbps. Both camps have support from other manufacturers and service providers for their technology. US Robotics has signed up Lancaster, Pennsylvania- based Cardinal Technologies Inc and Cirrus Logic Inc, as well as more than 30 Internet service providers, including America Online Inc, IBM Corp’s Global Network arm and MCI Communications Corp. Ascend Communications Inc and Shiva Corp have announced plans to use Rockwell’s technology, and Microcom Inc is collaborating with Rockwell to develop a high-speed protocol. Lucent, meanwhile, has struck a deal with 3Com Corp under which 3Com will offer users of its AccessBuilder 8000 remote access concentrator line a software upgrade enabling it to communicate with modems using the Lucent V.flex2 technology – potentially bringing it millions of users. Some analysts reckon that, even after the Rockwell-Lucent deal, the dual ‘standards’ will cause problems for users and Internet service providers. One option might be for service providers to operate dual hubs, for the two different technologies, but this could be a recipe for chaos. Hayes Microcomputer Products Inc claims that for precisely this reason it is holding back until an official standard is released, although it promises products as soon as there is a decision. It’s not the first time, by any means, that modem manufacturers have come out with incompatible technologies in the hope of influencing the eventual standard, and Eric Owen, an analyst with International Data Corp, says he is confident that there will shortly be a final shakedown. If you look at the development of 28.8Kbps technology, initially there was a variety of proprietary techniques introduced by the modem manufacturers, which meant that you had to be using the same technology at both ends, he points out. Even if, as seems plausible, the Rockwell-Lucent technology wins out, there is still hope for US Robotics. Because the company’s modem achieves its higher speed through software, says product marketing manger Mike Valiant, upgrades to conform with any official standard can be carried out quickly and easily. We may do a licence agreement, but what we definitely will do is when the standard gets ratified we’ll be able to upgrade to it, he said. In fact, according to Charles Louisson, marketing director of Lucent, the three techniques would probably be fairly straightforward to merge. When you look at the fundamental technology, there’s really not too many ways to do it, he says. In any case, most people who introduce solutions onto the market will make them upgradeable, and my view is that most Inter
net service proiders will adopt an upgradable technology.
