AT&T taps Fujitsu as optical domain network equipment supplier

AT&T (NYSE:T) has announced it has selected – or, it is believed, selected again -- Fujitsu as one of two domain suppliers for optical transport and metro and core network equipment.

The selection positions Fujitsu as a preferred provider of metropolitan and long-haul and optical transport platforms for AT&T’s network. It is not believed that the selection guarantees purchase of a specific amount of equipment. As the announcement put it, “Financial terms of the supplier agreement are still being negotiated.” The duration of the selection was described as "multiyear."

AT&T launched the domain supplier program in 2009 as a way to make its procurement process more efficient and to better ensure the equipment it purchased met its needs. The company established eight domains, with an eye towards choosing two preferred suppliers in each domain. While the company announced Ciena (NASDAQ:CIEN) as one optical domains supplier (see "AT&T selects Ciena for optical transport network, metro and core transport domains"), Fujitsu's potential role as the other supplier was more speculative.

"After an extensive evaluation of multiple optical and transport equipment suppliers, we are pleased to extend our relationship with Fujitsu," said Tim Harden, president of AT&T's Supply Chain and Fleet Operations organization, which implies that the speculation regarding Fujitsu was likely correct.

No announcement regarding Ciena's future status has been made.

Whatever gear Fujitsu supplies in its current role will get a workout. AT&T says its IP backbone network carries more than 28.9 petabytes of traffic on an average business day and includes more than 917,000 route miles of fiber-optic cable.