SEPTEMBER 8, 2008 -- Telecom Argentina, a leading Latin American service provider, has deployed Ciena Corp.'s (search for Ciena) CN 4200 FlexSelect Advanced Services Platform in an extensive DWDM upgrade and expansion of its optical network. Ciena partnered with Sofrecom Argentina, provider of information technology and services, to deploy the equipment in Telecom Argentina's network.
With more than 12,000 kilometers of fiber deployed throughout Argentina, Telecom Argentina provides fixed-line public telecommunications services, international long-distance services, data transmission and Internet services to residential and business customers, and operates one of the largest networks in the country. In recognition of its customers' evolving service requirements, the operator says it deployed Ciena's CN 4200 to support the development of advanced broadband and business connectivity services, including storage, by increasing available bandwidth on an as-needed basis.Â
"As a leading service provider in the country, Telecom Argentina is focused on the advancement of communications services within the country," contends MartÃn Wessel, transport engineering manager at Telecom Argentina. "In support of that initiative, we needed enhanced network flexibility and scalability to increase the number of cities in which our services are available and to transform the speed and simplicity of our service offering. With Ciena's CN 4200," he says, "we've implemented a multiservice aggregation and DWDM transport solution capable of creating, delivering, and managing scalable support for multiple service types, allowing us to compete more effectively and economically meet increasing traffic demand as our network requirements continue to evolve."
Additional network upgrade phases currently underway will extend Telecom Argentina's CN 4200 deployment to include Ciena's G10 and G10X Ethernet Service Modules. The modules will deliver Layer 2 Ethernet aggregation, switching, and transport capabilities as simple plug-and-play upgrades to CN 4200. Telecom Argentina will mainly utilize the modules to migrate its DSLAM infrastructure from ATM over SDH backhaul connections to Gigabit Ethernet in support of advanced communication services requirements, explain Ciena representatives. By integrating Layer 2 aggregation functionality into the transport network, Telecom Argentina will gain significant operational efficiencies and service creation capabilities by requiring fewer, more-centralized routers with better port utilization, as well as eliminate the need for deploying standalone Ethernet switches in most aggregation sites.
"Once Telecom Argentina deployed CN 4200 as a WDM overlay solution to increase fiber capacity, it became apparent that they could gain additional service and operational benefits with more integrated functionality on the same platform," reports Mike Aquino, senior vice president of worldwide sales at Ciena. "Ciena's combined packet-optical solution offers the operator an efficient migration strategy to a dynamic network that delivers high-value services with the performance requirements its end-users demand, and to be selected by one of the leading service providers in South America is a tremendous validation of our approach."
CN 4200 provides Telecom Argentina fully-programmable optical line cards and highly-efficient wavelength utilization, based on ITU G.709 OTN technology, by allowing grooming and aggregation of multiple service types on a single wavelength, claims Ciena. In addition, the operator's new next-generation, service-enabled architecture now supports legacy and new Ethernet and storage services with full transparency and optimum service flexibility.
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