Nokia and GFiber Labs set new milestone for broadband access with 20 Gig service

• GFiber Labs uses Nokia’s 25G PON solution to deliver 20 Gig service to residential and enterprise customers with existing fiber network.
• University of Missouri-Kansas City (UMKC) and United Way of Utah County along with select residential customers among first to use 20 Gig service.

Espoo, Finland – Nokia today announced that Google Fiber is deploying Nokia’s 25G PON solution to enhance its existing fiber network and deliver a new 20 Gig broadband service to customers through GFiber Labs. Using Nokia’s 25G PON solution, GFiber can provide broadband speeds that are up to 10x faster than what most fiber networks can deliver today.  

In today’s digital landscape, demand for high-speed broadband access is at an all-time high with end-users increasingly seeking multi-gigabit, low latency services to power their homes, businesses and life. From supporting AI, cyber security, and bandwidth-hungry applications like Virtual Reality to ensuring that large data transfers can be made in seconds, users want multi-gigabit services that can evolve with their broadband needs and deliver the ultimate user experience.    

Nokia’s 25G PON fiber broadband solution allows GFiber to establish a future-ready network that can immediately address the growing demand for more capacity and enhanced broadband services. GFiber Labs is currently using this technology to deliver 20 Gig services to UMKC and United Way of Utah County and will be available to select residential customers by the end of the year. Nokia’s 25G PON solution enables GFiber to reuse its existing optical fiber cables and active equipment deployed in their network to quickly deliver a 20 Gig symmetrical broadband service to customers.   

Liz Hsu, Senior Director, Product & Billing at Google Fiber, said: “The age of multi-gig broadband services is here and we’re committed to ensuring all of our customers can benefit from the incredible potential it brings. We believe investments in advanced network technologies like Nokia’s 25G PON solution will help catalyze change, drive innovation and revolutionize the user experience. We’re thrilled to be working with Nokia to move our industry and customers forward.”  

Geert Heyninck, General Manager of Broadband Networks at Nokia, said: “It’s an exciting time to be a Google Fiber customer as we work to help them usher in a new era of connectivity that’s capable of delivering lightning fast 20 gigabit services. With our 25G PON solution Google Fiber can reuse its existing fiber network to quickly and cost effectively deliver the next generation of gigabit services to their customers. We’re proud to continue supporting Google Fiber on its quest to build the foundation of tomorrow’s internet.”   

Julie Kunstler, Chief Analyst, Broadband Access Intelligence Service at Omdia, said: “This announcement highlights the momentum we are starting to see for 25G PON. With a robust ecosystem, 25G PON can be a natural fit for those operators that want to pursue higher-revenue customers and applications. Because you can use the same underlying infrastructure as FTTH, this means more revenues without expensive new network builds or additional operational costs.”

Nokia 25G PON details

• As 25GPON will drive new and exciting applications, GFiber’s introduction of Nokia’s Lightspan and Altiplano solution increases service agility with operational efficiency. The fiber access node supports multiple fiber technologies including GPON, XGS-PON, 25GS-PON and Point-to-Point Ethernet to deliver a wide range of services with the best fit technology.