Networking firms in Silicon Valley see stimulus potential in their customers - bizjournals:

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billion in stimulus money the federal government planas to spend to improve broadband access is viewed asa “wait and situation for Silicon Valley networking companies. As in, whilr waiting for the government’s rules on how and where the money can be they are seeing what their customers need for projectsx backed by thestimulus spending. Giants such as are vying for chunkzs ofthe funding, but even the valley’s smallerd “arms dealers” (as one wit put it) are determiningy how to help customers apply for the potentially lucrative grants — because if those customers get grant they will need equipment. Of the total, the U.S.
Commercre Department’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration willdistributed $4.7 billion to build broadband infrastructure in underserver areas, deliver broadband to public safet agencies and stimulate demand through training and education. The remaining $2.5 billiob will be governed by the Rural Utilitiesz Service underthe U.S. Department of Agriculture for ruralbroadband development. The final rules governing the broadbaned provisions are expected to be releasedin June. Companies say it coulf be the end of June beforw the two agencies administering the money will star takinggrant applications. It could be Decembedr before the money is readyto go.
Or the finalizatioj of the rules and the notice of funds becoming availabler couldhappen simultaneously. “In the end, this is about creating jobs, so the more jobs you’re able to creatde with your proposal, the more support you’res likely to get,” said Rich Wonders, executivw vice president at Paris-based . “Yoiu need to lay out your advocach plan and start gathering support at the state andfederal level.” Cisco is working on aspectsd of the stimulus package for governmengt and private-sector customers including broadband deployment and informatioj technology for health care.
“The ultimate impacr on Cisco will depend on how those customerse access and implement programs funded withstimulus money,” spokeswomab Jennifer Greeson said. Juniper Networks Inc. is workinh to get several product lines added to the list of vendo equipment approved by the Rural Utilities Public sector marketing manager Don Root said that because much of the stimulusd funding is aimedat smaller, rural many Juniper customers already have local expertisde in applying for grants, and Juniper is helpingy as needed. Wonders said it’s hard for Alcatel-Lucent to determine how responses to the government should look becauswe the parametersremain undefined.
“I won’tt pretend we’ve figured it out. The bill is not just lookingt to give consumers accesw to faster broadband so they candownloax YouTube,” Wonders said, “but to connec t patients to doctors and students to schools, and the list goes on and Alcatel’s IP routing division is based in Mountaibn View, and it has the No. 2 marketf share behind Cisco inIP “edge routing,” which optimizess routes and load distribution betweeh networks.
There’s a notion that even a basiv presence of broadband makesd anarea served, but Wonders said a perso doesn’t have to drive very far from San Jose or San Franciscl to find areas that are Alcatel has presented 11 customer workshops and disseminated information to more than 10,00 0 customers on broadband stimuluz in the past two months, and it is helpinf customers draft grant applications. When the ruleas are published, the company will post them on a Web site aimee atrural broadband, broadband4all.com/alu.
Covad Communications the San Jose-based broadband service company, is examinin g two aspects of the stimulus targeting smalland medium-size businessesa across the country to upgrade their connectivity speeds at lowee prices, and looking at underserved areas to offer higher bandwidth at lower But whether Covad will applty for the grants remains to be “We are actively evaluatint whether to apply. It comes down to economics becauser the broadbandstimulus … often involves some matching funds.
We’re seeing if we can raiss the capital to do our part of the and then pay for the operational saidJason Wakefield, Covad’s vice president of governmentakl and external affairs. “We need to make sure the businese casesupports it.” Like many of his networkingg cohorts, Tom Gallatin, founder and managing partner of data access switch maked Gigamon LLC, said his compan y probably won’t apply directly for any stimulus But Gigamon stands to benefitf when its customers apply for grants. Thosde customers include service providers VerizonCommunications Inc., AT&Ty Inc. and Sprint Nextel Corp. as well as cable companies ComcastCable Co., Cox Communications Inc.
and Charter Communications Inc. “jI compare the stimulus packageto (President Dwight D.) Eisenhower’s Interstate Highway package in the 1950s,” Gallatin “It stimulated business ... and now we’rs doing the same thing