Ciena (NYSE: CIEN) has partnered with service provider CenturyLink, Inc. (NYSE: CTL) to supply the Brazos Valley Council of Governments (BVCOG) with a new private network to close the digital divide between rural and metropolitan areas. The network will support 911 emergency response, workforce development, public safety initiatives, and other government organizations.
BVCOG, a multi-purpose voluntary organization, serves more than 315,000 citizens, and represents 7 counties across 5,109 square miles in central Texas. High-speed broadband in these counties was previously accessible via satellite or wireless in city centers alone, while rural areas only had access to low speeds and high-cost services.
According to Ciena, BVCOG is building the private optical network to improve service access to network speeds up to 10 Gbps for economic development agencies, improved telemetry, and healthcare organizations' diagnostics. The private network is partially funded by the Healthcare Connect Fund, and links hospitals, rural clinics, and schools providing healthcare services.
"Hospitals leveraging new telemetry and diagnostic services are just the tip of the iceberg of what's to come with this enhanced network," said Kevin Sheehan, Ciena vice president, strategic sales and market development. "Ciena's packet-optical technology combined with CenturyLink's dedicated support proved to be the right combination to implement BVCOG's network vision."
Now live and providing services, the optical network is powered by Ciena's 3930 Service Delivery Switches and 8700 Packetwave Platform. Ciena says it expects the network to be finished by summer 2019.
"CenturyLink worked closely with our partner Ciena to deploy a robust network in Brazos Valley that delivers crucial networking needs to healthcare service providers, government groups and businesses so they can execute on their organization's digital transformation initiatives and better serve area residents," said Terence Gleeson, CenturyLink vice president, strategic partner alliances.
Ciena has also supplied its 8700 Packetwave Platform to enable other fiber-optic networks to support services at rates as high as 100 G Ethernet, including connectivity provider Global Capacity's network (see "Global Capacity deploys Ciena 8700 Packetwave Platform for 100 Gigabit Ethernet").
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