The significance of this announcement is twofold. First, BT iNET has until now offered only Cisco WLAN kit, so the fact that it now has a second option suggests that, at least for some customer requirements, it feels the need to have an alternative.

Second, Extricom is not just another WLAN vendor. It is one of the main proponents of a different approach to the cell-based architectures that have dominated until now, in which interference between neighboring APs is avoided by deploying them on different channels. Extricom and Meru, on the other hand, advocate a coverage blanket, in which all the APs on the same channel and each has the intelligence to determine which one will handle traffic at a given moment. They tout this way of deploying the APs as better for VoWiFi, in that there is no issue of handover between them.

Herzlia, Israel-based Extricom calls its offering Interference-Free Enterprise Wireless LAN to underscore this different architectural approach. David Confalonieri, the company’s VP of corporate marketing, said the rapprochement with iNET came as a result of a particular project for an educational institution in the UK called Bishop’s Stortford College, where the SI is deploying Extricom equipment to cover a 130-acre campus for voice, data, and video traffic.

The way iNET works is that they buy from distributors, and they went to a UK partner of ours called Selcoms, who recommended our technology, from which the relationship has developed, he said. One of the challenges of the project was that the college has a number of Harry Potter-ish old buildings in an environment where it is difficult to lay out a cell-style WLAN.

He said Extricom has now worked on a number of other projects with BT and they are not all in the education market. They came to us for the capacity we could deliver, as well as the lower ongoing maintenance cost of our infrastructure, after which they have also come to appreciate the mobility and security we can offer, he said.

Our View

BTGS is a very close partner with Cisco and does a lot of business with the networking heavyweight, be it in IP telephony or LAN infrastructure, so the fact that it now has a second source for WLAN, and that the source in question offers the coverage blanket mode of deployment is an important new development.

For Extricom, a partnership with BT iNET is a huge endorsement of its technology, so it will be interesting to see whether the two strike a lot of deals together, and whether any of the customers are in the mainstream enterprise sector. It will also be interesting to see how widely the BT division offers the technology, and whether it starts promoting Extricom in other geographies outside the UK.