In its recent analysis of the passive optical LAN (POL) marketplace, market-intelligence firm BSRIA stated that uptake of the technology would be bolstered by the entrance of a big-name player. It looks like the market now has that big-name entrant.
Nokia announced on April 5 that it offers a passive optical LAN system. “Based on proven and established Gigabit Passive Optical Network [GPON] fiber technology that is already serving millions of people worldwide, the solution requires, on average, 50 percent less space to deploy and power to run than traditional Ethernet-based LANs,” the company said when making the announcement. “Delivering virtually unlimited data capacity, it is also capable of supporting all video, voice and data requirements over a single fiber-optic cable.” It added that it is targeting customers including operators, enterprises, governments, healthcare and hospitality providers, as well as higher-education institutions, “all of which are seeking a more-cost-effective way to deploy their local area networks.”
Nokia pointed to its recent success deploying passive optical LAN systems for the Japanese hospitality industry, where it teamed with systems integrator KDDI “to manage the growing communication demands” in that country. “To better serve customers around the world, Nokia is collaborating on the launch with global systems integrators, resellers and distributors including IBM and KDDI.”
Key components of the Nokia passive optical LAN system are the following GPON elements.
- 7360 ISAM FX high-capacity fiber platform (pictured)
- 7368 ISAM ONT fiber termination points
- 5571 POL command center (PCC) intuitive management system
“New solutions for enterprise LAN are needed due to growing capacity needs, management complexity, network maintenance and high upgrade costs,” said Federico Guillen, president of Nokia’s fixed networks business group. “Passive optical LAN provides a viable, simple and cost-effective alternative, and will accommodate the evolving connectivity needs of organizations today and in the future.”
Erik Keith, principal analyst for broadband networks and multiplay services at Current Analysis, stated, “We’ve seen interested in POL increase dramatically over the past few years as enterprises around the world have come to realize the substantial service delivery and operational efficiency advantages that POL architectures provide over Ethernet-based LANs. We expect to see accelerated momentum in the POL space as Nokia and other major vendors enter the market and provide compelling, future-proof alternatives to the existing Ethernet LAN model.”
As part of its POL system launch, Nokia published a document titled “Build a LAN that exceeds expectations.” Within that article the company explained, “Our passive optical LAN solutions … allow businesses, governments, hospitals, hotels, real estate developers, and universities to reduce costs by deploying one simple network; add capacity to boost business performance; improve mobile connectivity for all users.”