Telefónica has adopted Disaggregated Cell Site Gateways (DCSG) technology, developed according to specifications from Facebook’s Infra Project (TIP).
The gateway was designed by TIP, Infinera and Edgecore Networks according to a specification from TIP’s Open Optical & Packet Transport (OOPT) Project Group for an open white-box cell site gateway device.
The specification is designed to ensure operators can widely deploy the devices at 2G/3G/4G cell sites, and supports the port speeds and densities that will be required for 5G networks.
Germany first
Initially, the technology will be deployed by Telefónica in a nationwide open mobile transport deployment in Germany.
Víctor López, Network Architect at Telefónica and co-chair of the Open Optical Packet Transport group at TIP, commented, “We are excited to mark the industry’s first adoption of DCSG technology in a large-scale live deployment.
“Active collaboration between leading global service providers and systems suppliers in TIP’s open community has been critical to advancing carrier-class DCSG implementations that are beginning to deliver real-world value.”
“Telefónica is committed to an open networking strategy as a lever for our network transformation,” said Javier Gavilán, Director of Core, Network Platforms and Transport and IT at Global CTIO, Telefónica.
“Milestone for open networking”
The solution includes Infinera’ DRX-30 and Edgecore’s AS7315-27X-DCSG hardware platforms. The combination of the Infinera Converged Network Operating System (CNOS) with Infinera or Edgecore Networks’ hardware aims to provide mobile operators with mature IP/MPLS functionality for their cell site gateways.
Additionally, the combined CNOS and hardware provide a stacking capability for simple node expansion and increased resiliency. Multiple gateway elements can be connected to double node capacity while operating as a single routing entity.
Mikko Hannula, Vice President, Engineering & Product Management at Infinera, said, “We are committed to meeting the demanding requirements of network operators as they evolve their networks to address the challenge of a timely and cost-efficient introduction of 5G services.
“Through rigorous testing and design, we are pleased to collaborate with Edgecore Networks to pioneer and deploy solutions to TIP’s DCSG specifications and to mark this milestone for open networking with the first volume commercial deployment of the technology now underway.”
“The DCSG initiative is a tremendous example of open network adoption in action,” added Mark Basham, Vice President of Business Development at Edgecore Networks.
“Edgecore is an active participant in TIP and the Open Optical Packet Transport group, and through its collaboration with Infinera is able to demonstrate the benefits of disaggregation and open network solutions, offering choice and flexibility in high-performance network applications.”
The TIP Summit is taking place this week in Amsterdam.