SK Telecom has partnered with Huawei for the deployment of its ASON (automatically switched optical network) solution on its 200G OTN (optical transport network) to meet growing demand for ultra-fast mobile broadband access. As the largest mobile operator in South Korea, SK Telecom has already deployed LTE and LTE Advanced to drive high network speeds.
The company plans to perform 5G tests before the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, as well as commercially trial mobile 3D imaging, ultra high definition video, hologram, and other emerging technologies. To prepare for widespread deployment of 5G and increase network capacity and performance, SK Telecom is planning to build a 5G-oriented high-speed backbone network. This network will drive the development of new services that require high bandwidth and seamless connectivity, while ensuring a smooth evolution to 5G.
According to Huawei, the solution, which enables 200 Gbit/s per wavelength, significantly increases network bandwidth, and allows for smooth future evolution to ultra-speed (1 Tbit/s) transmission networks. Based on the transmission distance, the solution allows SK Telecom to choose 16 QAM (quadrature amplitude modulation), 8QAM, or QPSK (quadrature phase shift keying). This flexibility helps the operator adapt to various transmission scenarios and supports future service development on Huawei programmable boards and universal boards. In addition, the OTN platform can be successfully integrated with multiple 2G, 3G, and 4G legacy backhaul networks that SK Telecom had previously constructed, simplifying SK Telecom networks and improving O&M efficiency.
Huawei said that the 200G backbone network also adopts the ASON structure and is fully meshed, which allows it to withstand multiple fiber cuts, enhancing network security and safeguarding SK Telecom's mobile services. Next-generation ASON uses unicast ASON to allow for a full range of video services, helping SK Telecom secure a lead in this growing business.
