North State Communications Enhances Its Network With Cisco ASR Series

SAN JOSE, CA--(Marketwire - Jul 21, 2011) - Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO) said today that North State Communications, a High Point, N.C.-based Internet, voice, data and advanced television service provider, has selected the Cisco® ASR routers as its Carrier Ethernet solution to provide a strong foundation for current and future services to consumers and enterprises.

North State serves North Carolina's Piedmont Triad region, which encompasses High Point, Greensboro and Winston-Salem, and has a population of more than 1.6 million. The area is the global capital for the furniture and textiles industries and home to a rapidly growing list of international business headquarters and major operators.

Progressive development in advanced unified communications and collaboration services, such as Cisco TelePresence® and telemedicine, and growth in mobile and video are contributing factors to expansion of North State's advanced fiber optic network. Integral will be the deployment of the Cisco ASR family of routers for enhanced capacity, greater resiliency and robust Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6) support.

Highlights/Key Facts

• Performance and flexible service are important across a wide-range of residential and business customers. North State needed carrier-class routers that could meet stringent cost and performance requirements as well as perform with excellence through rigorous tests across a variety of applications.
• North State selected the Cisco ASR 9000 Series Aggregation Services Routers and Cisco ASR 1000 Series Aggregation Services Routers, which are best suited to support its customers' evolving needs and prepare for the transition to IPv6.
• Designed to deliver a per-system capacity of up to 96 Tbps, the Cisco ASR 9000 Series can deliver rich service capabilities including nonstop video, while maintaining a reduced carbon footprint.
• Optimized for high-bandwidth video delivery and mobile aggregation, the Cisco ASR family of routers has a full set of service activation and provisioning systems that accelerate time to market without increasing operational expenses.
• Cisco predicts that by 2015, the number of network-connected devices will be more than 15 billion -- twice the world's population -- and the total amount of global Internet traffic will quadruple, reaching 966 exabytes per year. (Cisco Visual Networking Index (VNI) Forecast (2010-2015).

Supporting Quotes

• Royster Tucker, president and chief operation officer, North State Communications
  "North State's advanced fiber network is going directly to homes and businesses throughout the Piedmont Triad region of North Carolina. This network upgrade and expansion furthers our commitment to providing the area's best advanced TV and fastest Internet products, delivering an incomparable customer experience."

• Surya Panditi, senior vice president and general manager, core technology group, Cisco
  "We are delighted that North State Communications has chosen Cisco as the foundation of its network. With Cisco at the edge and core of the network, North State Communications will deliver a service-enabled next-generation network that will help further its leadership in the high-bandwidth services market."

Embedded Video

• North State Communications Deploys Cisco ASR 9000 Series
  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iR7BPnw2_o4

Supporting Resources

• North State Communications
• Cisco
• Cisco ASR 9000 Series Aggregation Services Routers
• Cisco ASR 1000 Series Aggregation Service Routers
• Cisco Carrier-Grade IPv6 Solution
• Cisco Carrier Ethernet Solutions
• Cisco ASR 9000 Series Test Drive
• Cisco Visual Networking Index Forecast Web Site
• For more information about Cisco's service provider news and activities visit the SP360 Blog or follow us on Twitter @SP360

Tags/Keywords
Cisco, ASR 9000, ASR 1000, Aggregation Services Routers, Internet Protocol Next-Generation Network, IP NGN, Edge, Carrier Ethernet, VNI, Visual Networking Index Forecast, Surya Panditi, North State Communications, Royster Tucker

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About North State Communications
North State Communications (NSC) is a telecommunications and technology solutions company serving North Carolina's Piedmont Triad region. NSC offers landline and mobile voice and data services that enable consumers and businesses of all sizes to connect, communicate and collaborate without limitations. The company delivers the ultimate broadband Internet and entertainment experience across an all-digital fiber-to-the-home network under its PLEX brand; offers the nation's most advanced mobile connectivity and leading wireless devices through a joint arrangement with AT&T; and provides a wide array of innovative business communication services. NSC's headquarters are in High Point and its support center is in the heart of the Triad Region. For more information visit: http://www.northstate.net/

About Cisco
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