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By Dominic Maher, 9 August 2000 00:15

NEWS ATM is dead and Gigabit Ethernet will continue to be the networking technology of choice, according Gordon Stitt, president and CEO of Extreme Networks. As founding member of the Gigabit Ethernet Alliance - an association aimed at highlighting the technology, bringing the standard forward and educating users - Stitt said the days of ATM are long gone. He said: "ATM is pretty much dead. If you look at corporate networks, there are very, very few new installations of ATM today. The advantage that Gigabit Ethernet has over ATM is one of simplicity. It's a much simpler technology to use, it requires far less training, and is cheaper to purchase. But more important is the lower cost to keep it running." Stitt added that industry backing will drive the technology forward. He said: "All the momentum is behind Ethernet. Gigabit Ethernet today and over the next several years 10 Gigabit." But Ian Shepherd, product manager at network integrator Telindus K-Net, said that while no one would argue about the price difference, ATM is far from dead. "If you want the last word in traffic control then pay for ATM. The latest ATM products are also plug and play and have got smarter." He added that the cost of ownership of ATM could, in some instances, be less than Gigabit Ethernet. He said: "Large networks [3,000-plus] are likely to end up with a lower cost of ownership because less people are required to maintain the system." The Gigabit Ethernet Alliance was formed in February this year and the members are 3Com, Cisco, Extreme Networks, Intel, Nortel, Sun Microsystems and World Wide Packets. You can see the entire interview in our Fast Networking Channel (http://www.silicon.com/a39008 ).