News Briefs (March 30, 2006)

Alloptic Inc., a Livermore, Calif., developer of Gigabit Ethernet passive optical networks (GEPONs), has signed a reseller agreement with South Africa-based Letlhaka Technologies, which serves the sub-Sahara security, telecommunication and fiber optic markets. . . . AT&T Government Solutions, based in Vienna, Va., was awarded orders totaling $8.2 million to provide 36 secure, high-capacity circuits to the Defense Information Systems Agency, which oversees the Department of Defense's networking needs. The circuits were awarded under a contract called DISN Transmission Services-CONUS (Continental US) Extension, or DTS-CE. The company will supply private line, point-to-point circuits that comprise the backbone of the Defense Information Systems Network, which provides network services to US war fighters. The domestic circuits will carry voice and data traffic and will be used for both command and control and administrative purposes. . . . Walter Weigel, vice president of standardization and regulation at Siemens AG Corporate Technology, was elected director general by European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) at its 47th general assembly, held this week in Nice, France. Weigel, who will hold office from July 1 until spring 2011, succeeds Karl Heinz Rosenbrock, who served in that position for 15 years. ESTA awarded Rosenbrock with an honorary director general position in recognition of his contributions to the telecommunications industry. Weigel will be the third director general of ETSI since it was founded in 1988 to develop standards previously overseen by the European Conference of Post and Telecommunications Administrations.