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Combining different architectures and different deployment types leads to a better understanding among the stakeholders in the economic crisis.
An All-in-One Solution
In an FTTP deployment, over two-thirds of the equipment
costs are at the home or business premises. So any meaningful
solution that encompasses both GPON and P2P must address
a unified approach at the CPE.
In 2006, Calix introduced technology that allowed optical
network terminals (ONTs) to auto-detect what type of optical
line terminal (OLT) they were connected to and automatically
sync with the technology detected. This allowed customers to
deploy ONTs initially with BPON, then upgrade to GPON
merely by changing the OLT card. Once the ONT sensed that
the OLT had changed from BPON to GPON, the ONT resynced
itself as a GPON ONT. With no necessity to change
out ONTs, this approach saved Calix customers millions of
dollars in equipment upgrade costs and truck rolls.
Without this capability, service providers would either not
be able to afford the upgrade from BPON to GPON, or their
business cases would be severely burdened when they upgraded
to GPON due to the high cost of the upgrade. Switching out
the ONT could cost $500 or more per customer, versus a cost
penalty of a few dollars per ONT.
While the migration from BPON to GPON was inevitable,
the capability to auto-detect technology and adapt to changes
of the OLT was seen as having value to service providers as a
way to “future proof” their networks. With this in mind, Calix
discussed with customers their interest in having an ONT that
could support not only BPON and GPON, but also P2P.
The feedback from customers was overwhelmingly positive.
Now Calix customers have another level of “future proof”
secur ity. Should the service provider decide to shift from
GPON to P2P at a given location, or from P2P to GPON,
there will be no truck roll required.
Calix introduced this technology to the market in its
700GX ONT product line. Initially introduced on four different
models of ONTs, the first ONTs offering this capability
support all the same services (10/100/1000 Ethernet, SIP-based
VoIP, IPTV and HPNAv3.1 over coax), except for TDM voice,
when in P2P mode as in GPON mode. The 700GX ONT is
priced about 10 percent higher than a GPON-only ONT.
When the product is installed in the field, the ONT will turn
up as a GPON ONT if connected to a GPON OLT or a P2P
ONU if connected to any Ethernet switch. Calix has introduced
a new platform called the E5-400, which is designed to support
the aggregation of Gigabit Ethernet from GPON OLTs and P2P
Active Ethernet ONTs into 10 Gigabit rings. This product can
be used in conjunction with Calix GPON platforms to provide
universal access under a common management system.
The Unified Access Infrastructure
An all-fiber network that can serve the needs of all customers
in a given serving area is fundamentally more efficient than a
network with multiple overlays that add cost and complexity.
This concept – called a Unified Access Infrastructure – is essential
for the future competitiveness of service providers. As
competition increases, the winner will be the service provider
that can generate the highest revenue at the lowest ongoing
operational and capital cost. BBP
About the Author
David Russell is Solutions Marketing Director at Calix and
a board member of the Fiber-to-the-Home Council. He can be
reached at david.russell@calix.com.
January/February 2009 | www.broadbandproperties.com | BROADBAND PROPERTIES | 65