European operators seek cost sharing with Web companies

CEOs of Europe's leading telecom operators published an open statement calling on the European Commission to address their perceived imbalance in cost sharing for network infrastructure. The telecom CEOs argue that the largest generators of Internet traffic are not contributing enough to cover the costs of the networks needed to deliver their services.

"A fair contribution would benefit first and foremost consumers, as it would help enable faster and more inclusive roll-out, bringing more coverage, resilience and quality. It would also benefit SMEs, who recently voiced the need for tech companies to “adequately contribute” to roll-outvii: 5G and fibre are key to SMEs’ competitiveness. In addition, a fair contribution would send a clear financial signal for streamers in relation to the data growth associated with their use of scarce network resources. This could generate significant energy savings and help achieve net zero, both of which are so important at this time. Finally, we expect it also to benefit tech companies, who rely the most on massive network upgrades, as we move to an age of open and connectivity-enabled metaverses."

Signatories:

• Christoph Aeschlimann, CEO, Swisscom
• Thomas Arnoldner, CEO, A1 Telekom Austria Group
• Victoriya Boklag, CEO, United Group
• Edward Bouygues, Chairman, Bouygues Telecom
• Guillaume Boutin, CEO, Proximus Group
• Sigve Brekke, President and CEO, Telenor Group
• Alberto Calcagno, CEO, Fastweb
• Joost Farwerck, CEO and Chairman of the Board of Management, KPN
• Ana Figueiredo, CEO, Altice Portugal
• Christel Heydemann, CEO, Orange Group
• Timotheus Höttges, CEO, Deutsche Telekom
• Philip Jansen, CEO, BT Group
• Allison Kirkby, President and CEO, Telia Company
• Pietro Labriola, CEO, TIM Group
• José María Alvarez Pallete, Chairman and CEO, Telefónica
• Nick Read, CEO, Vodafone Group

https://etno.eu/downloads/news/ceo%20statement_sept.2022.pdf

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C&W Networks upgrades Caribbean cables with Ciena's GeoMesh

C&W Networks, a wholesale telecommunications service provider that is part of Cable & Wireless Communications and a wholly owned subsidiary of Liberty Latin America, is upgrading its CFX-1 (Colombia-Florida Express) and EWC (East West Cable) submarine cable networks with Ciena’s GeoMesh Extreme. The upgrades will enable broadband and IP services of up to 400 Gbps.

C&W Networks operates the largest submarine multi-ring fiber-optic network in the greater Caribbean, Central American and Andean regions, providing reliable connectivity to approximately 40 countries. The 2400km CFX-1 express cable connects the United States, Jamaica and Colombia with less than 25ms latency, while the 1,700km EWC cable links the British Virgin Islands, Jamaica and the Dominican Republic.

“Online content, especially streaming video, continues to drive robust demand for data and high-speed connectivity in the regions we serve. The additional capacity we’re turning up on CFX-1 and EWC with Ciena allows us to meet this demand head-on, enriching our service offerings for customers while sustainably and cost-effectively extending the lifespan of these cable systems,” stated Chris Coles, Vice President and General Manager, C&W Networks.

Ciena’s GeoMesh Extreme, which utilizes the 6500 Packet-Optical Platform powered by WaveLogic 5 Extreme coherent optics, delivers C&W Networks’ new increased capacity with scalable service speeds on existing undersea systems. With Ciena’s latest technology, the CFX-1 cable connecting the U.S. with Colombia and Jamaica is transformed to provide a 10-fold capacity increase of over 32Tbps with 100Gbps–400Gbps services.

https://www.ciena.com

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NTT develops graphene as a high-speed photodetector material

NTT and Japan's National Institute for Materials Science (NIMS) achieved the world's fastest zero-bias operation1(220 GHz) of a graphene photodetector (PD). 

The research clarifies the optical-to-electrical (O-E) conversion process in graphene for the first time. Graphene has high sensitivity and high-speed electrical response to a wide range of electromagnetic waves, from terahertz (THz) to ultraviolet (UV). Thus, it is a promising photodetection material for enabling high-speed O-E conversion at wavelength ranges where existing semiconductor devices cannot operate. However, until now, the demonstrated zero-bias operating speed has been limited to 70 GHz due to conventional device structure and measurement equipment. For this reason, the challenge for graphene PDs is to demonstrate 200-GHz operation speeds and clarify graphene's inherent properties, such the process of optical-to-electrical conversion.

In this study, NTT and NIMS demonstrated high-speed operation with a 3dB bandwidth of 220 GHz by removing the current delay caused by the device structure by using zinc oxide (ZnO) thin film as the gate material and by using on-chip THz spectroscopy technology to read out the current at high speed. The research also found a trade-off between operating speed and sensitivity by comparing the characteristics of PDs fabricated with graphene of different qualities. The findings will enable graphene PDs to be optimized according to their intended use, such as in optical sensors prioritizing sensitivity or O-E signal converters prioritizing speed. 

The research was published online in the British scientific journal Nature Photonics on August 25th, 2022.

https://group.ntt/en/newsrelease/2022/09/12/220912a.html

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Stratus Networks selects Ekinops Ethernet Access Device for backhaul

Stratus Networks, a  provider of wholesale and private fiber network solutions based in Illinois, has selected the Ekinops 1651, a 10Gb/s Ethernet Access Device for wireless backhaul connectivity.

Stratus is now also using the Ekinops OneOS6-based 1651 10G Ethernet Access Device (EAD) to provide wholesale, MEF-compliant, EPL (E-Access Ethernet Private Line) services to a third-party wireless network operator for mobile backhaul connectivity.  Stratus chose the 1651 EAD primarily because of its support for wire-speed service activation testing (SAT) at 10Gbps (gigabit per second).  Using IETF RFC-2544 and ITU-T Y.1564 testing standards, the 1651 acts as both the SAT generator & reflector, saving the cost of a second testing device while also speeding the SAT process. 

"We are extremely pleased by the operational efficiency that the 1651 remote SAT testing has provided.  Instead of rolling a truck to each site and using dedicated test equipment, we can use the built-in generator/reflector validate SLA on demand.  I anticipate future cost savings as we upgrade cellular backhaul to 10Gbps line-rate without deploying any additional equipment or field techs for manual SAT testing.," said Ben Russell, Chief Technology Officer, Stratus networks. Another reason for selecting the 1651 was Ekinops' ability to deliver within the required timeframe, the only vendor to make that commitment of those Stratus considered"

"The 1651 is ideal for what Stratus is doing," says Kevin Antill, Ekinops' group vice president of sales for North America. "10G is the new currency for these types of backhaul applications, especially with the far greater bandwidth 5G demands. The ability to test quickly and provide SLA reporting ensures Stratus customers that they have chosen the best partner."  

https://www.ekinops.com/news/customers/ekinops-delivers-mobile-backhaul-connectivity-with-wire-speed-testing-to-stratus-networks

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T-Mobile US tests site inspection robot

T-Mobile is testing an inspection robot from InDro Robotics, the leading Canadian air and ground robotics research and development company. 

InDro Robotics’ Sentinel was chosen by the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) to evaluate ground-roving robotics based on its ability to provide 24-hour substation asset inspection and security monitoring. Sentinel was up to the task and ran constant surveillance while streaming all data back to maintenance teams in near real-time using a custom integrated 5G router connected to T-Mobile’s network. The rover was able to follow preset paths while running autonomously and was remotely controlled by operators over 5G. Thanks to its thermal camera, depth sensor and 30x zoom capabilities, InDro Robotics’ Sentinel rover can read and report on gauge levels while monitoring for abnormalities like fluctuating component temperatures, intruders, wildlife hazards, etc.

“Like most robotics, the Sentinel requires an ultra-reliable network with low latency, and T-Mobile 5G proves to be more than capable,” said John Saw, EVP of Advanced & Emerging Technologies at T-Mobile. “The possibilities to use 5G in ways that keep people safe, make life easier and help businesses save money are endless. And we’ve barely scratched the surface of what’s possible.”

“The most important part of monitoring industrial complexes is being able to reliably capture and send data to customer maintenance teams in real-time, no matter where they are or how far away,” said Peter King, Head of Robotic Solutions at InDro Robotics. “Using T-Mobile’s 5G network in EPRI’s evaluation was a no-brainer, and thanks to its reach, we can carry out robot and drone operations in the U.S. nearly anywhere, anytime.”

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Cloudflare announces Zero Trust SIM for mobile devices

Cloudflare is developing a Zero Trust SIM for mobile devices. This will allow organizations to quickly and securely connect employee devices to Cloudflare’s global network, directly integrate devices with Cloudflare’s Zero Trust platform, and protect their network and employees. Additionally, Cloudflare will be launching Zero Trust for Mobile Operators, a new wireless carrier partner program that will allow any carrier to seamlessly offer their own subscribers comprehensive mobile security tools by tapping into Cloudflare’s Zero Trust platform.

“When I speak to CISOs I hear, again and again, that effectively securing mobile devices at scale is one of their biggest headaches; it’s the flaw in everyone’s Zero Trust deployment,” said Matthew Prince, co-founder and CEO of Cloudflare. “Effectively securing mobile devices is hard, and we have been working on this problem since we launched our WARP mobile app in 2019, now we plan on going even further. With Cloudflare Zero Trust SIM we will offer the only complete solution to secure all of a device’s traffic, helping our customers plug this hole in their Zero Trust security posture.”

Cloudflare Zero Trust SIM will integrate seamlessly with Cloudflare's entire Zero Trust stack, allowing security policies to be enforced for all traffic leaving the device. Further, with the Zero Trust SIM taking an eSIM (embedded SIM) first approach, SIMs can be automatically deployed to both iOS and Android devices and locked to a specific device, mitigating the risk of SIM-swapping attacks faced by existing solutions and saving security teams time. 

https://www.cloudflare.com

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ECOC22: Marvell's cloud-optimized optical solutions

 

What's next at ECOC for Marvell?

It's all about cloud-optimized cloud connectivity, says Josef Berger, AVP Marketing, Marvell.

At ECOC22, Marvell showcased its Deneb and Canopus coherent digital signal processors (DSPs). The company demonstrated its 112G 5nm IP and its newest "Spica" DSP for 800G optics transceivers, its Atlas DSP for 50G in RAN applications. Marvell also demonstrated its 400ZR transceivers alongside its Teralynx data center switching silicon.

https://youtu.be/jqdKZaAhz2w

Learn more about the Consortium for Onboard Optics and why your company should join:

https://www.onboardoptics.org

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