Alcatel-Lucent Launches Elastic Content Delivery Network and Cloud-Based DVR Storage

Alcatel-Lucent SA is set to boost the performance of its cloud-based IP video storage and content delivery technologies with the introduction of its enhanced Cloud DVR platform and the Elastic Content Delivery Network.

This will allow service providers to manage network capacity more dynamically as they deal with ever-growing customer demand.

The UK TV, broadband, phone and mobile provider, TalkTalk Telecom Group PLC, has already tested components of the enhanced cloud DVR in a live network environment. The enhanced cloud DVR platform incorporates a number of advances in storage resulting from company’s collaboration with Intel Corporation, and using the Intel Intelligent Storage Acceleration Library (ISA-L).

With more consumers moving away from set top boxes to watch on-demand content over their smartphones, tablets and other connected devices, data traffic across networks is increasing. Alcatel-Lucent has evolved its IP video portfolio to help service providers manage this traffic, designing their storage and delivery networks with efficiency.

Cloud DVR
The Cloud DVR platform allows content to be stored in the cloud rather than a set-top-box, enabling consumers to access video from any connected device at home. New features utilize community-driven applications and innovations developed in conjunction with Intel to generate even more cost-effective cloud DVR storage.

These include:

• Ceph, an open source project, offers a distributed object store designed to provide excellent performance, reliability and scalability, ensuring capacity meets variable consumer demand at all times.

• Erasure coding, coupled with Intel ISA-L offers high efficiency and HA storage, allowing data to use half the space of other methods.

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Elastic CDN
Company’s Velocix content delivery network (CDN) technologies allow service providers to optimize video content for delivery on any device.

With functionality moved to the cloud, the Elastic CDN allows resources to be allocated more flexibly, when and where they are needed. During a major sporting event or incident, the provider can dynamically provision virtualized machines in minutes rather than weeks or months and cache popular content closer to users to better manage video traffic over the networks. Once demand has slowed, extra capacity can be released and used on other applications or services.

Elastic CDN will be made commercially available in 2016.

Bev Crair, VP, data center group, GM storage, Intel, said: “”The digital service economy ushered in by the agility and efficiency of cloud computing is driving great demand for innovative storage solutions. Intel’s collaboration with Alcatel-Lucent on cloud DVR is an example of our work with the industry to ensure that efficient storage solutions fully optimized for Intel architecture are fueling the next generation of digital service innovation.“

Paul Larbey, head, IP video business, Alcatel-Lucent, said: “Our IP video portfolio help customers better manage the changes in traffic that they are seeing as their subscribers move away from the set top box to viewing on demand video over a variety of connected devices. Using in-house expertise and working with market leaders such as Intel, we can help providers deliver video content more intelligently and efficiently to dramatically improve the end-user experience in line with demand without increasing costs.”