The FINANCIAL — Alcatel-Lucent (Euronext Paris and NYSE: ALU) on September 7 announced it is taking a major step to help service providers create a true multi-vendor gigabit passive optical networking (GPON) infrastructure, by publishing its “OMCI Interoperability Implementer’s Guide – Version 1”.
Using this guide, optical network terminal (ONT) vendors will gain insights in Alcatel-Lucent’s ONT management and control interfaces (OMCI), which they can then integrate in their own terminals to interoperate with Alcatel-Lucent’s extensive, embedded base of GPON central office equipment.
Service providers will thus be able to benefit from a more competitive ONT environment and a huge choice of third-party ONT models working seamlessly with Alcatel-Lucent’s flagship GPON product, the 7342 ISAM FTTU. This will translate into faster time-to-market, fewer engineering constraints and a reduced need for interop events. For ONT vendors, this will mean new business opportunities and less OPEX by having less interoperability events.
“Alcatel-Lucent is taking a bold step by being the first GPON player to share its OMCI specifications with other vendors. Our goal is to encourage the adoption of fiber-to-the-home by breaking down interoperability barriers,” comments Dave Geary, President of Alcatel-Lucent’s wireline networks activities. “Alcatel-Lucent will shortly be publishing its OMCI Version-1, and is even prepared to go a step further – by making its full OMCI available to its partners on a case-by-case basis.”
Alcatel-Lucent is currently involved in over 95 FTTH projects worldwide, over 80 of which are with GPON. Additionally, Alcatel-Lucent’s GPON network has been deployed by a considerable number of utility companies as well as municipalities and regions around the world. In Gartner’s latest FTTH Magic Quadrant assessment1, Alcatel-Lucent was positioned in the leaders quadrant for the fiber-to-the-home space.
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