AUSTRALIAN GOVT DEPT TO DISTRIBUTE VIDEO USING CISCO SOFTWARE.

(For a full text of statement, contact www.asianet.com.au)

CANBERRA, Nov. 1 /PRNewswire Asia-AsiaNet/ -- The Commonwealth Department of Employment, Workplace Relations and Small Business (DEWRSB) will provide video broadcast and on-demand video services to staff members nationwide using the Enterprise Content Delivery Network (ECDN) Solution from Cisco Systems, the worldwide leader in networking for the Internet.

DEWRSB will be the first Australian Government agency to deliver such an extensive and interactive communications service to a national team, providing high-speed video to more than 2,500 desktop computers. Using the Cisco ECDN solution, each user will be able to receive high quality broadcast news and announcements, access video content on-demand, and participate in videoconferences.

Cisco IP/TV, a component of the Cisco ECDN solution, is a video-over-Internet Protocol (IP) solution, which enables the delivery of live, scheduled, and on-demand video content direct to end users' computers. With the Cisco ECDN, organizations can broadcast ('push') content to a large number of users or allow individuals to request ('pull') video content when they want it. By using network-efficient multicast technology, content can be transmitted even to sites with low bandwidth connections.

Cisco Australia and New Zealand Managing Director, Terry Walsh, said the flexibility of Internet Protocol was allowing more organizations to deliver and manage content such as video over local or wide area networks.

"With Cisco's ECDN solution, DEWRSB will be able to send video content to its regional offices overnight when bandwidth usage is low. The Cisco ECDN provides a cost-effective solution that allows the staff to be updated on important news, events and developments within the department," Mr Walsh said.

The Department's Cisco IP/TV solution has been integrated into the existing network built on Cisco's Architecture for Voice, Video and Integrated Data (AVVID). AVVID allows data, voice and video to be transmitted over a single, IP network, providing a base for the ready deployment of new multimedia services.