|
Related Documentation: Networking Products
|
Texas Instruments Networking Business Unit Creates Access Products OrganizationNew Organization Will Speed Remote Access ConnectivityDALLAS (May 12, 1997) -- Taking a bold step in its strategy to provide end-to-end interoperable solutions for networking original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), Texas Instruments (TI) announced today that it has created a new product organization that will specifically target the remote access connection at both ends of the wire. The new Access Products organization, housed within TI's Networking Business Unit (NBU), will focus the company's technological leadership in digital signal processors (DSPs), mixed-signal components and networking hardware and software integration to create system-level solutions for access equipments.OEM applications that will benefit from the new TI business approach include routers, asynchronous transfer mode (ATM) backbone switches, remote access servers, asymmetrical digital subscriber loop (ADSL) modems, access concentrators and voiceband applications. "The market for access to the WAN is growing by leaps and bounds," said Greg Waters, director of TI's NBU Access Products organization. "TI has the technologies that OEMs need to develop products offering faster, denser, interoperable access for the Internet, high-speed digital data links, video conferencing, digital TV and a variety of other end user applications. Now, with the creation of the Access Products organization, TI is well positioned to assist OEMs in the creation of new, highly-differentiated products that will reach the market quickly."
Access Products Organization Builds on TI Technology StrengthsAmong the products TI offers that are key to networking access is the TMS320C6x family of DSPs. Capable of performing 1600 million instructions per second (MIPS), 'C6x DSPs offer ten times the performance of any other DSP on the market today. This high level of performance at a low cost per MIPS opens up new possibilities for communications system design in multichannel applications such a pooled modems, remote access servers, cable modems and voice mail systems.Combining 'C6x DSP technology with network application specific functions allows OEMs a time-to-market advantage over pure hardwired approaches and the additional flexibility of upgrading via software. This, in turn, protects the end user's investment as standards evolve and compression algorithms improve. DSP programmability has already proven advantageous to TI networking customers for such products as modems, which have been reprogrammed to handle increased transmission speeds and higher levels of compression without changing the modem hardware. Adapting modems and other products to obtain certification in different countries is also easier with DSP programmability. Modems will also benefit from 'C6x performance. For instance, in an access concentrator, a single 'C6x DSP can handle ten to fifteen 28.8 kilobit per second (Kbps) modem connections, whereas previous DSPs were capable of handling only a single voiceband call.
The Importance of System-Level Integration to NetworkingAs the leading supplier of silicon to the networking industry, TI has been among the industry's leaders in bringing system-level integration to networking ICs. Integration is a key factor driving down per-port equipment costs and, ultimately, the price of connection for the end user. IC integration thus serves to eliminate barriers to internetworking for businesses and consumers who want to take advantage of new wide-area services.In the creation of system-level solutions, TI's strengths in mixed-signal and ASIC technologies complement its depth in DSPs and networking ICs. The availability of a wide range of networking technologies means that customers can turn to TI for interoperability -- an important feature in end-to-end solutions that link many types of networks. Among the networking technologies the company has available for integration in access ICs are Ethernet, Token Ring, ATM, ADSL, ISDN, HDLC, PCI bus interfaces, 1394, 56K and V.** modems and voiceband technology. Products developed within this organization will benefit from TI's industry-leading Network Technology Center. Software is an integral part of remote access products. TI, through internal development and licensing agreements with such companies as Amati Communications, has the ability to bundle the appropriate software and deliver a complete solution to the OEM. This approach also enables the optimum partitioning of hardware and software components, maximizing characteristics for robust solutions. "TI will be an important player in the advancement of standard ADSL technology," said James Steenbergen, president and CEO of Amati Communications. "The Amati/TI development partnership is a significant step toward meeting the cost and performance necessary for the success of ADSL technology." "U.S. Robotics has stayed in the forefront of modem technology in part because of the availability of leadership IC technology from Texas Instruments," said Ashgar Mostafa, vice president and general manager of U.S.Robotics Access Broadband Division. "TI's Access Products organization is an important business development that will help us push ahead in networking markets even faster in the years ahead."
A Strategy Based on a Successful Business ModelIn its creation of the Access Products organization, TI is following a successful business model that it pioneered with similar groups. "OEM customers have told us that they like doing business with a single organization that is targeted toward their market requirements," said Waters. "Our engineering, sales and support staffs develop greater expertise in a single system area, and they can sustain long-term business and development relationships better with individual customers. With the creation of the Access Products organization, we have put the full strength of TI technology to work for our networking access customers."# # # |