[April 27, 2006] Nextone Named ''Clear Choice Test Award'' Winner from Network World for First Ever Enterprise Session Border Controller Test Tweet GAITHERSBURG, Md. --(Business Wire)-- April 27, 2006 -- Company's Multiprotocol Session Controller and iView Management System Products Are Recognized With Top Scores for Dynamic VoIP Session Control and Real-Time Monitoring and Reporting Capabilities NexTone Communications(R), the leader in intelligent and scalable session management solutions for extending the reach and quality of VoIP and other digital media, today announced it has received the "Clear Choice Test Award" from Network World for the publication's Session Border Controller (SBC) test. NexTone's solution, the Multiprotocol Session Controller (MSC), coupled with the company's iView Management System (iVMS), was rated the best of the large enterprise-focused SBCs that Network World tested. The NexTone MSC and iVMS received top scores for dynamic VoIP session control, real-time monitoring with active error and threshold-limit notification, call-level reporting system, and integrated firewall features. Network World invited more than a dozen SBC vendors to submit their packages for testing in Miercom's New Jersey lab. Four vendors accepted the challenge for the feature-based testing, which was conducted in February in conjunction with the Network World Lab Alliance. The SBC test bed consisted of simulated enterprise and carrier sites connected by a T-1 IP WAN link. The network infrastructure at both sites consisted of Extreme Networks Summit48 L2 and L3 switch/routers. Tests were performed to assess each SBC's ability to handle standard-SIP calls and G.711- and G.729-encoded Real-Time Transport Protocol (RTP) VoIP streams. Also measured were jitter, call-setup time, and one-way latency. The overall intent of the testing was to verify features and gauge the effects of SBC processing on VoIP traffic flows. The SBC products tested were expected to handle hundreds, perhaps even thousands, of concurrent calls. At the end of the testing period, the Miercom team concluded that NexTone's MSC and iVMS products were the best options for large-scale enterprise deployments due to support for both SIP and legacy H.323-based IP PBX's, detailed reporting features, and NexTone's support for an organization's VoIP administrative staff. "The NexTone package performed very well in all of the categories that we tested. One of the major strengths of NexTone's Linux-based MSC is its powerful routing engine, augmented by the exceptional management and reporting capabilities of iVMS," says Ed Mier, founder and president of Miercom. "NexTone's system can be set up to adapt dynamically and to alter operational behavior involving admission control, routing priorities, and bandwidth allocation, based on fluctuating network conditions and changed user or application behavior. These are all important factors for carriers and enterprises looking to expand their VoIP reach to VoIP-based service providers, other enterprises, and to VoIP-interconnected distributed sites via the Internet." "NexTone's receipt of the Network World "Clear Choice Test Award" validates the company's products as having the most advanced session management capabilities that go beyond the basic SBC features that were tested," said Rocco DiCarlo, vice president of product management for NexTone. "NexTone MSC's unique architecture, which separates signaling and media interfaces to handle different quality and security characteristics, has enabled very successful and large-scale deployments for NexTone's customers. Our iVMS system also differentiates NexTone's solution by providing a level of visibility that enables carriers and enterprises to simplify the provisioning, management, and scale of VoIP and other IP service deployments, and optimize their networks in real-time." "SBCs were first introduced into Service Provider networks to handle peering between carrier VoIP networks. NexTone took it a step further by introducing session management that tracks service quality above the IP layer -- something absolutely unique in the industry," said Larry Schessel, director of enterprise technology at NexTone. "It was always our feeling that session management had applicability in the enterprise, especially as organizations introduce IP-PBX solutions and SIP trunking. This award is further confirmation of the importance of this technology within the enterprise and NexTone's leadership." For more information on the Network World Clear Choice Test for SBCs and how the test was conducted, visit the publication's site at http://www.networkworld.com/reviews/2006/041706-sbc-test.html NexTone's Session Management Products NexTone's session management products provide IP networks with a comprehensive facility to manage all aspects of network interconnects for real-time services and applications, including end-user policies, service connectivity, multi-vendor interoperability and traffic management. Carriers and enterprises use the NexTone MSC to intelligently interconnect "islands of VoIP." NexTone's iVMS simplifies the provisioning and management of large-scale VoIP networks and provides a common end-to-end view of real-time IP interconnects, enabling operational teams to dynamically control, route, and manage real-time IP traffic as it enters and leaves their networks. About Miercom Miercom (formerly Mier Communications), founded in 1988, is an independent networking consultancy and product-test center located in Princeton Junction, NJ. The company has pioneered a series of interoperability testing programs including VoIP-H.323, VoIP-SIP, IP SEC, MPLS, Frame Relay and other leading edge topics. In 1995, the company launched its "NetWORKS As Advertised" program, in which any vendor can submit its networking-related products for a comprehensive, independent assessment. Miercom also publishes special reports on emerging networking technologies. Call 609.490.0200 for more information on the latest report, 2001:IP Telephony. Visit www.miercom.com for more information on Miercom's full line of products and services. About NexTone Communications NexTone Communications develops carrier-grade products for delivering scalable control of real-time IP services, such as Voice over IP (VoIP) and other digital media. NexTone's products and technology give IP networks a common way to exchange, monitor, secure, and bill for sessions that flow through them. More than 400 service providers and enterprises worldwide use NexTone's solutions to dramatically lower capital expenditures and deliver ongoing operational efficiencies such as reduced interconnect "turn-up" time and simplified network operations. The company is headquartered in Gaithersburg, Maryland, USA, with domestic and international sales offices worldwide. For more information, visit www.nextone.com. [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]