The Germantown, Maryland-base Hughes Network Systems Inc unit of GM Hughes Electronics Corp has announced what it claims is the world’s first fully integrated Frame Relay-Very Small Aperture Terminal node, the LANAdvantage Plus. Hughes Network Systems, which says it has more than 85,000 such terminals deployed worldwide, is extremely coy about the product, wanting to make a big splash with it at NetWorld+ Interop 95, which is being held this week in Las Vegas. But the company has revealed that the offering will be available initially for Token Ring and Ethernet local network environments running TCP/IP. In terms of the intended market, Hughes Network Systems is less reserved. The General Motors Corp subsidiary sees potential users among existing Very Small Aperture Terminal clients that require a future upgrade path to high-volume, point-to-point data; new customers that want the option of later migrating to Frame Relay, along with Very Small Aperture Terminal satellite communications; and Frame Relay customers wanting to take advantage of the broadcast capabilities of Very Small Aperture Terminals for the distribution of video, audio, or common data to remote locations. The company also notes that, since LANAdvantage Plus will offer terrestrial-or-space diversity, it will be well suited to load-levelling situations, whereby users will be able to off-load traffic onto the terminals when congestion occurs over the Frame Relay network, and vice versa. Beta testing of the LANAdvantage Plus products is set to begin in May, and Hughes Network Systems expects to start shipping the product by early in the third quarter. No pricing details for it yet.
