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Enron Mail |
Jim Fallon asked me to forward this article on Ken Rice's new venture.
New startup proposes global virtual services Marlene Tissot 12 November 2001=20 A project to build a global network for multimedia services, based entirely= on switched virtual circuits (SVCs), has been revealed to CWI. And it inte= nds to prove the value of connectionless network services for customers by = carrying output from the Olympic Games in Beijing around the world. While n= ew carriers are counting their cash and hoping to hold the fort until the m= arket turns around, SynerG Communications Ltd., believes it can prove to ev= erybody that it is still possible to launch an ambitious telecoms business,= even in these harsh times. Backed by an Asian media mogul that prefers to = keep a low profile, as well as an equipment vendor and a network operator i= n the United States, its founders claim SynerG already has verbal commitmen= ts from customers amounting to $100 million in revenues. And they say they = are negotiating to gain rights to carry multimedia content from the Beijing= Olympics in 2008. SynerG's business plan is based on a relatively uncommon= way to deliver bandwidth. Ken Rice, the chairman and founder of California= -based International SynerG Communications Holdings Ltd., says that potenti= al cost savings for end-users will be compelling because they will be able = to provision bandwidth on an ad hoc basis, giving them so-called bandwidth = on demand. A 41-node global ATM-based switched virtual circuit network will= focus on delivering content across Asia, Europe and North America. Under m= ost existing contracts, customers pay for leased-line capacity they do not = actually use, according to Rice, who claims his project is significantly di= fferent. "It's a utility-based network," says Rice. "(It) generates billing= for what is used, not what is contracted for as in fixed line configuratio= ns." But while end users are increasingly scrutinizing their spend, they ha= ve also grown accustomed to always-on fat pipes and will need reassurance o= f the constant availability of the circuits. "If you are a customer, you ne= ed to be sure that the capacity is there at all time," says Maureen Coulter= , a senior analyst at Gartner Group in Egham, England. "SVCs are appropriat= e for content as long as the service provider manages the quality of transp= ort for the end-user." SynerG claims that this quality of service will be e= nsured by employing Pathfinder, its proprietary network management software= . And the business plan for SynerG shows Lucent Technologies and AT&T among= its suppliers and shareholders. Lucent has taken a 2.11% equity stake, and= a network provisioning deal gives AT&T a possible equity option. AT&T has = experience marketing SVCs in the U.S., although in the case of SynerG it is= thought only to be providing bandwidth from its global network. There migh= t also be something in the new network business model for SynerG's circuit = supplier. Even if revenues from providing the circuits to SynerG are not im= mense, neither is the risk the carrier takes by doing it, since it gets a r= evenue share each time bandwidth is used by a customer. While the cost of o= ffering such a service is moderate, it may provide a new stream of revenue = for carriers. "It's something I expect we'll see more and more," said Gartn= er's Coulter. "In the content distribution market ... carriers want to sque= eze every penny out of their capacity." To make sure it can guarantee deliv= ery to consumers, SynerG says it will operate a 41-node ATM-based switched = virtual circuit network in nine European countries and 23 city networks in = the U.S., according to its business plan. Operations will be headed up by c= hief executive Fred Metzgen, a former business development director for BT = Syncordia Global Solutions, who will be based in Newport Beach, California.= Metzgen has been touring Europe and the U.S. to get the $10-million startu= p funds he estimates SynerG needs. Metzgen has acquired a portfolio of pote= ntial partners and content distributors, including education and training t= echnology developer China Education Network, digital video developer Electr= ic Image and e-commerce platform developer Evolutionary Networks, Inc. Syne= rG has taken shareholdings in some of these.=20
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