Openreach is bringing Ciena’s latest coherent optical kit into its Optical Spectrum Extended Access portfolio, aiming to give U.K. wholesale customers more scalable capacity for data center, cloud, subsea and critical infrastructure use cases.
The deployment uses Ciena Waveserver platforms powered by WaveLogic 6 1.6 Tbps coherent technology. Openreach said the upgrade supports 400G and 800G client traffic over dedicated 1.6 Tbps wavelengths, with a 2RU chassis that can handle up to 32 400G services.
For Openreach, the move expands its high-capacity wholesale toolbox and introduces national 800G services for the first time. The company is targeting customers that need diverse fiber routes across the U.K., including links between data centers, private cloud networks, cable landing stations and core network sites.
Openreach positioned the rollout as part of its broader digital infrastructure push, pointing to rising demand from AI applications, cloud services, online content and international subsea traffic. Ciena is also providing managed services support to help deploy, monitor and maintain the OSEA optical product.
Read the full press release here.