Nokia, a leading technology innovator, has unveiled a groundbreaking addition to its Gigabit Connect portfolio, announcing plans to incorporate a MoCA Access solution. This strategic move is aimed at empowering cable operators with enhanced capabilities to reach customers residing in multi-dwelling units (MDUs) where fiber deployment poses significant challenges.
What sets Nokia apart is its pioneering integration of Fiber-To-The-Home (FTTH) and MoCA Access solutions, effectively bridging the gap between the two technologies. By incorporating MoCA, Multiple System Operators (MSOs) can now extend multi-gigabit services over existing coaxial cables within MDU buildings where fiber installation proves impractical. Moreover, this advancement extends to coax-wired commercial spaces such as hotels and hospitals.
The motivation behind this move stems from the ongoing industry shift toward fiber optics, prized for its superior performance, scalability, and reliability. However, the complexities involved in deploying fiber within MDUs — ranging from construction hurdles to coordination with building stakeholders — render the process cumbersome, costly, and time-consuming for operators. In many older MDUs, structural limitations and cable routing make fiber installation an insurmountable challenge.
Nokia’s Gigabit Connect solution marks a pivotal shift, enabling operators to seamlessly blend fiber and MoCA Access to cater to MDU subscribers. This innovative solution leverages the existing coax infrastructure, intertwining MoCA with the FTTH network, and streamlining management into a singular system. Notably, MoCA facilitates the coexistence of legacy services like terrestrial, satellite, cable TV, and DOCSIS.
Industry experts echo the significance of Nokia’s stride. Jeff Heynen, Vice President at Dell’Oro specializing in Broadband Access and Home Networking, emphasizes the pivotal role MoCA plays in enabling cable operators to extend services to MDUs cost-effectively.
Geert Heyninck, Nokia’s Vice President of Broadband Networks for Fixed Networks, underscores the importance of MoCA in connecting customers to gigabit speeds, particularly in challenging building environments. This addition to the Gigabit Connect solution reflects Nokia’s commitment to accelerating fiber deployment and effectively addressing locations where traditional fiber installation remains unfeasible or financially impractical.
Nokia’s strategic partnership with InCoax to integrate MoCA into its Gigabit Connect solution heralds a new era in connectivity. Initial product offerings include a one-port indoor/outdoor DPU serving up to sixteen subscribers, self-installable modems, and a passive splitter/combiner to facilitate legacy service coexistence.
The Gigabit Connect MoCA solution promises a symmetrical 2Gbps subscriber experience with minimal latency across point-to-point and point-to-multipoint deployments. Nokia’s Altiplano Access Controller consolidates management, offering operators a unified network interface.
