PON-based access networks are already supporting residential and non-residential customers and applications. Next-generation PON variants, such as 10G PON, are optimized to support future FMC (fixed-mobile convergence) needs as transport traffic (such as wireless backhaul) can be supported over the same PON infrastructure as end-user services. This approach saves fiber assets and operational costs, thereby achieving faster ROI. In addition, next-generation PON access networks will be future-proofed to support all enterprise services and smart city applications.
Figure 7 : Moving to a flat optical network for optimized efficiency
It’s important to note that this future transport network will not be a dumb pipe that is fully dependent on IP capabilities, but it will rely on end-to-end optical networking to ensure guaranteed user experiences. This has led to a major industry mind-shift in flattening the metro from the traditional five hops to one-hop optical access (see Figure 7). An underlying optical network—wavelength-division multiplexing (WD) and optical transport network (OTN)—that flattens the metro and backbone network with all-optical fiber, ensures guaranteed bandwidth, higher network resiliencies and reliability, and service-level agreement (SLA) assurance for vertical business services and home users.
End-to-end IP-based packet networking is the basis for true FMC network construction and provides fast service routing and switching capabilities. Network operators use IP ports to connect 5G RAN eNodeBs (base stations) with 10G or 25G interfaces to support 50G or 100G per ring and direct traffic to super-fast heavy-duty core routers via cloud metro aggregations. For edge computing and latency-sensitive applications, many use-case service centers will be near the edge and used in cloud metro for quick response time. An excellent example of such a service is an edge-distributed content delivery network (CDN). Segment routing removes the need for resource reservation protocol-traffic engineering. Moreover, the hardware and software of existing brownfield deployment routers require updates to support soft and hard slicing for many time-sensitive digital services. An all-optical network with smart protocols is a requirement for the gigabit society.