Intelligent CIO Europe Issue 19 | Page 10

NEWS Altibox consolidates hubs and delivers all-IP services to DOCSIS and cable customers N okia has announced that Altibox, one of the largest regional telecommunication operators in Norway and Denmark, will deploy its Gainspeed Unified Cable Access solution, based on a fully virtualised Distributed Access Architecture (vDAA). hub offices, realising significant real estate cost savings while simplifying network operations. By virtualising the headend and network functions, Altibox effectively pushes the digital portion out to the node, ensuring a better signal quality and experience for subscribers. The solution provides the network foundation needed for Altibox and its partner, Eidsiva Bredbånd, to deliver enhanced all-IP-based ultra-broadband services to residential and business customers. The deployment will enable Altibox and Eidsiva to significantly increase network capacity and establish a fully distributed and virtualised access architecture that can support new, competitive Gigabit and multicast IPTV services over longer distances. Altibox and its partner, Eidsiva Bredbånd, will begin deploying Nokia’s vDAA solution, including the Gainspeed Access Controller and compact form factor Gainspeed SC–1D Access Nodes, into its network in 3Q 2019. Nokia’s vDAA solution can flexibly accommodate backhaul through Altibox’s existing IP/ MPLS network, which will facilitate and expediate deployment. To effectively implement the changes required by the DOCSIS standard, Hybrid Fiber Coax (HFC)-based access providers will need to support IP-based services in an efficient way. With 20-30% annual IP data growth globally, cable operators are turning to software-driven, all-IP Distributed Access Architectures (DAA) to increase the capacity of existing HFC networks and improve signal quality. Distributed access architectures can also help reduce OPEX and the number of hub offices required by effectively virtualising the headend and network functions. Nokia’s Unified Cable Access solution is based on vDAA which delivers greater space and power savings, as well as superior architectural flexibility, compared to traditional DAAs. By moving the cable access layer functions in its headend and hub sites to the access nodes that sit closer to customers, Altibox and its partners can eliminate some of its legacy cable-specific hardware, dramatically reducing the amount of power, space and equipment required in the headend. Nokia’s vDAA solution will also enable Altibox and Eidsiva Bredbånd to significantly reduce the number of 10 INTELLIGENTCIO Jeff Heynen, Research Director, Broadband Access and Home Networking, Dell’Oro Group, said: “We expect spending on DAA to double between 2019 and 2020, as operators look to reduce their headend and hub sites while also improving the spectral efficiency of their outside plant. DAA’s benefits are clear and operators are now beginning multi-year projects to modernise their HFC networks to compete for the next decade.” Sandra Motley, President of Nokia’s Fixed Networks Business Group, said: “We are excited to be working with Altibox and its partner, Eidsiva Bredbånd, to build a flexible and powerful network that can deliver the additional capacity and reach the need to meet rising customer demand for ultra-broadband services. Our vDAA solution enables Alitbox and Eidsiva Bredbånd to maximise their HFC network and quickly move to an all-IP environment that has the flexibility and scale needed to support vast amounts of IP data traffic while simultaneously reducing operating and real estate expenses. This deployment demonstrates the continued momentum we see for our Gainspeed Unified Cable Access solution in Europe.” Teleste extends frame agreement with Stockholm Public Transport in Sweden T eleste Corporation has extended its frame agreement with Stockholm Public Transport (Storstockholms Lokal Trafik, ‘SL’) in Sweden. The agreement continues the cooperation between the parties that began in 2014 and it includes deployment of Teleste’s latest RGB LED and TFT LCD information displays to SL’s fleet at stations and platforms. Within the agreement, Teleste provides SL with its smart display technologies designed for the delivery of dynamic information across public transport ecosystems. “Our smart display technologies are designed to help operators meet one of today’s key public transport challenges: passengers need to get more and more information regarding their journeys at every step of their travel. We appreciate the opportunity to work with SL to provide its passengers with a smooth and attractive journey enabled by dynamic, real-time information and new digital services,” said Stig Waldemarsson, Director of VSI Scandinavia at Teleste Sweden. SL takes care of providing the citizens and visitors in the Greater Stockholm area easy access to a well-developed and reliable public transport system. With Teleste’s display technologies, SL will be able to increase the efficiency of the entire transport system and improve end-to-end journeys for the nearly 800,000 passengers travelling within the area daily by metro, buses, commuter trains and local trains. The display solutions include, for example, a 55-inch touch screen information pillar for delivering attractive travel planner services and weather information, as well as platform and multiline displays with integrated diagnostics, excellent visibility from all viewing angles and advanced features for showing information. www.intelligentcio.com