Gennum debuts 3-Gbps video optical modules/ADVA Optical Networking adds to Ethernet access line

APRIL 6, 2009 -- Gennum Corp. (search Lightwave for Gennum) says it has introduced the world's first 3-Gbps SDI video optical receiver modules that can enable "zero penalty" pathological performance. Both the dual-channel and single-channel receivers will enable video broadcast equipment manufacturers to offer robust links on their video broadcast products, such as cameras, routers, and monitors, capable of transporting 3-Gbps SDI video across optical links. The modules will be demonstrated at the company's booth at the National Association of Broadcasters Show (Booth #SU9111) being held April 18-23, 2009, in Las Vegas, along with other 3-Gbps offerings from Gennum. The desire to send high-definition SDI video across longer distances has prompted the need for devices capable of sending video across fiber-optic networks; however, the components within traditional optical receivers were not designed with the intent of transmitting SDI video. Unlike mainstream data communication protocols, SDI video can contain pathological data patterns that result in performance degradation. The company says it has improved its receiver sensitivity by 5 dB with the new devices. Says Alex Bond, senior product manager for Gennum, "Integrating the best of Gennum's video and optical component offerings, these new modules have been designed from the ground up for video transport. As a result, they deliver the performance and features required to allow 3-Gbps SDI optical transport to become pervasive throughout the video broadcast market." The two new video optical devices are the GO2926 dual-channel and GO2916 single-channel receivers. The receivers implement patented transimpedance amplifiers (TIAs) and receive optical subassemblies (ROSAs) to enable receive sensitivity of -23 dBm at 3 Gbps for a PIN-based video optical receiver. Both modules are designed to receive optical serial digital signals and convert them to electrical serial digital signals as defined in SMPTE 297-2006. The modules support SD-SDI, HD-SDI, and 3G-SDI. Pin-compatible with Gennum's first-generation GO2920 modules, the GO2926 and GO2916 are available in a pluggable hot-swappable industry-standard SFP package. The GO2926 and GO2916 are expected to sample in May. APRIL 20, 2009 -- ADVA Optical Networking (search Lightwave for ADVA Optical Networking) has extended its FSP 150 line of Ethernet access products with the FSP 150CC-324. As the latest member of the Etherjack family of intelligent Ethernet transport products, the FSP 150CC-324 is designed to deliver a host of features for Ethernet demarcation, extension, and aggregation. It is intended for out-of-region applications, enabling up to 90-Mbps of Ethernet service to be delivered over a bonded pair of DS3s or E3s. ADVA Optical Networking says the new platform enables the company to support delivery of intelligent Ethernet in a consistent manner over virtually any access technology a service provider may wish to use. The line also enables service providers to deliver ubiquitous Ethernet services with a common look and feel. The FSP 150CC-324 is engineered to enable Ethernet extension off-net over leased single or bonded pair DS3 or E3, adding Ethernet capability to existing ADMs, radios and other transport infrastructure. That means providers may offer new services and develop new revenue streams using existing lines that were not previously Ethernet-capable with minimal additional investment. The FSP 150CC-324 is temperature hardened for deployment in outdoor cabinet applications such as mobile backhaul. Intuitive provisioning capabilities eliminate technically intensive installations, enabling quick and easy field deployments without the need for highly skilled staff, the company says. Once in place, the device's remote OAM features minimize the need for expensive truck rolls and provide remote visibility into SLA conformance, ADVA adds. Service providers save money because fewer hands must touch the device. The FSP 150CC-324 can be used to support Metro Ethernet Forum (MEF)-based services, including Ethernet Private Line, Ethernet Virtual Private Line, Ethernet LAN, and E-tree, both on-net and off-net. Four customer-facing Ethernet service ports, an SFP socket for optical handoffs, and advanced service definition capabilities make the device capable of supporting multiple customers or multiple services over a single or bonded DS3/E3 WAN uplink. Individual customers and services are separated within the WAN using an MEF User Network Interface (UNI) function that includes support for VLANs and Ethernet virtual circuits. Equipped with the company's Etherjack technology, the FSP 150CC-324 is designed to provide an intelligent Ethernet demarcation point that includes an 802.1ag-, Y.1731-, RFC 2544-, and 802.3ah-compliant NID for OAM functionality. The device also includes an MEF-certified UNI to provide advanced services definition. In addition to Y.1731, the NID supports Etherjack Service Assurance (ESA) for in-service SLA monitoring. The device also provides up to eight classes of service with strict priorities and Weighted Round Robin scheduling across EVCs.

Tata Communications launches global low-latency network/Afone turns to Ekinops for data center interconnection

Tata Communications has launched a low-latency network connecting major financial capitals in Asia, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The carrier says the network is the first low-latency service that offers a pure, multipoint Ethernet platform to the financial services sector and other global industries, and will accelerate global high-frequency trading and other low-latency applications. Designed for companies that require a secure, reliable, and fast low-latency option, the network will enable financial firms to execute a high-frequency trade between locations, such as London and Hong Kong or New York and Singapore, in milliseconds through a single network and single supplier model, Tata asserts. John Hoffman, head of Ethernet product management, Tata Communications said, “Global financial trading firms initially drove the need for this solution as every millisecond of latency is critical for trading. However, due to rising complexity and importance of specific mission-critical applications, we are also seeing an uptake in demand for similar levels of latency from a growing range of sectors and businesses.” Tata says the new network enables customers with low-latency needs to work with a single global supplier instead of multiple country-specific point-to-point network providers. Customers can build multipoint low-latency networks that communicate from city-to-city rather than exchange-to-exchange to serve applications for which latency is crucial, regardless of the software or trading platform used. Tata also says its low-latency service has been designed to offer up to 35 percent savings on circuit and operations costs. Whereas low-latency networks have traditionally been offered over MPLS or Layer 1 technologies, Tata Communications says its low-latency network is the only multipoint Ethernet service offering on a single network backed by 802.1ah, Provider Backbone Bridging (PBB) technology. It also offers added security and high scalability. Afone, a French telecom services provider, says it has deployed equipment from Ekinops to interconnect its data centers and enhance delivery of multiprotocol data services. Afone focuses on telecom, payment, and security services for enterprises and retail businesses, and also functions as a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) for enterprises and residential customers. It turned to Ekinops for a platform that would provide flexible, cost-effective, and reliable data center interconnection transporting SDH, Gigabit Ethernet, and Fibre Channel protocols. Ekinops says its 360 transport platform, with its T-Chip (Transport on a Chip) technology, enables Afone to transport multiple protocols very efficiently, maximizing the use of fiber infrastructure, the vendor says. The T-Chip concentrates the equipment’s transport intelligence into a compact, efficient design that Ekinops can custom-program to meet customer needs. This approach serves to reduce costs, footprint, ongoing power consumption, and delivery times to customers, the systems house says. “Ekinops is the company best suited to meet our needs,” said Guillaume Rousseau, head of engineering at Afone. “The Ekinops 360 gives us the flexibility we need to aggregate different protocols; it is economical and has the highest reliability. Support is also very important to us and Ekinops promised and delivers superior support.”

PacketLight Networks enhances video support/IFN taps Ciena for packet-optical upgrade

PacketLight says it has enhanced support for video interfaces in both of its Optical Transport Network (OTN) and transponder-based offerings. The new feature is designed to enable efficient and simple streaming of high-capacity video for broadcast media companies and digital studios over fiber and standards-based OTN networks. Different copper interfaces for video such as SD-SDI, HD-SDI, 3G-SDI and DVB-ASI are all supported by PacketLight's CWDM/DWDM and OTN product family. Additionally, video signals can be mixed with other data and storage traffic such as 1G/10G Ethernet and 1/2/4/8/10G Fibre Channel. Use of the PacketLight platforms reduces the number of fibers needed for video and data transport between sites, thus reducing the infrastructure costs as well as enabling carriers to add video services on top of their existing OTN metro or long-distance backbone infrastructure. PacketLight says its modular approach offers optical-to-electrical and electrical-to-optical conversion in a small footprint, without the need of bulky converters. The platforms also offer SNMP-based monitoring and control management software for the conversion process. The systems can map up to 16 multirate bidirectional video services such as DVB-ASI, SD-SDI, or HD-SDI into aggregated 10G or 20G OTU2 within its 1U carrier grade PL-2000 product, for example. In addition, PacketLight's product line also supports SFP-based pluggable client video interface modules for the commonly used DVB/SDI signals of up to 2.97-Gbps with embedded re-clockers, cable drivers, equalizers, and monitoring capabilities. Ciena Corp. (NASDAQ: CIEN) says Indiana Fiber Network (IFN) will deploy Ciena’s 5430 Packet-Optical Reconfigurable Switching System (RSS) and OneConnect Intelligent Control Plane software to expand the capacity and service flexibility of its backbone network, and provide assured service delivery. IFN is a statewide fiber-optic network owned by a consortium of 20 independent telephone companies, and comprises more than 2,400 miles of fiber-optic cable that interconnects eight metro ring networks and 23 points of presence serving more than 3,300 on/near-net locations. Customers include enterprise businesses, government entities, educational and healthcare institutions, as well as independent telephone company members, who use the network for the aggregation and transport of residential local and long-distance calls, Internet access, and video services. The enhanced OTN-switched network will support the aggregation, transport, and management of voice, video, and data services to business and service provider customers. It will also provide differentiated service offerings and simplified service creation capabilities through point-and-click provisioning, therefore creating bandwidth-on-demand services that can be delivered in minutes, Ciena says. Ciena’s 5430 is a modular packet-optical platform that will serve as aggregation switches, delivering regionalized OTN and Ethernet traffic to key points in IFN’s network with speed and simplicity (see “Ciena intros modular approach to IP/optical networks”). Equipped with OneConnect control plane software, the 5430 switches will also provide IFN with the ability to automate provisioning and management of its network, while mesh restoration will improve network resiliency and service availability. Combined with Ciena’s 4200 Advanced Services Platform, which has already been deployed in the network, IFN can support customers’ growing broadband demands and data center connectivity requirements via a scalable, dynamic, and reconfigurable infrastructure, Ciena asserts. Later this year, IFN also plans to deploy Ciena’s 5410 Reconfigurable Switching System to enable efficient aggregation, grooming, and forwarding of multiple traffic types in metro and regional sites. Ciena Specialist Services is providing solution installation, turn-up and testing, along with migration services. “Our recent upgrade is designed to create an intelligent, automated network that can adapt to the diverse service requirements of our customer base – including both member companies and businesses – and be monitored, managed and reprogrammed remotely from our network operations center,” said Jerry Haver, planning and engineering manager, IFN.

North American FTTH connections up 13%, says FTTH Council/Hitachi Cable merges U.S. operations

A new study from the Fiber to the Home Council Americas indicates that the number of North American households connected directly into optical fiber networks grew by 13 percent over the past year. The study, which covers the U.S., Canada, Mexico, and the Caribbean, indicates that FTTH reached approximately 900,000 new households since April 2011, which pushes the total number of FTTH homes in North American homes past 8 million. FTTH services are now available to 19.3 million homes in North America according to the study, which RVA LLC conducted on behalf of the council. The United States represents by far the greatest portion of the total, about 95 percent. However, the pace in other countries has begun to pick up, the study indicates. Canadian accounts for 3 percent of FTTH connections, with the remaining 2 percent split between Mexico and the Caribbean. Despite signs that it has slowed its expansion, Verizon remains the continent’s largest FTTH services provider by a wide margin. However, in a sign of the technology’s growing popularity, the number of FTTH network operators in North America is nearing 1,000, the study reveals. Many of these are small and medium-sized incumbent telephone companies, most located in rural and small town areas. Other FTTH participants include competitive broadband companies, municipalities and public electric utilities. With these smaller operators factored in, the majority of FTTH service providers serve fewer than 10,000 subscribers. Several of these operators have benefited from broadband stimulus money. The RVA survey indicates that, on average, FTTH stimulus projects are 38 percent complete, with indications that many will start connecting subscribers this year. Environmental reviews and heavy demand for fiber optic cable were cited as reasons for the delays. "The pure numbers of FTTH providers and their diversity is something that is uniquely North American. No other region of the world is seeing this," said Michael Render, President of RVA. Meanwhile, 58 percent of FTTH providers reported seeing increased local economic activity as a result of FTTH availability. "The notion that the upgrade to FTTH can be a catalyst for economic development is precisely what is driving this enormous interest in high-speed fiber we are seeing at the community level across North America," said Heather Burnett Gold, who recently was named president of the FTTH Council Americas. "Civic leaders in communities of all sizes have a sense that more bandwidth means more opportunities for economic progress. "These latest numbers underscore that phenomenon in two ways - they show that smaller telecoms are continuing to upgrade to FTTH and that many are indeed seeing a positive economic impact in their communities after they deploy," she added. The survey also found growing activity among FTTH providers in fiber to the cell tower. There were more than 1500 towers connected by small, single-state providers in 2011. Hitachi Cable, Ltd. says it has merged its holdings in North America into a single entity called Hitachi Cable America, Inc. The merged entity includes Hitachi Cable Manchester (with its manufacturing facility located in Manchester, NH), Hitachi Cable Automotive Products, USA (Indiana and Florida), and Hitachi Cable America, USA (New York). The corporate headquarters for the new company will be located in White Plains, NY. Hitachi Cable Manchester and Hitachi Cable America, USA were combined into one division, called the Performance Cable Systems & Materials Division. Hitachi Cable Automotive Products, USA will now be called the Automotive Products Division. Merging the individual companies into a single business unit will improve collaboration within all departments, including product development and sales in appropriate areas, Hitachi Cable asserts. Lynne Humenik, former executive vice president for Hitachi Cable Manchester, will oversee the Performance Cable Systems & Materials Division. “The changes visible to our customers will include additional product offerings and changes to our logo. Customers will continue to work with the same team members and experience the same high-level customer service. We are very excited about the merger,” said Humenik. “This merger will allow us to consolidate and streamline ERP and MRP functions. HCM brand cable products will continue to be made in our Manchester facility, and with recent investments in new equipment, we are prepared for the growth to come.” The HCM brand includes both copper and fiber-optic cables for the communication industry. The Performance Cable Systems & Materials Division also will sell the Apresia line of network switches, fiber-optic transceivers, other active optical devices, copper alloy strips, as well as materials used in the manufacture of semiconductor wafers.