Bellcore launches new Net firm
The new venture, Soliant Internet Systems, will focus on Internet telephony, Net infrastructure, and e-commerce software.
As previously reported, a Web site already had been posted to discuss Soliant and its strategy. But today the company provided more details on its launch. Soliant said it had teamed with Sun Microsystems to provide hardware and software to speed traffic on the Net. It also has alliances with Oracle, Netscape, and Solect Technology. Competition in this market is stiff, however.
"Our first priority is to make today's public Internet and the emerging business-class Internet robust, reliable, and cost-effective places for business-to-business commerce," said Soliant vice president Jac Simenson in a statement. "We expect that over the next two to three years, most business-to-business traffic will move off the public Internet and onto a more robust, parallel, business IP network offering both data and voice services."
The launch of Soliant marks a significant commercial transition for Bellcore, once the research arm of the Baby Bells. The company's focus will be on Internet data communications software, a fast-growing market. Its customers will include telecommunications carriers, cable television companies, and Internet service providers. The convergence of these industries, brought on by deregulation, is creating new business opportunities for software suppliers.
Bellcore entered the Web software business last year. Last month, Science Applications International Corporation completed its acquisition of Bellcore from seven regional Bell operating companies.
The company said it is working with Solect Technology to launch a "rating engine" to deliver improved billing services over the Net. It also provides software that serves ads for Web sites such as Bell Atlantic's Yellow Pages and Playboy.com. Soliant said it expects to launch Internet telephony products and alliances early next year.