Is anyone using 800G today?

 

The short answer is yes. With various generations of coherent technology on the market, including 400G-capable, 600G-capable, and with 400G coherent plug-in modules expected to be commercially available in the near future, one may wonder how many operators are actually deploying the WaveLogic 5 Extreme programmable 800G solution today.

In fact, in just over nine months since it was commercially available, Ciena has shipped over 6,000 coherent modems to over 75 customers around the world who are in various stages of actively deploying WaveLogic 5 Extreme on their networks.

What’s interesting is that these deployments are truly global and span both terrestrial and subsea applications. The map below visualizes the distribution of 800g modems across various regions. North America dominates as the region with the highest early adoption rate, accounting for nearly 40% of shipments. This is followed by Asia Pacific at around 30%, with India, New Zealand, Australia and Japan experiencing numerous subsea cable upgrades and expansions. A quarter of early adopters are based in the EMEA region, also accounting for around 25% of shipments, with CALA completing distribution at around 5%.

 

Who are the early adopters?

As we mentioned earlier, customers are increasing their demands on their optical networks in many different ways. This is reflected in the diversity of network operators using WaveLogic 5 Extreme. This is not just one type of customer, but also includes service, cloud and content providers, subsea operators, and research and education network providers. These are all carriers that require high-capacity connectivity and want to get the most out of their deployed fiber.