Finisar intros EPON Stick in an SFP for DOCSIS Provisioning of EPON

Finisar Corp. (NASDAQ: FNSR), leveraging its acquisition of Broadway Networks, has announced the availability of an EPON (Ethernet Passive Optical Network) Stick. Finisar describes the EPON Stick as the first Small Form-factor Pluggable Optical Networking Unit (SFP ONU) that interoperates with other EPON equipment based on CableLabs’ DOCSIS Provisioning of EPON (DPoE) specifications.

Finisar says it participated in the development of the DPoE 1.0 specifications and the recent interoperability testing at CableLabs. (For more on DPoE, see this article in the January/February 2011 issue of Lightwave.)

The DPoE effort aims to enable cable operators to supply business services via EPON technology. Using their existing provisioning systems and processes built around DOCSIS, operators can deliver both IP and Ethernet based services with DPoE products like the EPON Stick.

"We are proud that Finisar's EPON Stick is the first in an MSA SFP footprint compatible with EPON and DPoE," said Dr. Jianhui Zhou, vice-president and general manager of Access Products at Finisar. "It offers operators the advantages of automated provisioning with DPoE, while still allowing the flexibility of using a wide variety of Ethernet network interface devices, integrated access devices, switches, and routers.

Finisar's EPON Stick comprises pluggable transceiver optics and an EPON MAC with DPoE provisioning within the SFP package. Operators can insert the EPON Stick into any SFP host and operate a single demarcation device at the customer premises. Finisar believes the reduced complexity, reduced power consumption, and increased reliability of a single box approach will prove attractive to both the operator and their customers or subscribers.

In addition, operators that either do not yet have DOCSIS provisioning or have not yet used it for business services can use the EPON Stick with any EPON system to achieve DPoE interoperability.

In addition to EPON and DPoE compatibility, the EPON Stick supports SFF-8472 digital diagnostics and other extended capabilities.

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