PRESS RELEASE: ZTE Corporation has unveiled a 50G PON & 10G GPON & GPON three-mode Combo PON product solution at Mobile World Congress(MWC) 2023.

The solution, featuring an independent wavelength stacking mechanism to support three generations of PON technologies (GPON, 10G PON, and 50G PON), shares the same ODN and the same platform, solves the problems such as high construction costs, large space occupation in central offices, complex optical fiber cabling, and difficult O&M during the evolution from GPON to 10G GPON and then to 50G PON, and helps operators rapidly and flexibly provision high-bandwidth services, simplify network construction and reduce deployment costs. It inherits and develops the Combo PON concept, and is another innovation in the smooth evolution from GPON to 50G PON.

Global operators have accelerated the pace of upgrading from GPON to 10G GPON, and 10G GPON has entered into a large-scale commercial deployment stage in recent years. By providing bandwidth five times higher than 10G GPON and precision features including ultra-high bandwidth, low latency, and low jitter, 50G PON meets the requirements for ultra-high bandwidth access of homes and enterprises, deterministic network construction in enterprise campus and mobile xHaul application scenarios, and effectively improves bandwidth quality, network quality, and service experiences.

For an architecture design in support of smooth migration to 50G PON in the future, China Telecom took the lead in initiating the G.9805 Amd1 research project at the ITU-T SG15 plenary session held in September 2022, and was first to propose the technical architecture and solution based on the GPON/XG(S)-PON/50G PON three-mode MPM optical module, which supports the coexistence and smooth migration of three generations of PON technologies including GPON, XG(S)-PON and 50G PON.

ZTE has been actively investing in and continuously advancing the standardization and industrialization of 50G PON to promote the development and maturity of next-generation optical access networks. The 50G PON&10G GPON&GPON three-mode Combo PON product solution unveiled by ZTE fully meets the three-generation PON system coexistence solution proposed by China Telecom based on the three-mode MPM optical module. In the network upgrade process, it does not need to adjust the ODN, or change the existing OLT configurations and user service data, thereby helping operators deploy networks as per demand and migrate networks smoothly.

Meanwhile, the solution integrates the 50G PON, 10G GPON, GPON, and optical multiplexer functions in the same optical module without requiring extra devices or occupying additional room space, which greatly saves the types of line cards and simplifies maintenance and management. In addition, the solution uses the wavelength division mode, automatically matches the 50G PON channel, 10G GPON channel, and GPON channel with different types of ONUs, and inherits the existing OSS provisioning process.

By using this solution, the service provisioning flow remains unchanged while both the service provisioning and the cutover get easy. The three-mode Combo PON solution is applicable for the broadband network upgrade and reconstruction, greenfield, and MSOs’ fiber transformation scenarios. It is a highly applicable cost-effective solution that allows for continuous bandwidth upgrade and migration of FTTx networks.

As a technical leader in the optical access field, ZTE has been committed to consolidating basic capabilities, continuously strengthening technical innovation, and providing high-quality solutions, products and services to global customers.

ZTE’s FTTx solutions and products have been commercially deployed by more than 300 operators in over 100 countries. According to the latest report from the consulting firm Dell’Oro Group, ZTE ranks second in the global FTTx market share.