PERSPECTIVE ON ATM

Perspective on ATM

Perspective on ATM to a considerable extent, ATM is a project invented by the telephone industry.

Because after Ethernet was widely installed. the computer industry never rallied around any higher-speed network technology to make it standard. The telephone companies filled this vacuum with ATM. although in October 1991, many computer vendors joined with the telephone companies to set up the ATM Forum, an industry group that will guide the future of ATM.

Although ATM promises the ability to deliver information anywhere at speeds Soon to exceed 1 Gbps, delivering on this promise will not be easy. ATM is basically high-speed packet-switching. a technology the telephone companies have little experience With. What they do have is a massive investment in a different technology (circuit switching) that is in concept unchanged Since the days o1.

Alexander Graham Bell. Needless to say, this transition will not happen quickly, all the more so because it is a revolutionary change rather than an evolutionary one, and revolutions never go  smoothly.

The economics of installing ATM worldwide also have to be considered. A substantial fraction of the existing telephone system will have to be replaced.

Who will pay for this? How much will consumers be willing to pay to get a movie on demand electronically, when they can get one at the local video store for a couple of dollars? Finally, the question of where many of the advanced services are provided is crucial. It they are provided by the network. the telephone companies will profit from them. If they are provided by computers attached to the network. the manufacturers and operators to these devices make the profits. The Users may not care. but the telephone companies and computer vendors certainly do-and this will surely affect their interest in making ATM happen.