China Broadcast and CATV Deploys RAD’s IPmux to Provision Value-Added Services over Gigabit Ethernet Network
Offers E1 Lines at Same Price as Competitors’ 64 kbps Circuits

Following the deregulation of China’s telecom market last year, several Chinese service providers have emerged with the common goal of capturing a share of the world’s largest telecom market. Competition has been particularly fierce in the area of high speed data services. A relatively new player in this sector is China Broadcast and CATV, under the auspices of the State Bureau of Radio, Film and Television, which already operates an extensive nationwide backbone network to serve its current base of over 90 million cable subscribers.

Serving the metropolitan area of Jiangyin City in the Eastern Chinese
province of Jiangsu, Jiangyin Broadcasting and CATV is the local branch of China Broadcast and CATV. It recently received permission to use its cable network, built on a Gigabit Ethernet (GbE) backbone, to provide certain types of value-added services, such as high speed data and videoconferencing services, to business customers.

Fast Route to New Services
Their first customer in Jiangsu province was the State Tax Bureau, which wanted to use Jiangyin CATV’s GbE backbone to transport data and voice between its various offices throughout the Jiangyin region. Jiangyin CATV chose to implement a private, high speed virtual leased line service network based on RAD’s IPmux-4™ TDM over IP (TDMoIP) gateway.

TDMoIP technology enables voice, video and data traffic to be carried transparently over high bandwidth packet networks. “RAD’s TDMoIP solution, based on the IPmux-4, gave us a cost-effective and seamless path to enter the value-added service market quickly,” states Mr.Peng Sun, General Manager at Jiangyin CATV. “TDMoIP is ideal for supporting the range of services – from n x 64 kbps up to E1 and H.320 videoconferencing –that we want to offer business and government customers.”

Quick Setup and Deployment
The IPmux-4 is deployed at each site to deliver leased line and legacy services over the GbE backbone network, which consists of Nortel Accelar GbE switches. Currently, 20 IPmux-4 units are installed and operating at 14 different offices. Jiangyin CATV plans to install an additional 40 IPmux units. “The IPmux is easy to install and configure, which enabled us to perform the initial installation and commissioning in only one week,” adds Sun.

RAD’s solution has allowed Jiangyin CATV to launch a range of value-added services quickly and with minimal investment, by leveraging its existing Gigabit Ethernet infrastructure. This has accelerated its entry into the market as a competitive carrier. “The low entry cost of the IPmux along with the potential revenue from these new services enables us to offer E1 leased lines at a price comparable to that charged by the incumbent operator for a 64 kbps circuit,” explains Sun.