Reliance Globalcom taps Ciena for another fiber-optic network upgrade

For the second time in less than a week, Ciena Corp. (NASDAQ: CIEN) and Reliance Globalcom have revealed that the latter will use equipment from the former in a network upgrade. The latest announcement covers the upgrade of Reliance Globalcom’s FNAL backhaul network in Asia.

Reliance Globalcom will use Ciena’s 100-Gbps enabled 6500 Packet-Optical Platform in the FNAL upgrade. The service provider now will use 40-Gbps OTN-based wavelengths across FNAL subsea segments, and between its Taipei and Seoul points-of-presence (PoPs). The upgrade enables Reliance Globalcom to offer bandwidth speeds ranging from 1 Gbps to 40 Gbps, with an option for 2.5 Gbps and 10 Gbps between its PoPs. This upgrade to the terrestrial portion of FNAL complements an earlier 40-Gbps deployment on the undersea segment (see "Reliance Globalcom adds 40-Gbps coherent to FNAL submarine cable network").

“Asia is currently among the leading regions where the Internet and broadband penetration rates are high but there is still a significant potential for bandwidth growth. Reliance Globalcom is committed to meet this growth by upgrading its network consistently in a cost-effective manner with the latest transmission technologies like OTN,” according to Punit Garg, president and CEO of Reliance Globalcom.

Last week, the two companies announced that Reliance Globalcom will use the 6500 Packet-Optical Platform on its its FLAG Europe-Asia (FEA) submarine network (see “Reliance Globalcom picks Ciena for 100G submarine cable upgrade”).

“High-bandwidth applications such as video and cloud computing continue to put pressure on today’s networks, requiring carriers like Reliance to deploy technologies that not only increase capacity but also provide more intelligent, adaptable networks,” said Anthony McLachlan, Vice President and General Manager, Asia Pacific, Ciena.

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