Cable Operators Exploit Mobile Internet Explosion with New High-Speed Outdoor Smart Wi-Fi System from Ruckus Wireless

KEYSTONE, Colo., Aug. 16 /PRNewswire/ -- CableLabs Summer Conference -- Ruckus Wireless™ today introduced the industry's first outdoor, strand-mounted 802.11n Smart Wi-Fi access point, the ZoneFlex™ 7761-CM, designed specifically to help cable operators rapidly deploy and monetize broadband wireless services into new and existing markets.

Rushing to meet explosive subscriber demand for seamless broadband access driven by millions of new Wi-Fi-enabled handheld devices flooding the market, multisystem cable operators (MSOs) are looking to exploit leading edge technology, taking advantage of customer, network, and service assets in place to offer selective Wi-Fi coverage. With the ZoneFlex 7761-CM, these assets can be exploited to quickly extend branded broadband access, maintain subscriber "stickiness," and attract prospective subscribers with new multimedia services.

The application of Ruckus Smart Wi-Fi outdoors with the new ZoneFlex 7761-CM now gives MSOs flexible service options such as reliable community Wi-Fi, IP-based video applications, multimedia hotspots, extended wireless LAN (WLAN) services and 3G data offloading. Ruckus Smart Wi-Fi technology brings essential interference rejection capabilities to the strand-mount application, delivering unrivaled performance in the unlicensed bands.

Plant-powered, the ZoneFlex 7761-CM delivers high bandwidth broadband services from outdoors to extend managed WLANs for strand-mounted locations where Ethernet cabling is not feasible. MSOs are aggressively using smarter Wi-Fi technology to address an increasingly mobile user base by extending the reach of their broadband services through the deployment of thousands of Wi-Fi access points in public locations such as parks, marinas, train stations, and other public venues.

With the ZoneFlex 7761-CM, MSOs can use their existing cable modem plant to backhaul traffic while offering reliable Wi-Fi access within the unlicensed band quickly and cost-effectively. The ZoneFlex 7761-CM allows MSOs to avoid costly spectrum licenses and data backhaul costs that have crippled the broadband mobile business case.

"Using the existing cable strand infrastructure to deliver reliable Wi-Fi access makes perfect sense and is a major focus for almost every cable operator in the United States," said Selina Lo, president and CEO of Ruckus Wireless. "What's changed over the last two years is the arrival of 802.11n, the debut of DOCSIS 3.0 and the introduction of smart antenna array technology. Combining these innovations gives cable companies the power to capitalize on and more quickly exploit the mobile Internet phenomenon."

Lo noted that the cost structure of using smarter Wi-Fi is dramatically lower than the cost per bit of providing broadband access using wide area approaches such as WiMAX, licensed spectrum or 3G services. "While MSOs will invest in different solutions, including licensed spectrum, backhaul and emerging technologies such as femto and picocells, Wi-Fi represents one of the best compliments and most cost effective strategies to augment existing network assets. Up to now, Wi-Fi's reliability within the unlicensed band has kept cable operators away from the technology. Our breakthroughs in automatic RF signal control have helped solve these problems and have propelled Ruckus into a leadership position within the service provider market."

New WLAN research from DellOro Group, a leading industry analysis company, shows Ruckus Wireless as the worldwide leader in unit shipments of Wi-Fi mesh access points to service providers, garnering 41 percent of the market in the fourth quarter of 2009 and 57 percent in the first quarter of 2010.

Higher Speed, More Reliable Outdoor Wi-Fi with the ZoneFlex 7761-CM

Currently in trials with national cable operators, the ZoneFlex 7761-CM is a first-of-its kind device to combine a standard DOCSIS 3.0 modem with dual-band 802.11n and Ruckus-patented smart antenna technology that supports dynamic beamforming for unprecedented range and reliability.  

Purpose built within a ruggedized outdoor enclosure for harsh environmental conditions, the ZoneFlex 7761-CM comes in a lightweight (under 15 lbs.) form factor, is dynamically self optimizing and remotely managed – seamlessly integrating with existing MSO infrastructure and network operation center management applications.

"Cable operators are ready to expand their role in mobile broadband and high speed Internet access outside the home, as new applications like mobile video chat and multimedia content uploads demand higher performance than is available on most 3G networks," observed Berge Ayvazian, Senior Consultant with Heavy Reading. "These increasingly popular, bandwidth intensive applications demand peak wireless network performance and quality of service to support the resulting traffic."

Unlike competitive alternatives, ZoneFlex 7761-CM integrates sophisticated intelligent antenna array technology and expert control software, called BeamFlex™, to form and direct Wi-Fi signals over the best performing paths to ensure consistent performance at longer ranges. With BeamFlex, the ZoneFlex 7761-CM constantly steers Wi-Fi transmissions around obstacles and interference that degrade client performance, thereby providing clients with more stable and higher speed connections.  Other advanced features include:

• Patented IP-multicast-to unicast conversion for streaming video applications,
• Bandsteering and airtime fairness with dynamic beamforming to ensure optimal spectrum utilization for high-density client environments,
• Remote management and flexible tunneling options for unprecedented security and control, and
• Wireless meshing for resilience in the event of temporary network interruptions.

With an integrated DOCSIS 3.0 modem that touts an 8x4 chipset, the ZoneFlex 7761-CM supports eight downstream and four upstream bonded channels delivering speeds of up to 320 Mbps. With concurrent, dual-band 802.11n, the ZoneFlex 7761-CM supports a maximum concurrent theoretical (PHY) wireless data rates of up to 600 Mbps.

Massively scalable management allows the ZoneFlex 7761-CM to be easily managed through the Ruckus FlexMaster system, a carrier-class Wi-Fi management platform. The ZoneFlex 7761-CM also provides an easy-to-use graphical user interface and supports SNMP management. Northbound APIs allow for seamless management integration of the ZoneFlex 7761-CM with operator OSS/BSS systems.  

The ZoneFlex 7761-CM supports 3X3 MIMO operation within the 2.4/5GHz bands and provides reliable and adaptive wireless mesh backhaul support when strand mounting is not feasible. With 16 SSIDs configurable per device, the ZoneFlex 7761-CM provides many advanced options to support high density and high bandwidth installations, including: advanced quality of service mechanisms such as airtime fairness, band steering, per user threshold limits along with the ability to automatically classify, queue and schedule voice, video and data traffic using sophisticated heuristics.  Flexible forwarding options provide for local breakout of traffic and different tunneling methods

The ZoneFlex 7761-CM is available immediate upon request for testing by MSOs.

About Ruckus Wireless, Inc.

Headquartered in Silicon Valley, Ruckus Wireless is supplier of advanced wireless systems for the mobile Internetworking market. The company markets and manufactures a wide range of indoor and outdoor "Smart Wi-Fi" products for mobile operators, broadband service providers and corporate enterprises around the world. Since 2006, the company has realized record revenue and shipments with a CAGR of over 119% percent. Ruckus invented, and has patented, state-of-the-art wireless technology that steers Wi-Fi signals around obstacles and interference. This unique capability extends signal range and ensures consistent reliable distribution of delay-sensitive multimedia content and services over standard 802.11 Wi-Fi. The company has shipped over 2 million Smart Wi-Fi systems around the world and has raised $51 million in funding from premier investors such as Sequoia Capital, Focus Ventures, Sutter Hill, Motorola, T-Ventures, Telus Ventures and Firelake Capital. The company is led by Ms. Selina Lo, president and chief executive officer. For more information, visit Ruckus Wireless at http://www.ruckuswireless.com.

SOURCE Ruckus Wireless