Australia Japan Cable adds 40-Gbps capabilities via Ciena

Australia Japan Cable (AJC) will use the 6500 Packet Optical Platform from Ciena Corp. (NASDAQ: CIEN) to bump per-channel transmission rates to 40 Gbps, the systems provider announced today. The subsea cable system spans approximately 12,700 km between Sydney, Guam, and Japan.

The addition of coherent-enabled 40-Gbps transmission capability will increase the AJC’s total system capacity to 560 Gbps. Ciena says the technology is in place to increase per-channel transmission rates to 100 Gbps as well.

In addition to the increase in data rate, use of the 6500 Packet Optical Platform will also enable AJC to offer wholesale services based on Optical Transport Network (OTN) technology. AJC also will deploy Ciena’s OneControl Unified Management System to manage mission operations for rapid service turn-up, visibility through protocol layers for troubleshooting, and efficient use of assets and bandwidth.

“We selected Ciena after a stringent selection and trial process because of their demonstrable track record in deploying 40G coherent solutions for segments over 7,000 km in reach,” explained David Crofts, CEO of AJC. “The ability to expeditiously augment AJC’s existing capacity plus support OTN services from day one also played a key role noting the continually increasing data volumes carried by AJC.”

“Submarine networks carry the majority of all international traffic between continents, so they play a key role in addressing the global demand for bandwidth. Further, while Australia’s National Broadband Network (NBN) will certainly offer high bandwidth within Australia’s borders, the majority of traffic will come from overseas and it is for this reason that submarine networks are crucial to a country aiming to maximize the potential of the NBN,” added Anthony McLachlan, Ciena’s vice president and general manager, Asia Pacific.

For more information on high-speed transmission systems and suppliers, visit the Lightwave Buyers Guide.