We are currently in a new era of submarine network construction and upgrade. New systems are being constructed, and established systems enhanced, to meet growing demand for bandwidth and greater reliability. As these articles describe, this new era requires new technologies and networking strategies.

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Now that 100-Gbps transmission is reaching the field, work is already underway on the second generation of the technology. Upcoming advances will lower costs, increase efficiency, and make 100G applicable to a wider variety of carrier and data center applications.

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The traffic demands mobile broadband have created have driven operators to rethink their mobile backhaul strategies. Many have concluded that a fiber-based approach is the only way to future-proof their networks.

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Of course, no one truly knows all that the future will bring – but that won’t stop us from making predictions. Here’s a compendium of viewpoints on what 2013 has in store for optical communications technology development and deployment.

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As capacity demands climb and footprints grow in the data center, fiber-optic technology becomes increasingly appealing for communications within the facility and to the outside world. These articles will help you form the right optical communications strategy for your data center application.

Service providers of all stripes – from telcos to cable operators and wholesalers to managed data services providers – are seeing an increasing need for packet-based transmission support. And packet-optical transport systems have become the preferred platform to deliver Ethernet services, mobile backhaul, video, and other high-demand services. The key is choosing the right approach to meet both today’s and tomorrow’s needs, particularly as data rates move to 100 Gbps and beyond.

With bandwidth demands growing in enterprise networks, fiber-optic technology development is keeping pace. From finding ways to minimize power-hungry LAN elements to more robust cabling to emerging new standards, optical communications technology should continue to offer an effective, efficient alternative to copper for a growing variety of enterprise network requirements.

Next-generation optical communications systems have to keep pace with the ever-increasing data rate and functionality requirements of network operators. Integration of functions and components, both optical and electrical, will be necessary toenable technology designers to meet this goal.

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The move to 100-Gbps technology in carrier networks is well underway. But with systems now available from multiple vendors, carriers must evaluate their options wisely. Part of sorting out the different approaches is ensuring that the 100G platform you buy today offers a clear path to even greater bandwidth in the future.