Australian incumbent service provider Telstra, alongside technology partners Ericsson (NASDAQ: ERIC) and Ciena (NYSE: CIEN), has announced the launch of 400G wavelengths on its network. The trio add that Telstra has trialed 800G technology as well.
The 400G capabilities are being deployed across Telstra’s fiber-optic network, including in support of data center interconnect requirements. The service provider’s fiber network previously had supported a top-end transmission rate of 100G. The systems in Telstra’s network are configured to support transmission rates between 100G and 400G via the same line card, the companies say.
“Telstra’s network is geared for 5G, cloud computing, and applications like edge-computing, and this is a significant and fundamental upgrade to the hidden infrastructure that powers our business across Australia,” explained Chris Meissner, Transport, IP Core & Edge Engineering Telstra Executive. “By upgrading our optical transmission networks with 400G technology, Telstra will be able to cater for capacity demands of up to 400% of what was previously achievable. The upgrade enables us to rapidly deliver services to customers at scale without fiber builds, decreasing the time to market from weeks to days.”
“This optical transmission upgrade is an important step in increasing capacity requirements to meet unprecedented capacity demands. This critical infrastructure capability forms the foundation of Telstra’s current and future network requirements and ensures Telstra can achieve transmission cost efficiencies and scale to meet the traffic demands that come with media rich and next generation services including 5G and edge compute services. This latest industry milestone will ensure that Australia remains at the cutting-edge of telecommunications technology,” added Emilio Romeo, head of Ericsson Australia and New Zealand.
The deployment follows a test of 800G transmission capabilities conducted last month. The test link ran between a pair of metro data centers. Telstra, Ericsson, and Ciena also were able to send 700G per wavelength between Melbourne and Sydney, a distance of greater than 1,000 km.
Ericsson and Ciena have a longstanding partnership that includes supplying optical communications technology to Telstra (see, for example, “Ericsson/Ciena venture succeeds with Telstra”).
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