Telstra taps Ericsson, Ciena to quadruple optical network service capacity

Telstra, Ericsson and Ciena have announced enhancements to Telstra’s Next Generation Optical Network which will increase the service capacity of Telstra’s optical network to 400 Gbps Ethernet (GE) levels.

The Telstra optical network provides connectivity between Telstra’s IP routers and switches, and this deployment will initially be used for Telstra’s internet traffic and broadband connectivity.

The company said the current hyper-connected age now needs a hyper-connected network so Australians can stay on the cutting edge of the global digital economy, and hence the need to make significant investment in a new state-of-the-art fibre network with all-new inter-city dual fibre paths

Over the next five years, Telstra plans to bolster its national fibre network, adding 20,000 new route kilometres with the ambition to improve the size, reach and bandwidth of the company’s existing optical fibre network. The new fibre paths are designed to boost capacity and speed, and meet the needs of what Telstra calls a burgeoning digital nation, delivering tomorrow’s connectivity today.

“We’re seeing traffic demands for mobile and fixed growing at over 40% and around 25% annum respectively, driven by more people working from home and higher bandwidth requirements,” said Iskra Nikolova, Telstra executive for network and infrastructure.

“This is due to the rising demands of video streaming and online gaming, as well as increased requirements for cloud and data centre connectivity. Increasing the ability to interface into Telstra’s Next Generation Optical Network will allow us to scale more efficiently and provide an enhanced experience for our mobile, fixed broadband, enterprise and wholesale customers.”

Transmitted over Ciena’s 6500 Packet-Optical Platform using its latest optical modem technology, WaveLogic 5 Extreme (WL5E), the upgrade from a 100 GE to a 400 GE interface will improve optical network performance and service capacity while reducing power inefficiencies in the optical network.

Additionally, the 400 GE interface has the same physical footprint as its 100 GE counterparts, and is said to provide a sustainable upgrade path without compromising on any physical restrictions.

“Innovative network providers like Telstra are constructing adaptive networks that can not only scale but also dynamically respond to unpredictable traffic requirements,” said Matthew Vesperman, regional managing director for Ciena Australia and New Zealand.

“Ciena’s 6500 platform powered by WaveLogic optics combines the required capabilities and software intelligence, providing optical network efficiencies while optimising its footprint, power and capacity.”