CALABASAS, Calif. -- Alcatel today announced the addition of a 48-port convergence-ready multilayer switch to the Alcatel OmniStack product line that provides inexpensive connectivity, while providing intelligence, reliability and scalability at the edge of the network. The Alcatel OmniStack 6148 offers layer-3 classification based on DiffServ (Differentiated Services) prioritization and QoS (Quality of Service), in addition to layer-2 classification based on 802.1p and 802.1q. This added intelligence provides network managers with greater flexibility and control over the network as they can more easily manage and prioritize traffic. In networks that are integrating voice or video along with data, the Alcatel OmniStack 6148 can give delay sensitive traffic priority right up to the edge of the enterprise network. "We are using the OmniStack 6148 in our network for support of IP telephony and wireless applications," said Don Otto, director of computer and networking services, Ridley School District. "We especially like the high port density offered by the OmniStack 6148, which is important when you have limited space. Additionally, the OmniStack 6148 offers the same web interface as existing products, such as the OmniStack 6024 and 6124, which means that there is no further training required for its implementation." For increased versatility and investment protection, the Alcatel OmniStack 6148 can be combined with the OmniStack 6124 to stack up to 172 ports per stack. Individual switches are connected together using 4 Gbps stacking connections, which ensures high performance for the entire stack. Alcatel SA