PBT in demand

    As for the firm's PBT test capabilities, Alston says interest has been strong since NXTcomm, with "a variety of network equipment manufacturers, such as Extreme Networks Inc. (Nasdaq: EXTR - message board), wanting to test their products in the lab. There's been an uptick in interest in Carrier Ethernet in general," he adds. (See PBT Stars at Ethernet Expo and Extreme Joins Ecosystem.)

    He says Ixia has been working with Nortel Networks Ltd. (NYSE/Toronto: NT - message board), the driving force behind PBT, for the past 12 months, "and that's allowed us to develop and introduce some capabilities into our platform. We've seen a lot of urgency in the past 12 months from companies such as BT Group plc (NYSE: BT - message board; London: BTA), Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. , and Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ - message board)," all companies linked to PBT, either directly or, at present, indirectly. (See BT Pressures Vendors Over PBT, Huawei Joins PBT Fan Club, and Verizon Preps God Box RFP.)

    So is Ixia going to be joining Nortel's PBT-driven Carrier Ethernet Ecosystem? (See Nortel Pushes PBT Pact.)

    "We're working closely with Nortel on its developments," is all Alston will say. Nortel had not responded to questions about its working relationship with Ixia as this article was published.