The transmission was between Frankfurt and Budapest using Nokia’s FP5 network processor and Photonic Service Engine optics (PSE-6s)
A1 Austria and Nokia delivered an 800Gbps service in a live network across a single wavelength and a distance of 1276km, from Frankfurt to Budapest.
A1 Austria is part of A1 Group, the European subsidiary of América Móvil which is one of the largest mobile operators in the world. The AI Group has headquarters in Vienna and operates in seven countries in central and eastern Europe. It has a total of about 29 million customers.
A1 operates a Europe-wide IP and optical network using Nokia’s service router portfolio. The operator offers services direct to businesses and as well as wholesale to enterprises, hyperscalers and other service providers’ end customers.
The field trial
The field trial used Nokia’s FP5 network processor silicon and its sixth-generation Photonic Service Engine optics (PSE-6s). According to the press statement, this marks A1’s first demonstration of an 800Gbps per wavelength in its long-haul network and will help the company meet the increasing demand for capacity.
Nokia’s PSE-6s optics were deployed in the shipping DMAT6 transponder with 2.4Tbps capacity, enabling transport of multiple 800GE services while reducing network power per bit.
The vendor claims that the FP5 network processor silicon too will increase IP peering performance and scales to 800GE ports, reducing power per bit with more efficient IP connectivity and fewer network links. The chipsets allow networks to run at up to 50 Tbps and reduce A1’s operational and hardware costs.
Remarkable achievement
Alexander Stock, CTO at A1 Austria (pictured), said,“We are committed to investing in our digital infrastructure and driving digitalization across Europe, and the success of this trial is a testament to the hard work delivered by our teams and by our trusted partner – Nokia.
“It’s a remarkable achievement that will not only allow us to lower costs per bit but will also provide the much-needed high-speed connectivity to our wholesale customers in 2024 and beyond.”