DZS Fiber Extension: Expanding the FTTH Experience

Fiber-to-the-Home (FTTH) deployments have become the gold standard for home connectivity.  Capable of delivering consistent, high-speed, low-latency services, FTTH is widely seen as the most effective and future-proof way to deliver the best broadband experience and performance to residential and business subscribers. The harsh reality, however, is that many FTTH deployments cannot reach or connect all customers within a deployment area for several reasons:

• Difficulties in obtaining access to the premises (multi-dwelling units, historical buildings, contractual constraints)
• Challenged business case for fiber to the specific location (too expensive to reach or to re-wire)
• Time-to-Market challenges (limited availability of deployment specialists, competitive pressure)

In some regions, especially among cooperatives, due to coverage requirements, providers MUST find a way to reach all subscribers in their service area with comparable services, no matter how expensive or disruptive. In all cases, the ability to optimize the balance between fiber coverage, service take-rates and the economics of deployment are key to the success of any fiber access buildout.

Savvy broadband service providers around the world are increasingly adopting a Fiber Extension strategy to optimize their fiber deployment business plan and network ROI. By utilizing standards-based Gfast technology to complement their fiber buildouts, they are able to deliver fiber-like gigabit speeds to dwellings over existing copper or coaxial infrastructure that is already in place; allowing the service provider to rapidly and affordably connect end users to gigabit services that are equivalent to direct fiber connections while maximizing new revenue streams, cutting costs and rapidly acquiring and retaining new customers.

Install quickly at the optimal locations for YOUR network

• No need for power connections
• Supports GPON and XGS-PON
• Gigabit service delivery within 150m/500ft over copper and double that over coax

A typical FTTH network topology consists of an Optical Line Terminal (OLT) deployed in a central office, or a remote terminal, connected by fiber through passive splitters to an Optical Network Terminal (ONT) in the home or business. The ONT converts broadband from an optical to an electrical Ethernet connection and is complemented by an integrated or separate residential gateway to handle the home network connectivity and provide Wi-Fi.

The challenge of getting that fiber to the home or business, especially if located in an MDU or spread far from its neighbor or any of a wide range of other hurdles, can be very daunting, expensive and time consuming. Challenges range from rights-of-way to directional boring to all sorts of restricted access issues. Any of these challenges can dramatically impact the economics of deployment to the potential subscriber and/or the time-to-market of service delivery and thus the ability of a subscriber to contribute positively to the overall business model.

On the other hand, fiber extension technology that utilizes the existing network infrastructure can immediately mitigate these challenges. Other key features can take fiber extension opportunities to a whole new level. Reverse-power, which allows the fiber-fed Distribution Point Unit (DPU) to be powered by the Gfast driven Network Termination Device (NTD) in the home/business, is an example of a game-changing feature in Fiber Extension technology. Since the power comes from the end user premises, the DPU can be deployed anywhere the operator finds most convenient – indoors, outdoors, on walls, on poles, even underground in handholes and vaults.   This is also done at the convenience of the service provider, not beholden to the timing of the power company which can often take weeks or even months to connect power to a remote DPU location, and charge handsomely to do so. Another key feature is compatibility with existing fiber networks. While some Fiber Extension solutions require their own management systems, the ideal solution is for the Fiber Extension technology to be recognized and managed like any other fiber-fed ONT in the system, dramatically simplifying operation and rapid deployment. Interoperability with OLTs from all major vendors ensures compatibility with operators’ existing PON networks. All these features are hallmarks of DZS Fiber Extension technology.

DZS customer, TDS Telecom, has been very successful in leveraging Fiber Extension technology across its 32-state footprint in the U.S. Predominantly used in MDUs passed by fiber, TDS was challenged to bring fiber to each MDU living unit due to high costs in rewiring each unit, tenant disruptions in rewiring, and long scheduling delays in getting access to both the MDU and each unit individually. TDS found DZS Gfast solutions are approximately 50% less costly than rewiring with fiber, cause little-to-no tenant disruption deploying within the MDU, and dramatically reduce scheduling delays from months to days. Vitally, they have found the service they deploy over this infrastructure to be completely transparent to the end user, matching all their key metrics for gigabit fiber deployments. The DZS solution also fits extremely well into their operational models, presenting itself as an ONT managed by OMCI like their existing GPON and XGS-PON deployments and enabling great deployment flexibility through its reverse power capabilities. They are now looking to expand their use to rural FTTH routes for both cost savings and deployment efficiencies.

Other service providers are also finding that Fiber Extension technology can yield significant savings in the cost and time of deployment, increasing ROI for the fiber network. One shared that the DZS reverse power feature is a major advantage as it eliminates the need for a dedicated power circuit and an accompanying power meter to support a DPU, which could cost up to $10,000 and take six months to deploy. In fact, with DZS Fiber Extension technology, in most situations operators have found they can have symmetrical gigabit services up and running in minutes.

Click here to view a recent webinar where TDS shared their experience in deploying DZS Fiber Extension to MDUs, or click here to learn more about DZS’ market-leading, fully interoperable fiber extension solutions.