XO Communications has made a major transformation in its nationwide optical network, enabling the company to deliver the next wave of high-speed optical networking services and meet the explosive bandwidth demands driven by cloud services, Internet videos, mobile services and new wireless technologies.
The company today announced that it is the first service provider in the United States to deploy 100 Gbps (Gigabit per second) optical technology across a long haul fiber network on a nationwide basis. The Nokia Siemens Networks optical system deployed in the XO long haul network is capable of simultaneously transmitting up to 96 wavelengths of light, each carrying data at 100G and allowing a total data transfer speed of up to 9.6 Terabits per second. Today’s announcement represents XO Communications’ evolution to next generation optical transport network technology to deliver core network speeds of 100G and the ability to scale to 400G and beyond.
“While other telecommunications companies have deployed or tested 100G optical systems across portions of their networks, XO Communications is the first service provider to deploy 100G technology on an operational basis coast-to-coast across its nationwide fiber network,” said Randy Nicklas, senior vice president and chief technology officer for XO Communications. “By making this leap to 100G, XO Communications is taking a leadership role in utilization of optical networking and offering customers the network infrastructure and services needed in order to deliver today’s cloud computing, mobile wireless and Internet video delivery platforms and services.”
The 100G optical network platform will enable XO Communications to more efficiently manage the increasing data traffic across its network from enterprise and wholesale customers’ Internet, video, mobile data and cloud-based enterprise applications. By increasing the bandwidth efficiency of its long haul fiber infrastructure with state of the art optical equipment, XO Communications can carry more than10 times the amount of network traffic carried on a standard route using previous generation optical systems. In addition, the 100G technology platform will enable XO Communications to offer 100 Gbps optical network services to customers that increasingly need higher bandwidth solutions, including cable companies, mobile wireless service providers, and domestic and international telecommunications companies.
“We are happy to play a key role in enabling XO Communications to reach this important industry milestone,” said Jim Benson, head of Optical Networks for the Americas at Nokia Siemens Networks. “With the use of our high performance 100G coherent technology, XO Communications has built an automated, high capacity, state of the art network that will allow it to provide end customers with very low latency service connections coast-to-coast.”
XO Communications has deployed Nokia Siemens Networks’ Dense Wavelength Division Multiplexing (DWDM) network based on the hiT7300 platform across its coast-to-coast routes on its long haul optical network. The hiT7300 is a proven, high-capacity, flexible and cost-efficient packet-optical transport platform and is part of Nokia Siemens Networks’ Liquid Transport architecture. The platform utilizes the installed network infrastructure by implementing coherent transmission technology, thereby protecting operator investments. By offering DCM-free transmission, this solution enables lower latency (less delay) in data transmission and allows a rapid, cost effective transition to 100 Gbps line speeds. A future-proof hardware design in the Nokia Siemens Networks solution supports up to 400G and colorless, directionless ROADM functionality.
“For years, Heavy Reading has positioned 100G as the next-generation transport rate for backbone networks, as continued traffic growth has simply outgrown the capacity of 10G and even 40G,” said Sterling Perrin, senior analyst at Heavy Reading. “XO’s announcement today of the first nationwide 100G network across the U.S. is another major milestone in the continued commercial progress of 100G. We believe that broad operator adoption of 100G will benefit businesses, consumers, and mobile data users alike.”
About XO CommunicationsXO Communications is a leading nationwide provider of advanced communications, managed network and IT infrastructure services for business, large enterprise and wholesale customers. These customers include more than half of the Fortune 500, in addition to leading cable, mobile wireless and domestic and international telecommunications companies. XO offers a superior customer experience through its innovative data and IP solutions, its employees’ focus on customers and the proven performance of its advanced network. To learn more about XO Communications, visit www.xo.com or blog.xo.com. XO Communications is also on Twitter, YouTube, Facebook and LinkedIn.