Showing posts with label Orange. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Orange. Show all posts

Monday, January 9, 2023

Orange to build solar farm in Aube, France

Orange will build a solar farm in Bercenay-en-Othe (Aube), the site of its satellite ground station.

The facility will be a collaboration with Reservoir Sun, a leading player in self-supply solar electricity systems for companies and local government.

The farm will cover a surface area of 50,000 m2, or the equivalent of seven football pitches, and have an installed capacity of 5 MW (1MW for self-consumption and 4MW for the grid).

Michaël Trabbia, interim CEO for Orange Wholesale and International Networks, states: “We are happy and proud to launch an ambitious local solar farm project at our Bercenay-en-Othe site. This solar farm reflects our additionality approach and is fully in line with our strategy to develop the use of low-carbon energies, in order to contribute to our environmental commitments. This project thus contributes to securing our energy supply while decarbonizing our activities."

https://newsroom.orange.com/orange-is-opening-its-first-solar-farm-in-europe-with-reservoir-sun/?lang=en

Monday, December 19, 2022

Huawei and Orange achieve 157 Tbps over 120km fiber link

Huawei and Orange achieved a new world record optical transmission of 157 Tbps over a 120 km fiber on the Orange network in South West France. 

In June 2022, Huawei released the industry's first ultra-broadband Super C + Super L solution able to provide 12 THz of spectrum () over a fiber using C band (C for Conventional wavelengths) and L band (L for long wavelengths). In this testing, the total bandwidth was extended to 18 THz by using in-house technologies for S band (S for short wavelengths) and relying on the transmission expertise of Huawei's French R&D Center. A total number of 240 wavelengths were used to provide a total transmission capacity of 157 Tbit/s, based on Huawei's advanced high-order constellation shaping modulation algorithm.

Gilles Bourdon, Vice President for Wireline Networks & Infrastructure, Orange Innovation, declared: "Facing the continuous increase of traffic demand, obtaining more spectrum and therefore more value from our existing assets is crucial. It is even more important as spectral efficiency of such optical systems reaches a theoretical limit. The testing proves the capability of our fiber infrastructure to offer 50 % more spectrum and thus effectively address one of our key topics: the experience and connectivity of our customers."

Richard Jin, President for the Optical Business Product Line, Huawei, declared: "Huawei has long been committed to strategic investments, research and technological breakthroughs in the optical communications domain, as illustrated by the excellence of our optical research teams, such as the one in Paris. We are delighted to collaborate with an operator as innovative as Orange to contribute, together, to the creation of the network of the future."

https://www.huawei.com/en/news/2022/12/optical-innovation-orange

Monday, December 12, 2022

Orange to provide landing in Marseille for Medusa Mediterranean cable

Orange will offer a high-performance interconnection solution to all partner operators of the new Medusa Submarine Cable System -- the first and longest submarine cable to connect the main Mediterranean countries. 

Medusa is an 8,760 km subsea system linking the North African countries and six EU member states (Portugal, Spain, France, Italy, Greece, and Cyprus). 

Medusa is an open system that includes 16 landing points around the Mediterranean Sea. The cable will have segments withup to 24 fiber pairs with a capacity of 20 Tbps per fiber pair. Its festoon architecture gives it a unique design. 

It is expected Medusa cable reaches Marseille during the last quarter of 2024. The system will be ready for service end of 2024 for the West Med region and first half of 2025 for the East Med region.

Orange is building submarine cable landing infrastructure in Marseille to make France more attractive as a digital gateway for global exchanges.

Construction includes new urban infrastructure to increase the resilience and diversity of access and landing points in Marseille while connecting all the city’s data centers.

Orange will handle all the technical, regulatory, security, and environmental aspects, enabling its partners to enjoy a prime position in Marseille and strengthening France’s attractiveness

"We are particularly pleased to welcome the Medusa cable to Orange's infrastructure in the heart of the Mediterranean hub of Marseille, as part of a strategic and ambitious project. By combining our submarine cable landing stations with our new urban infrastructure, we are strengthening Marseille's attractiveness as a digital gateway to Europe, and beyond that, France's sovereignty," explains Michaël Trabbia, interim CEO of Orange Wholesale & International Networks.

Norman Albi, CEO of Medusa, stresses the importance of this agreement: “Marseille has always been a strategic Mediterranean interconnection point and joining forces with Orange means we can offer a cutting-edge service, against a background of growing needs in the digital economy. With this agreement, all Medusa landings in the western Mediterranean are totally secure and ready to be implemented.” 

https://newsroom.orange.com/medusa-submarine-cable-system-chooses-the-new-orange-infrastructure-in-marseille-to-land-a-new-strategic-route-connecting-southern-europe-and-north-africa/?lang=en

https://medusascs.com/

Tuesday, November 29, 2022

Nokia and Orange France test 20 Gbps microwave carrier aggregation

Nokia and Orange France demonstrated the use of microwave carrier aggregation techniques, achieving a throughput of 20 Gbps over a distance of 3.6 km. This was enabled by combining the carriers from two microwave radios operating in the 18 GHz band with two E-Band microwave radios operating at 80 GHz, using a single dual-band (18+80 GHz) antenna.

In addition to new products from its Wavence microwave portfolio, Nokia will provide Orange France with a range of products and services from its comprehensive AirScale 5G radio access portfolio, as well as a state-of-the-art network management solution and associated professional services.

The Nokia Wavence portfolio includes innovative, high-capacity ultra-broadband microwave transceivers, designed to support operators as they build out their 5G networks. Wavence products support the evolution of both backhaul and fronthaul with multi-gigabit capacity, low-latency characteristics, and industry-leading RF power output for deployment flexibility.

Christian Gacon, CTO Fixed/IP/Optical/Microwave Networks at Orange France, said: “Nokia’s innovative Wavence portfolio and microwave technology will ensure that we can deliver high-capacity services and experiences to our customers over long distances, which is critical as the usage of 5G increases. This technology will support Orange’s ambition to remain the indisputable best network in France. I look forward to continuing our partnership with Nokia moving forward.”

https://www.nokia.com/about-us/news/releases/2022/11/29/nokia-and-orange-france-complete-worlds-first-20-gbps-microwave-carrier-aggregation-link-trial-using-e-band-and-traditional-frequencies/

Sunday, October 30, 2022

Orange selects Edgecore for access disaggregation via SONiC

Edgecore Networks and Orange delivered the first disaggregated switch composed of Edgecore hardware and Orange network operating system based on SONiC (Software for Open Networking in the Cloud) open source community.

Orange selected Edgecore switches to deliver connectivity for its hundreds of access Points of Presence (PoP). These locations provide 1G, 10G, and 100G access services to enterprise customers.

The disaggregated Edgecore hardware platform comes pre-loaded with the ONIE (Open Network Install Environment) software installer for the automated loading of compatible open source or commercial network operating system offerings. 

Orange is installing its own SONiC distribution to run on the switches. Orange relies on its developers’ expertise working in conjunction with Edgecore and the SONiC community, to which Orange actively contributes, to develop their own networking software solutions.

Heimdall Siao, President of Edgecore said, “As the leader in disaggregated open networking solutions, Edgecore is excited to be involved in this disaggregated and community SONiC networking project with Orange in a telecom use case. Edgecore’s switches running SONiC software provide the high-capacity throughput required for access networks. And, by utilizing Edgecore’s carrier grade and proven robust designs, Orange is able to deploy solutions in the most demanding of carrier networks. This successful experience in Orange’s network proves that disaggregated open networking solutions are robust and capable of handling the most demanding of network environments.”

Jean Luc Vuillemin, Executive Vice President of Orange International Networks, said, “We are pleased to team up with Edgecore to launch our network disaggregation transformation. This joint work enables us to drastically transform the way we build and upgrade our networks. It allows us to move away from off the shelf and locked-in solutions to in-house developed solutions relying on our network developers’ expertise. Upskilling our teams to master our software allows us to regain full control of our networks and therefore manage upgrades in a fast, cost-effective and sovereign way, while providing an improved and reliable service to our customers.”

https://www.edge-core.com/sonic.php

Wednesday, October 5, 2022

Orange outlines energy saving plan in France

Orange outlined the following energy to reduce electricity consumption in France:

  • During peak consumption, Orange will cut 5 to 10% of its instantaneous electricity consumption for one hour per day. Switching to electric battery for several thousand fixed network installations will help save up to 20 MW, i.e. the instantaneous consumption of a medium-sized city with 40,000 inhabitants. These energy efficiency measures will have no negative impact on users. 
  • The temperature in offices is now set at 19°C. On days when there are few visitors, Orange proposes closing some quieter work spaces to reduce their electricity and heating consumption.
  • Since September 1, 2022, window lighting at all Orange stores in France is switched off 30 minutes after closing at the latest.
  • During peak consumption, SMS will be sent to Orange employees and customers to raise awareness of environmentally-friendly actions, like switching off their boxes when not in use; switching to Wi-Fi at home, or enabling standby mode for their Livebox and TV set-top box. Extended standby mode on the Livebox 6 can reduce energy consumption by 95%.
  • As a signatory of the Ecowatt charter, Orange will also display an electricity status report on the Orange TV home page, allowing every TV viewer to see the amount of electricity available in France.

Christel Heydemann, Orange CEO, explains: “In an uncertain geopolitical and economic context, we share the French government's concerns and we have developed a concrete plan to support the national energy saving initiative. By offering to cut consumption at several thousand technical sites for one hour, we will reduce our instantaneous power requirements by up to 10%, without impacting the service offered to users. But I must point out that networks are crucial for an effective society. We must work together to avoid load shedding measures this winter”.

https://www.orange.com/en/newsroom

Wednesday, September 7, 2022

Mavenir and NEC deliver massive MIMO on Orange’s 5G SA test

Mavenir and NEC  (NEC) have deployed massive MIMO (mMIMO) on Orange’s 5G standalone (SA) experimental network in Chatillon near Paris. The deployment is part of the extension of project Pikeo – Orange’s cloud-based and fully automated 5G SA experimental network, also called Pikeo at this site.

Mavenir’s cloud-native Open virtualised Radio Access Network (Open vRAN) software has been deployed on Orange’s cloud infrastructure with NEC’s 32T32R mMIMO active antenna unit (AAU) to deliver high capacity and enhanced coverage. Interoperability between radios and virtualised Distributed Units (vDUs) over the O-RAN Alliance Open Fronthaul Interface is key to Open RAN’s ability to simplify the deployment of multi-vendor networks and eliminate vendor lock-in.

“Mavenir and NEC’s successful Open RAN deployment of mMIMO on Orange’s Innovation 5G SA experimental network is a major stepping stone on the road towards Open RAN deployments and illustrates Orange’s commitment to support the development of multi-vendor Open RAN solutions with innovative partners. Our Open RAN Integration Centre, open to our partners worldwide, contributes to the development of a strong Open RAN ecosystem in Europe,” said Arnaud Vamparys, SVP Radio Access Networks and Microwaves at Orange.

“Deploying 5G SA mMIMO is a significant milestone in developing Open RAN and transitioning from virtualised to cloudified networks. We are very proud of our continuing collaboration with Orange, NEC and other companies that are proving the potential of the multi-vendor, cloud-native, standards-based approach,” said Hubert de Pesquidoux, Executive Chairman of Mavenir.

“The latest deployment of Open RAN mMIMO in Europe is another milestone for Open RAN and one that required close collaboration and tight integration between multiple vendors. This synergy is exactly what Open RAN needs to successfully deliver on its promise of a truly open multi-vendor ecosystem,” said Naohisa Matsuda, General Manager of NEC’s 5G Strategy and Business.

https://www.mavenir.com

Orange names its 5G Stand Alone vendors 

Orange has chosen the following industrial partners for its 5G Stand Alone networks across Europe:Ericsson’s 5G SA core network for Belgium, Spain, Luxembourg and PolandNokia’s 5G SA core network for France and Slovakia, and Nokia’s Subscriber Data Management for all countriesOracle Communications for 5G core signaling and routing in all countriesFor other network functions, in particular the radio, a software update of the existing equipment will...

O-RAN Alliance demos at MWC Barcelona

 O-RAN ALLIANCE will host 22 demos at the upcoming MWC Barcelona 2022 as well as 24 additional demos online at the O-RAN Virtual Exhibition. Here are highlights.Intelligent RAN control demosEricsson presents its approach to SMO as an enabler of automation and value creation in the context of open innovation with rApps. Ericsson Intelligent Automation Platform provides multi-vendor and multi-technology support for RAN and empowers CSPs to accelerate...


Thursday, August 4, 2022

Orange Egypt picks Nokia to modernize network

Orange Egypt selected Nokia to modernize its SDM network over the next 5 years. 

Nokia’s 3GPP-compliant SDM solution includes Nokia Registers – Home Subscriber Server, Home Location Register and One-NDS (Network Directory Server), plus 5G’s Unified Data Management and Authorization Server Function. Together the components will allow Orange Egypt to better manage subscriber data across different technology networks.

Nokia’s SDM solution is deployed over three geographical sites and serves around 33 million mobile and fixed Orange Egypt subscribers. This includes subscribers of 2G, 3G, 4G, fixed services, data and voice, IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) with Voice over LTE (VoLTE) and Voice over WiFi (VoWiFi) services. The new upgraded system supports the upcoming launch of 5G services.

Ayman Amiri, Chief Technology Officer at Orange Egypt, said: "The modernized, industry-leading Nokia SDM solution will help us better address the evolving needs of our customers. Building on our existing experience leveraging Nokia’s SDM solution, we are looking forward to leveraging these upgrades as we consolidate our customer base across different technologies and move towards 5G.”

Monday, July 25, 2022

Orange and MASMOVIL to combine their operations in Spain

ORANGE Spain and MASMOVIL agreed to combine their operations in the form of a 50-50 joint venture co-controlled by both companies with equal governance rights.

The deal includes a right to trigger an IPO under certain conditions for both parties after a defined period and, in such a scenario, an option for ORANGE to take control of the combined entity at IPO price.

The companies said the merger will lead to significant efficiency gains, allowing the combined company to accelerate investments in FTTH and 5G that will benefit Spanish customers.

As part of the final agreement, ORANGE Spain’s enterprise value is set at €7.8 billion (7.2x 2022E EBITDAaL and 37.1x 2022E EBITDAaL – eCapex) and MASMOVIL’s (which includes the acquisition of EUSKALTEL) at €10.9 billion (8.7x 2022E EBITDAaL and 14.9x 2022E EBITDAaL – eCapex).

Christel Heydemann, CEO of ORANGE, commented: “I am very happy to announce the conclusion of these negotiations today. This deal paves the way for the creation of a joint company that combines the forces of ORANGE and MASMOVIL into a single, stronger operator that will enable investments in 5G and Fiber, benefiting customers across Spain. I strongly believe that the creation of this new company is of fundamental importance for the Group, the Spanish telecoms market and for our customers.”

Meinrad Spenger, CEO of MASMOVIL, commented: “This is a great day for Spanish consumers as well as for our stakeholders. Together with ORANGE, we plan to form a strong operator with a sustainable business model and the capacity to invest in world-class infrastructure, technology and talent. We anticipate this will drive competition, digitization and innovation in the Spanish market.”

https://newsroom.orange.com/orange-and-masmovil-sign-an-agreement-to-combine-their-operations-in-spain/?lang=en

Thursday, July 7, 2022

Orange France installs Passive Optical LAN from Nokia

Orange is deploying a passive optical LAN (POL) solution from Nokia at over 20 sites in France including the new Orange Headquarters, Bridge, in Issy-les-Moulineaux near Paris.

The POL solution replaces the existing copper-based LAN, connecting more than 5,000 end points including Wi-Fi and hard-wired terminals.

Philippe Gacougnolle, Orange France Director of the Internal Network Domain said: “Moving to POL for our intra office connectivity can save significant energy costs and reduce emissions which is essential to help Orange meet its ambitious environmental goals”

Stephane Azoulay, Nokia Head of Orange France Account said: “Switching from traditional LAN to POL technology means a more compact solution, with less energy consumption and much better performance proving the best possible user experience. We’re proud to have been selected by Orange for this important project.”

https://www.nokia.com/about-us/news/releases/2022/07/07/nokia-and-orange-france-deploy-passive-optical-lan-solution-over-20-sites/



Tuesday, June 7, 2022

Orange Polska awards 10-year contract to Nokia

Orange Polska awarded a ten-year contract extension to Nokia. The improved deal, which will cover 50 percent of Orange’s network in northern Poland and run until 2036, will see the modernization of the operator’s existing radio network infrastructure as well as enhance its 5G capabilities. The move will support Orange’s strategy of delivering best-in-class services to its customers.

Under the contract, Nokia will upgrade all existing networks including equipment supporting phasing out Orange’s 3G network and infrastructural solutions enabling reallocating the frequencies to enhance its 4G coverage and capacity. This network refresh is scheduled to continue until 2025. Nokia will also supply equipment from its latest energy-efficient AirScale portfolio including Single RAN, AirScale base stations, and 5G Massive MIMO antennas for the operator’s 5G solution that covers all deployment scenarios from dense-urban capacity to wide-area coverage.

Nokia will also deliver equipment supporting C-Band spectrum when it is made available in Poland. C-Band spectrum, between 3.4 GHz and 3.8 GHz, is a crucial resource for operators to offer the best mix of 5G network capacity and coverage to subscribers. These solutions will support Orange’s network leadership while delivering superior connectivity and capacity to its customers. Nokia will also provide services, including digital deployment, technical support for operations and maintenance, as well as professional services.

Nokia also noted that it operates global R&D facilities with thousands of engineers in Wroclaw and Krakow.

https://www.nokia.com/about-us/news/releases/2022/06/07/nokia-wins-ten-year-network-expansion-deal-with-orange-polska/

Wednesday, May 11, 2022

Orange France picks Ericsson for 5G converged charging

Orange France signed a five-year agreement with Ericsson for providing the monetization platform used by Orange France’s 5G subscribers.

The cloud-native Ericsson Charging solution will serve nearly 28 million of Orange France’s customers, roamers-in and private mobile radio users and 20 million IoT devices based on a container-based deployment using Ericsson Cloud Native Infrastructure Solution (CNIS). Ericsson Charging will be integrated with legacy business-to-consumer (B2C) and business-to-business (B2B) billing platforms.

Emmanuel Lugagne Delpon, CTO Orange France, says: “Ericsson Charging solution will provide us with advanced technology and the ability to accelerate our time to market for new products and services, delivering optimized operational costs, and improving our overall customer experience with real-time information.”

Franck Bouétard, head of Ericsson France, says: “Orange France wants to drive its evolution to a full converged charging system for their 5G network. The Ericsson Charging solution enables them to realize, create, and capitalize on new digital opportunities”.

  • In 2019, Ericsson was selected by Orange France as its Business Support Systems (BSS) provider for real-time online charging system to modernize and standardize charging systems for prepaid and hybrid users. 

Monday, February 28, 2022

Orange names its 5G Stand Alone vendors

Orange has chosen the following industrial partners for its 5G Stand Alone networks across Europe:

  • Ericsson’s 5G SA core network for Belgium, Spain, Luxembourg and Poland
  • Nokia’s 5G SA core network for France and Slovakia, and Nokia’s Subscriber Data Management for all countries
  • Oracle Communications for 5G core signaling and routing in all countries

For other network functions, in particular the radio, a software update of the existing equipment will be carried out.

Orange also announced plans for a Network Integration Factory to test and validate technical chains, the performance of end-to-end services and to conduct tests with users. The carrier expects 5G SA tests and trials in 2022, with commercial launches from 2023.

https://www.orange.com/en/newsroom/press-releases/2022/orange-selects-suppliers-its-5g-stand-alone-5g-sa-networks-europe

Saturday, January 29, 2022

Christel Heydemann to take charge as CEO of Orange

by Benedict Chua, Associate Editor

Orange’s Board of Directors, appointed Christel Heydemann as Chief Executive Officer, succeeding Stéphane Richard who served as chairman and CEO of the company since March 2011. Richard resigned in November, pending the appointment of a new CEO, following  a verdict reached by the Paris Appeal Court that found Richard guilty of the misuse of public funds. Heydemann will take over with effect from 4 April 2022.

Given the Board’s decision to separate the roles of Chairman and CEO, on the new Chief Executive’s arrival Stéphane Richard will continue in the role of Non-executive Chairman until a new Chairman is in post and at the latest until 19 May 2022, the date of Orange’s Annual General Meeting.

Christel Heydemann is currently Executive Vice President Europe Operations and a member of the Executive Committee of Schneider Electric. A graduate of the Ecole Polytechnique and the Ecole Nationale des Ponts et Chaussées, she began her career in 1997 at Boston Consulting Group. In 1999, she joined Alcatel where she was entrusted with a range of roles and responsibilities, specifically in the context of the merger of Alcatel and Lucent. In 2011, she was appointed to Alcatel-Lucent’s Executive Committee as Director of Human Resources and Transformation. In 2014, she joined Schneider Electric as the Director of Strategic Alliances and in April 2017 she was appointed as Executive Vice President of Schneider Electric France and subsequently Executive Vice President Europe Operations in May 2021.

Stéphane Richard commented: “I am delighted to welcome Christel Heydemann and wish her full success as CEO of Orange. Working alongside the Group’s employees, I am convinced that her personal and professional qualities will enable her to meet the challenges the future holds for the Group. Christel’s involvement as a Board member and her long experience at Alcatel and then Schneider Electric means she has an excellent understanding of the challenges and opportunities of the digital future and the critical role this will play in the decades ahead. I am certain that her vision, her pragmatism and her ability to bring out the best in every situation will be of enormous value to Orange. Finally, I would also like to thank Anne-Gabrielle Heilbronner and Bernard Ramanantsoa for their exemplary and rigorous work throughout the selection process in the best interests of the Group.”

Commenting on her appointment, Christel Heydemann said: “I would like to thank the Board members for their confidence. As a member of the Board for nearly five years, I have gained a solid understanding of the technological challenges and opportunities that lie before us. I know that these are significant, but it is equally a huge honour to be able to contribute to the development of one of the leading players in our industry and Orange will have my total commitment as we set about this task. I also know I can count, as my predecessor has been able to, on the dedication of all the company’s teams to see Orange through to success. I would also like to take the opportunity to thank my colleagues at Schneider Electric. These past seven years building a more durable world through technological innovation have been truly exciting and have further convinced me of the central role that digital will play in the transformation of our society.”

https://www.orange.com/


Wednesday, January 19, 2022

Orange reaches 6 million fiber customers in France

Orange connected its 6 millionth fiber customer in France this week.

2021 was an exceptional year for Orange in terms of fiber deployment. At the end of 2021, using its own funds and in partnership with local authorities, Orange had deployed fiber to 63% of the 29 million premises eligible for FttH in France. With a 20% increase in the number of premises in one year, France is now Europe’s leading country for fiber.

Fabienne Dulac, CEO of Orange France says "With 6 million customers, I am delighted about the widespread adoption of fiber. This result reflects the full mobilization of all the Orange France technical and sales teams and those of its partners across all our regions. Over half of all Orange internet customers in France now enjoy Fiber in the home or in their place of work. This success is based on our position as the leader in the deployment and our ability to connect 10,000 customers every day".

Orange Chairman and CEO, Stéphane Richard, said: "Orange and France gambled on optical fiber over ten years ago now. A gamble that has paid off as France is currently the leading European country for fiber with it now available to 70% of the country, a feat made possible in large part by the men and women at Orange who have already deployed 63% of the existing FttH lines. Every day, our employees and partners help to build the network we will use for the next 50 years".

https://www.orange.com/en/newsroom/press-releases/2022/orange-reaches-6-million-fiber-customers-france-and-confirms-its



Sunday, November 28, 2021

Ericsson and Orange test private 5G with ArcelorMittal in France

ArcelorMittal France, Orange Business Services and Ericsson will test private 4G/5G connectivity at ArcelorMittal's industrial sites in France over the next three years. 5G Steel will enable ArcelorMittal's plants, starting with Dunkirk, followed by Mardyck in Hauts-de-France and Florange in the Grand Est area, to deploy use cases requiring high-speed cellular connectivity.

The project is based on Ericsson's 4G/5G private cellular networks suited for advanced industrial use cases and high-risk sites and Orange Business Services’ integration and support expertise.

The 5G private network will cover all of ArcelorMittal's complex industrial sites, both outdoors and indoors. 

David Glijer, Director of Digital Transformation at Arcelor Mittal France, commented: "ArcelorMittal is firmly committed to its digital transformation and is positioning itself as a leader in the digitalization of the steel industry. In production, maintenance, logistics and development, digital technologies have already begun to transform our processes, increase the reliability of our operations and improve the comfort and safety of our teams. The opening of our two Digital Labs in Dunkirk and soon in Florange is another illustration of ArcelorMittal's desire to create an ecosystem at the crossroads of industry and digital."

Valérie Cussac, Executive Vice President, Smart Mobility Services, Orange Business Services, said: "We are delighted to support ArcelorMittal in its digital transformation project. Within the framework of 5G Steel, we have worked with a use case approach. The project is co-piloted with ArcelorMittal using an agile method based on the collective intelligence of technical and functional experts. In addition, thanks to our dual expertise as an operator-integrator, ArcelorMittal will benefit from this solid private network , allowing maximum and secure critical data performance and improved productivity."


Wednesday, November 24, 2021

Stéphane Richard steps down as Chairman and CEO of Orange

Stéphane Richard has resigned as Chairman and CEO of Orange. The company's Board of Directors has accepted his resignation pending the installation of a new governance structure in January. Richard is expected to continue in his role until 31 January 2022.

The resignation follows a verdict reached by the Paris Appeal Court that found Richard guilty of the misuse of public funds. The court announced a one year suspended prison sentence. Richard is expected to appeal the verdict.

In a statement, Orange's Board thanked Richard for his commitment at the helm of Orange for the past 11 years, from restoring an appeased working environment after the social crisis to the transformation of Orange into a leading multi-service operator in Europe and Africa. 


France Telecom Confirms Stephane Richard As Chairman and CEO

The Board of Directors of France Telecom formally confirmed Stephane Richard to the role of Chairman and Chief Executive Officer with effect from 1 March 2011. He replaces Didier Lombard, who has served in these roles since 2005.  

Stéphane Richard, 48, graduated from Ecole des Hautes Etudes Commerciales and Ecole Nationale d'Administration (ENA). In January 2003, Stéphane Richard was appointed as Executive Vice President of Veolia Environnement and Chief Executive Officer of Veolia Transport. From May 2007 to June 2009, Stéphane Richard was Chief of Staff for the French Minister for the Economy, Industry and Employment. Until 2007, he was a board member at France Télécom SA, UGC SA and Nexity SA. 
http://www.francetelecom.com

Thursday, November 18, 2021

Orange field tests the Nokia PSE-Vs super coherent optics

Orange has completed a network trial of the Nokia PSE-Vs, which are the digital coherent optics (DCO) powering the next generation of Nokia high-performance, high-capacity transponders, packet-optical switches, disaggregated compact modular and subsea terminal platforms. The PSE-V Super Coherent DSP (PSE-Vs) implements probabilistic constellation shaping (PCS) with continuous baud rate adjustment, and supports higher wavelength capacities over longer distances.

The trial was performed in real-world conditions using Nokia PSE-Vs super coherent optics in production-ready optical transport hardware, just 16 months after the lab prototype trial done on Orange’s live network.

Orange and Nokia demonstrated error-free performance at a data rate of 600Gbps over a 914km network between Paris and Biarritz, under challenging live network conditions. The fiber network consisted of 13 spans of Orange’s existing network, through multiple cascaded reconfigurable optical add/drop multiplexers (ROADM), using 100GHz WDM spectrum channels.  


Orange said this trial validates its network capability to increase its optical capacity to support end-to-end 400Gbps services across its network, and the ability to scale fiber capacity up to 600Gbps. 

Jean-Luc Vuillemin, Vice President of International Networks and Services at Orange, said: “With the booming market bandwidth requirement and need for scalability and flexibility, it is important that Orange continues to support an ever-greater network scale and new high-bandwidth services across our terrestrial and subsea global footprint.  

Validating super coherent optics with Nokia represents an important enabler for future-proof networks which will bring spectral efficiency and operational deployment flexibility to our customer solutions. Furthermore this technology will allow for power savings by nearly 50%, which is key to our objective of developing greener networks for our customers. ” 

James Watt, Head of Optical Networks Division, Nokia, said: “We are delighted to work with Orange in continued support of their network upgrade plans. With the introduction of the PSE-Vs super coherent capabilities across our entire 1830 portfolio, Nokia enables spectrally-efficient transport at 600Gbps over real-world long haul networks, and 400Gbps services over ultra long haul networks spanning multiple 1000’s of kilometers.”

https://www.orange.com/en/newsroom/press-releases/2021/nokia-and-orange-validate-performance-fifth-generation-super-coherent

Nokia debuts WaveFabric Elements: photonic chips, devices, subsystems

Nokia unveiled its WaveFabric Elements portfolio of photonic chips, devices and subsystems, including its fifth generation coherent digital signal processor family, the Photonic Service Engine V (PSE-V).
The company said its WaveFabric Elements address the demanding power, performance, and cost-per-bit requirements of 400G networking across data center, metro, core and subsea applications.

Nokia’s WaveFabric Elements portfolio combines digital signal processing (DSP) and optics technologies focused on emerging end-to-end 400G applications. The new, fifth generation coherent DSP family consists of multiple designs optimized for different optical networking applications, form factors, and platforms. These include:

  • PSE-Vs (super coherent), which can run up to 90 Gbaud and employ the second generation of Nokia Bell Labs-pioneered probabilistic constellation shaping (PCS). PSE-Vs are capable of transporting up to 800G, while providing 60% greater reach, 40% lower power per bit, and 15% greater spectral efficiency than previous DSP generations. 
  • PSE-Vc (compact), which enables programmable capacity from 100G to 400G with metro to long haul capability. Its extremely low power enables integration into a variety of pluggable transceiver modules.
The new DSPs are complemented by the CSTAR portfolio of coherent optical modules from its recent acquisition of Elenion Technologies. CSTAR leverages state-of-the-art silicon photonics and packaging technology, and addresses applications, including intra-data center, metro DCI and long-reach optical transport. In addition to pairing them with the new PSE-V DSPs within Nokia platforms, the company will sell them independently to industry partners for integration into pluggable transceiver modules available to the broader market.

The CSTAR family of optical engines is currently shipping to customers. PSE-V-based platforms and pluggables will be available beginning in Q4 2020.

Sam Bucci, Head of Optical Networks at Nokia, said: "Networks are truly at an inflection point, and 400G will be a catalyst for a significant transformation. With our WaveFabric Elements portfolio, Nokia is committed to supplying the 400G optical ecosystem with components, subsystems and design services, as well as continuing to build the highest performing optical transport solutions for the 400G era and beyond."



https://www.nokia.com/networks/technologies/pse-super-coherent-technology/

Sunday, November 7, 2021

Orange Concessions - the FTTH joint venture for rural France - is operational

Orange Concessions, the new company 50% owned by Orange and 50% owned by a consortium made up of La Banque des Territoires (Caisse des Dépôts), CNP Assurances and EDF Invest, is now operational.

Orange Concessions comprises 24 Public Initiative Networks (PIN), under contract with local authorities, in Metropolitan France and overseas territories. These networks ultimately represent over 4.5 million households connected to fiber, making Orange Concessions the leading infrastructure operator in rural France.

At the signing, Stéphane Richard, Chairman and CEO of Orange said: "By 2025, 30% of FTTH connections in rural areas of France will be operated by Orange Concessions. Over the past ten years, Orange has been the undisputed leader of this major infrastructure project in France. I am now delighted that long-term investors – recognized for their infrastructure expertise and their proximity to local authorities – have acquired a stake in Orange Concessions. Orange is more committed than ever to being the go-to partner for local authorities in their regional digital development projects."

Olivier Sichel, Deputy Chief Executive Officer of the Caisse des Dépôts and Managing Director of La Banque des Territoires said: "The target to reach 100% coverage by 2022 set-out in France’s Very High Speed Broadband plan requires the mobilization of everyone. By investing in Orange Concessions alongside CNP Assurances and EDF Invest, La Banque des Territoires continues to fight against regional exclusion, of which the digital divide is one possible cause. 

https://orangeconcessions.com/fr/

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Orange outlines its 5-year strategic plan - Engage 2025

Orange will sell off some key infrastructure and work with RAN-sharing partners while re-focusing on its core home broadband, mobile connectivity, and financial businesses in Europe, Africa, and the Middle East, under a new five-year strategic plan presented by company executives. In terms of FTTH infrastructure, Orange will continue to invest on its own in order to fulfill its commitments in medium-density areas (AMII) in France, while engaging...


Orange launches TOTEM, its European TowerCo

Orange officially launched TOTEM, its wholly-owned European TowerCo which will be operationally independent from the rest of the Orange Group.  

TOTEM will offer mobile infrastructure sharing offers to operators. It will also sell sell coverage solutions to improve connectivity in dense and enclosed environments: stadiums, underground stations, trains, offices, etc.

Orange has transferred all of its key European passive mobile infrastructure assets (sites, land, leases and leases to third parties) to TOTEM.

As of 1 November 2021, TOTEM’s passive mobile infrastructure portfolio includes over 26,000 sites in France and Spain, the two largest countries where Orange is present. TOTEM France will manage 18,500 macro-sites with a mix of 58% tower sites, 30% flat roofs and 12% in other locations. TOTEM Spain will manage 7,900 macro-sites, distributed equally between tower sites and flat roofs.

At launch, TOTEM has around one hundred employees in France based in seven cities (Lille, Nantes, Toulouse, Marseille, Paris, Lyon, Donges), around fifty employees in Spain based in eight cities, and approximately twenty people working for TOTEM Group.

Stéphane Richard, Chairman and CEO of Orange, said: “TOTEM’s operational launch is an important milestone in our European infrastructure strategy. The creation of this entity will allow us to derive value from our passive mobile infrastructure, for which we have exceptional operational expertise. By opening up these assets to other operators, we will optimize its use. We are determined to support TOTEM on both a strategic and financial level, to make it an undisputed leader on the European market and to keep control of this strategic asset as part of a long-term industrial vision. By retaining control of our infrastructure, we have made a crucial decision for our future growth.”

Nicolas Roy, CEO of TOTEM Group, said: “Launched first in France and Spain, TOTEM has become a new player for regional development in Europe. TOTEM will create value for all stakeholders - operators, landlords and real estate players, regional authorities, companies -, thanks to its connectivity solutions and equipment sharing. TOTEM’s teams will rely on the excellence of its mobile infrastructure and a thorough understanding of its customers’ needs to develop connectivity services everywhere, in both rural and urban locations.”

https://www.totemtowers.com