Trial builds on previously announced 25G PON deployment, giving GFiber the flexibility to add future 50Gbps broadband services using the same fibre
GFiber Labs has successfully tested 50Gbps broadband speeds over its live fibre network in Kansas City. The operator has already upgraded its network to XGS-PON wherever possible, enabling 8Gbps speeds and above in all its cities and is working to deploy Nokia 25G PON in all of our markets by the end of the year, so that the operator can extend access to GFiber Lab’s 20 Gig plan.
“We already have customers putting this new level of service to the test in North Carolina’s Triangle, and we’re adding new customers to the early access program in select markets,” said Google Fiber senior director, product & billing Liz Hsu (above). “50G PON has the advantage of co-existing with XGS-PON and 25G PON to make the technology transition easier, which may make it the solution for the future.”
“We have committed to pursuing speeds of 100G and beyond,” she said. “Today is a step in that direction, in close collaboration with Nokia, we are, for the first time in the United States, testing 50G on our live network in Kansas City…There are plenty of other areas that we are looking at including the in-home experience or advanced content experiences, as well as using AI to identify and solve problems in our network before they even occur.”
This live network demonstration of 50G PON technology shows how operators can use Nokia’s Lightspan MF fibre access platform to upgrade their fibre networks to meet growing demand. Nokia points out there are more than 12 operators around the world who are already gaining the benefits of 25G PON, and the ecosystem is maturing with more than 5 ONT vendors bringing 25G PON solutions to the market.
Some operators currently deploying 25G PON include Google Fiber, EPB, Vodafone Qatar and OGI. The vendor believes the ecosystem for 25G PON is mature, with more than 60 operators, system vendors, chipset, and optical suppliers part of an MSA focused on standardizing and accelerating the technology.
In April, Nokia worked with Australian government-owned wholesaler NBN Co to demonstrate 10G, 25G, 50G and 100G broadband speeds over its existing fibre network. The trial showed how operators can enhance 10G PON to symmetrical 25G PON and eventually evolve to 50G PON or 100G using the same passive and active fibre components. Nokia points out it is a key contributor to 50G PON industry standard and introduced the industry’s first true 50G platform in 2020 with the Lightspan MF platform. Once the 50G PON industry matures, the step to 100G is “straightforward”, according to the company.
“Service providers need to be able to select the right technology, based on their needs and business case,” said Nokia vice president of broadband networks Geert Heyninck. “It is why we already offer 10G and 25G today, are trialing 50G, and developing 100G – ultimately leading to a full range of PON technologies that can be mixed and matched on the same platform and the same fibre. Our expansive toolkit of fibre solutions allows Google Fiber to future-proof their network and flexibly address their evolving network demands.”
Leveraging Nokia’s fibre solution, Google Fiber was able to simultaneously run 10/25G PON along with 25/50G PON broadband service over its fibre network. “This test with Nokia builds on the 25G PON deployment we announced together last year, paving the way for future improvements to our network that enhance customer experience in terms of speed, reliability, innovation and support for future business cases that have yet to be defined,” said Hsu.