Huawei, a leading global information and communications technology (ICT) solutions provider, and Swisscom, a leading global communication service provider, today jointly announced the successful upgrade of Swisscom's Optical Network for all IP-Transport Services (SONATE) to 100G, ensuring a superior experience of ultra-broadband services.

SONATE; the pan-Swiss, next generation, WDM-based network ready for all IP, was deployed by Huawei in 2009. Mobile broadband, fixed broadband, and data center services are growing rapidly, with a significant increase in mobile broadband traffic, which doubled in 2012. To deal with the ever-growing demand for bandwidth, Swisscom developed SONATE, with a long term perspective of having the network architecture ready for the next decade. Based on the end-to-end OTN (optical transport network) spanning from access to backbone, SONATE is expected to provide a future-proof access bandwidth of 1 Gbit/s per base station and 10 Gbit/s for FTTH.

This upgrade has seamlessly  expanded SONATE's backbone network from 10G (800 Gb/s transport capacity) to an industry-leading 100G (8 Tb/s transport capacity), with the upgraded network operating stably since October 2012. Huawei's 100G solution uses cutting-edge technologies such as coherent WDM, HD/SD-FEC, and OTN. Line technologies such as coherent WDM and HD/SD-FEC guarantee the compatibility of 100G signals with the legacy network, allowing for smooth capacity expansion and protecting infrastructure investment. They also help deliver high performance for ultra-long-haul 100G transmission, reducing the need for optical amplifiers and regenerators. 100G OTN implements the switching and grooming of multi-granularity services in a large pipe, assuring the bandwidth efficiency of a 100G system.

"The SONATE leads the industry by offering ultra-broadband, OTN to the edge, and multi-service transport. With this super-large 100G pipe, bandwidth-on-demand is no longer a dream," said Jack Wang, president of Huawei's transport product line.

Huawei is a pioneer in the transport network field and has deployed 100G networks for more than 70 operators worldwide. According to consultancy firm Ovum, Huawei ranked No. 1 in the global optical network, WDM/OTN, 100G and 40G network markets, as of Q4 2012.