euro news_news 26/02/2014 18:18 Page 7
Alcatel-Lucent, BT achieve
1.4Tb/s speed record
lcatel-Lucent and UK telco
BT have revealed trial
speeds of up to 1.4Tb/s with
a record spectral efficiency of 5.7
bits per second per Hertz (b/s/Hz)
on an existing core fibre
connection. This is believed to be
the fastest speed
ever achieved in
commercial grade
hardware in a realworld environment
and is equivalent to
transmitting 44 HD
films in a single
second.
The field trial,
conducted over an
existing fibre link
between the BT Tower
in London and BT’s
Adastral Park research
campus in Suffolk,
used a new ‘flexible
grid’ infrastructure
(Flexgrid) to vary the
gaps between
transmission
channels, usually set
at 50Gigahertz (GHz).
By increasing the
density of channels on
the fibre, this
approach achieved up
to 42.5% greater data
transmission
efficiency compared to
today’s standard
networks.
The trial
demonstrated that use
of the Flexgrid
approach can increase BT’s core network
capacity using existing optical fibres,
potentially reducing the expense of
laying more fibre as bandwidth demands
grow. This could allow BT more easily to
scale its core network capacity to meet
consumer and business demands for
more bandwidth-hungry services such as
streaming video, whilst more efficiently
using its existing core fibre
infrastructure.
The pair say that Flexgrid is the key
to creating high-capacity, spectrally
efficient super channels. The super
A
channel is ‘alien’ because it operates
transparently on top of BT’s existing
optical network. Alien Wavelengths allow
telcos such as BT to introduce new
features and technology without the need
to update the existing optical transport
infrastructure.
According to Neil J
McRae, chief network
architect at BT,
investing for the
future is core to BT’s
strategy, with the
“outstanding”
achievement
demonstrating that BT
could easily introduce
new features and
technologies across its
core network
maximising the
efficiency of its
existing infrastructure.
Dr Tim Whitley,
BT’s MD of research
and innovation, noted
that BT had a long
history of leading
innovation in
telecommunications,
from the earliest days
of the electric
telegraph to today’s
global fibre networks.
“These trials continue
that tradition, as we
work with AlcatelLucent to push the
boundaries of fibre
technology, allowing
us to support the ever
increasing bandwidth
required by our customers, and deliver
new and exciting services which rely on
fast, data-hungry applications”
Cormac Whelan, CEO, Alcatel-Lucent
UK and Ireland, said that BT and
Alcatel-Lucent continued to work
together to use innovation from Bell
Labs, Alcatel-Lucent and BT Research
and Development to move the industry
forward and meet the ever evolving
needs of the marketplace. “These trials
represent another step forwards by BT
and Alcatel-Lucent in this continual
evolution.”
SES, Eutelsat settle
28.5° dispute
F
ollowing a long-running dispute,
satellite operators SES and Eutelsat
have concluded a series of
agreements concerning the right to
operate at the 28.5° East orbital position
and containing long-term commercial as
well as frequency coordination elements.
The first agreement ends an arbitration
procedure initiated in October 2012. The
dispute concerned a right to use 500 MHz
spectrum at the 28.5° East orbital position.
Eutelsat ceased to operate this spectrum
in October 2013 and SES has operated this
spectrum since then. The dispute over this
right of use has now been resolved, with
SES continuing to operate its satellites at
this location, and Eutelsat independently
commercialising part of the capacity of the
previously disputed frequencies.
Under the second agreement, Eutelsat
has contracted long-term satellite capacity
on the SES satellite fleet at the 28.5° East.
Eutelsat will sell in Europe the SES fleet 125
MHz (eight transponders) of the formerly
disputed 500 MHz spectrum. Eutelsat will
also commercialise on the SES fleet the 250
MHz (12 transponders) which was not the
subject of the legal proceedings.
The 20 transponders will be operated
on three new satellites which SES is
deploying at the 28.2/28.5°East
neighbourhood - ASTRA 2F, ASTRA 2E and
ASTRA 2G - of which the first two have
been launched and are operational, while
the third is planned for a launch later this
year.
The third agreement between the two
companies addresses technical frequency
coordination under the rules of the
International Telecommunication Union
(ITU).
"The agreements with Eutelsat create a
secure framework for operations in major
broadcasting and data markets in Europe,
Middle East and Africa," said Romain
Bausch, President and CEO of SES. "They are
beneficial for our whole industry and, above
all, for our customers and end users as
they experience optimal satellite services."
Michel de Rosen, chairman and CEO of
Eutelsat, said that Eutelsat and SES had
taken a pragmatic and business-like
approach to reaching the settlement, with
the agreements enabling each company
independently to expand its commercial
activity in a competitive environment.
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