Extreme Networks announced its new carrier Ethernet switch, the BlackDiamond® 12802R.

For service providers in need of a cost-effective, carrier-grade Ethernet solution for lower density business and residential aggregation applications, Extreme Networks, Inc. (Nasdaq: EXTR) today announced its new carrier Ethernet switch, the BlackDiamond® 12802R.

The newest BlackDiamond carrier Ethernet switch fills an important gap in the service provider market – a cost effective and full-featured solution for carriers serving smaller metro areas where a switch built for higher density applications is overkill, but a simple fixed configuration switch does not provide the advanced features needed to effectively deliver next-generation services.

Extreme Networks® solution for these service providers combines an attractive price point with carrier-grade Ethernet features such as support for real-time services through hierarchical Quality of Service (QoS) that controls bandwidth on a per-subscriber, per-application basis. Other carrier-grade capabilities include massive scalability with Provider Backbone Bridging (PBB) and efficient and resilient peering between Ethernet providers to reach out of footprint customers with an Ethernet Network to Network Interface.

"In moving towards a VLAN per customer model, the Provider Backbone Bridging and hierarchical QoS capabilities of Extreme's BlackDiamond 12802R and BlackDiamond 12804R provide us the scalability we need for our IPTV deployment," said Juha Lindstrom, IP Architect for Salon Seudun Puhelin, part of Finnet Group . "The economics and carrier-grade features of the BlackDiamond 12802R give us tremendous flexibility for architecting our Ethernet service delivery network."

In addition to the native Ethernet approach taken by many carriers, the emergence of Traffic Engineering extensions to the Provider Backbone Bridging standard (PBB-TE), now offers an alternative path that service providers can take to deploy an Ethernet transport network.

"The circuit-like behavior of PBB-TE provides the determinism and resiliency which appeals to a number of service providers who may have been hesitant to deploy Ethernet networks in the past," said Peter Lunk, Director of Service Provider Marketing for Extreme Networks. "The new BlackDiamond 12802R provides the building blocks that allow service providers to choose either path towards a network with both improved economics and scalability."

"PBB-TE is the next wave for Ethernet as it increases its role in carrier transport networks, offering deterministic network performance with a familiar operational model," said Michael Kennedy, Managing Partner, Network Strategy Partners. "With its support for PBB-TE across the BlackDiamond family, Extreme Networks is extending carrier Ethernet to a broader service provider market."

Pricing and Availability
The BlackDiamond 12802R carrier Ethernet switch will be available in May. The suggested list pricing begins at US $30,000 for a system including chassis, power supplies, fans and 20 ports of gigabit Ethernet.

For more information on Extreme Networks carrier grade Ethernet solutions, please, visit: http://www.multidimensionalethernet.com .

Extreme Networks, Inc.
Extreme Networks designs, builds, and installs Ethernet infrastructure solutions that solve the toughest business communications challenges. Our commitment to open networking sets us apart from the alternatives by delivering meaningful insight and unprecedented control to applications and services. We believe openness is the best foundation for growth, freedom, flexibility, and choice. We focus on enterprises and service providers who demand high performance, converged networks that support voice, video and data, over a wired and wireless infrastructure.