GCI, Alaska’s largest telecommunications provider, is the first company to successfully deploy the CommScope RD2322 RxD as a Remote MACPHY Device (RMD) into a service-providing network, announced CommScope on Thursday.
With the upcoming launch of the service in 19 Alaska communities, GCI will be among the nation’s leaders in 2 gig internet deployment.
The RD2322, which CommScope first announced in May, can be deployed as either a Remote PHY Device (RPD) or a RMD based on its software image. GCI deployed the RMD in its existing CommScope NC4000 fiber nodes by swapping the node lid, bringing a host of key advantages to the GCI network including a simplified, distributed access architecture (DAA), lower latency, greater headend efficiencies, and higher throughput.
CommScope’s end-to-end solution for Remote MACPHY includes the RMD, fiber nodes, video delivery, fiber, cables, and connectors, as well as back-office software to orchestrate, onboard, manage, and scale deployments. The RMD provides an evolutionary path for operators to transition from I-CCAP and Remote PHY to Remote MACPHY—an architecture with a clear path to DOCSIS 4.0 Extended Spectrum DOCSIS.
Victor Esposito, VP, Engineering, GCI
The deployment of RMDs paves the way for GCI’s launch of 2 gig internet in the coming months and our journey to 10G in the next five years. RMD technology also allows us to move internet distribution from the centralized headend out into neighborhood nodes, enabling GCI to provide more reliable, better quality, and higher performance service to our customers.
Ric Johnsen, SVP and Segment Leader, Broadband Networks, CommScope
We designed the RD2322 platform to cater to the broad needs of our operator customers—whether they’re going directly to Remote MACPHY, like GCI, or are choosing to start with Remote PHY. The RMD leverages over 20 years of field-hardened software as well as seamless integration with legacy back-office infrastructure to make this high-profile transition simple and reliable.
