Connectivity Technology Blog

Back in May, I attended the inaugural UK Telecoms Innovation (UKTIN) Ecosystem Conference. One of the talks from Microsoft caught my attention as the speaker was discussing the advantages of Hollow-Core Fibre. While the video or slides from that presentation aren't available, here is another talk from Infinera, who are experts in optical technology. In this talk, Geoff Bennett performs a reality check on HCF which is already being deployed in financial trading applications in the UK. Quoting from the talk description : Conventional optical fiber, as “an asset that keeps on giving”, has served our industry incredibly well over the past 30 years but we know that there are fundamental limits on fiber capacity. In addition the popularity of low latency applications like financial services and gaming are demanding lower latency, which can become a problem for silica-based fiber because light travels at about two thirds of the speed through glass as it does through air. Hollow Core Fiber...

ETSI's Fixed 5th Generation Network group (F5G ISG) has just released its first specification, ETSI GS F5G 003 , entitled F5G Technology Landscape. In this specification, the ISG studies the technical requirements, existing standards and gaps for 10 different new use cases, for home, enterprises or industrial needs. The press release says:  ETSI GS F5G 003 use cases include PON (passive optical network) on-premises and passive optical LAN. In this case, a PON system could connect end devices (like HDTV, HD surveillance cameras and VR/AR helmets) and provide higher data rate, better coordination and controlled latency than current Ethernet and Wi-Fi mesh. The high quality private line use case focuses on optical transport networks (OTN) for governments, large companies, financial and medical institutions who need guaranteed bandwidth, low latency, five-nines availability, totally secured network, access to Cloud services and intelligent operation and maintenance of their connectivi...

Fibre-to-the-room (FTTR) is a new kind of in-premises networking technology which is based on optical fibre communication. With the benefit of optical fibre, FTTR will provide high-bandwidth and reliable transmission. It is envisaged that the topology and functionalities of FTTR technologies may be different from the current fibre-based technologies in transport and access network, and consequently it is necessary to understand the use cases of FTTR and derive the corresponding network requirements for subsequently developing specifications. Earlier this year, I blogged about the ETSI ISG F5G that aims to study the fixed-network evolution required to match and further enhance the benefits that 5G has brought to mobile networks and communications. The intention of F5G is that it will define improvements with respect to previous solutions and the new characteristics of the fifth-generation fixed network. This will open up new opportunities by comprehensively applying fiber technology to...

5G has enabled many different Service Providers (SPs) to offer Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) as an alternative to a fibre based connectivity. We can always discuss the pros and cons of this approach but not in this post.  In a few cases, the operators have given fancy names to these FWA products. Saudi MNO, Mobily, calls it " 5G Air Fiber " while the Philippines MNO, Globe, calls it " Globe At Home Air Fiber 5G ". Then there is also satellite based "Smart Fibre From Space", as detailed by RTT here . The reason we are talking about Air Fibre in this post is because there is an alternative as proposed by a young US company called Tarana Wireless . There was a feature on them in Bloomberg last week but this Fierce Wireless webinar is a good starting point as well. South African ISP, Supersonic, has started offering this solution since Feb 2021 : Starting from R399 per month, customers can get fast, consistent download speeds of 5Mbps and upload of 2Mbps. This...

Fixed Wireless is one of the recurring topics on our blogs (see links to other posts at the end). Now GSMA Intelligence has just released a playbook on this topic. The executive summary says: One of the most interesting potential applications of 5G is in providing access to home broadband, through fixed wireless access (FWA). This hybrid approach combines aspects of traditional mobile and fixed-line delivery methods but is primarily marketed as a ‘home’ internet product. FWA offers the principal advantages of (generally) lower upfront deployment costs relative to fixed options, and capital efficiency gains through the reuse of existing spectrum holdings. The technology has been around for more than a decade through the 3G and 4G eras, particularly in serving rural areas that lack fixed broadband access or have low speeds. At the end of 2020, 492 mobile operators (approximately 50% of the sector) had launched 4G FWA services, with varying levels of ambition. 5G will enable FWA to targe...

As 5G drives disaggregation of the RAN, it is vital that operators understand the new options that will emerge for their transport networks. Late last year, Omdia hosted a webinar looking at how optical, Ethernet, and routing technologies are evolving to support 5G. The participants included: Richard Webb, Director, Research and Analysis, Service Provider Technology, Omdia Daniel Gonzalez, Business Development Manager, Anritsu Joseph Mocerino, Principal Solutions Architect, Optical Networking, Fujitsu Network Communications, Inc. Tim Doiron, Sr. Director, Solution Marketing, Infinera Allen Tatara, Senior Manager, Webinar Events, Omdia (Moderator) The following were key topics of discussion Migrating to 5G X-haul architecture for Stand-alone (SA) and Non-Standalone (NSA) deployments: requirements, challenges, and roadmaps Building a transport solutions toolkit that maximizes performance while lowering operation expense Evaluating Open RAN initiatives and potential impacts on transport H...

While we mostly focus on 5G protocols, architecture, NR, use cases, etc., we often tend to ignore the transport network that plays a critical role in 5G by providing the fronthaul, midhaul, and backhaul infrastructure – collectively known as “xhaul” – which is responsible for enabling the new use cases and applications economically and at scale. In a special, multi-sponsored Light Reading webinar, 5G experts from Ericsson, Fujitsu, Juniper, and VIAVI Solutions discuss exactly what operators need to do to architect, build, upgrade and maintain their xhaul transport networks to support massive 5G deployments -- including the roles of fiber, DWDM, microwave, switching/routing, and network testing. The video of the webinar is embedded below but you can get the slides, etc, from the original link here . Topics addressed in the webinar: Operator bandwidth requirements in fronthaul, midhaul, and backhaul segments and the impacts on the transport network Why and how should operato...

McKinsey Global Institute released a discussion paper titled, "Connected world: An evolution in connectivity beyond the 5G revolution". The report looks at  how connectivity could be deployed in mobility, healthcare, manufacturing, and retail. The use cases identified in these four commercial domains alone could boost global GDP by $1.2 trillion to $2 trillion by 2030. In fact, most of this value can be captured with advanced connectivity, using technologies that is already available today. The executive summary states: This raises a puzzling question: Why is so much potential still sitting on the table, and will new technologies alone be enough to realize it? This research looks at the issues holding back the market, with the aim of starting a broader conversation about what it will take to create momentum. It is part of an ongoing body of work that will continue exploring connectivity, including its possibilities in other sectors and its impact across broader econom...