Comcast moves to 100 Gbps with Ciena

Cable MSO Comcast Cable is upgrading its core network to 100-Gbps coherent transmission via the 6500 Packet-Optical Platform from Ciena Corp. (NASDAQ: CIEN).

Comcast already had 6500 optical transport systems in its network; it bought the systems from Nortel before Ciena purchased Nortel’s MEN assets (see “Comcast launches nationwide long-haul IP/optical network”). The company conducted 100-Gbps trials with Nortel as early as 2008 (see “Comcast tries 100G”). With an increasing demand for more capacity to support such services as HD video, mobile data, and cloud computing, the time apparently had arrived to step up from 40 Gbps.

“Adding Ciena’s WaveLogic 3 to our already installed 6500 Packet-Optical Platforms lets us leverage that investment to deliver more content, faster Internet speeds, and enable new cloud-based applications for our customers, while also providing future core 400G scalability,” said Kevin McElearney, senior vice president, network engineering, at Comcast Cable. “As we scale beyond our 100G network, Ciena’s coherent optical technology will help us to deliver on our ongoing commitment to maintain and operate a high-performance, feature-rich advanced network.”

As well as offering higher capacity, the upgrade will simplify Comcast’s network by reducing the number of network components, including optical regenerators, Ciena says. It also will increase service provisioning flexibility. In addition to the 100G technology, Ciena says it also will supply network management system capabilities and professional services via its Ciena Specialist Services portfolio, including furnishing and installation.

“Service providers are continuously looking for new ways to meet the needs of their customers while extracting the most value out of their vast network infrastructures,” said Francois Locoh-Donou, senior vice president, Global Products Group at Ciena. “Through a combination of consultative customer engagements based on network analytics and transformational planning, along with state-of-the-art 100G technology, we are able to help customers like Comcast transform network infrastructure so that they can meet escalating bandwidth and service demands.”

For more information on high-speed transmission systems and suppliers, visit the Lightwave Buyer’s Guide.