Corning will provide up to 20 million kilometers or 12.4 million miles of optical fiber each year from 2018 through 2020, with a minimum purchase commitment of $1.05 billion.
Verizon has been reinventing its network architecture around a next-generation fiber platform that will support its businesses. This new architecture is designed to improve Verizon’s 4G LTE coverage, speed the deployment of 5G, and deliver high-speed broadband to homes and businesses.
“Corning’s combination of capabilities delivers solutions that provide us with performance and cost advantages as we continue to expand our network coverage and capacity,” said Roger Gurnani, chief information and technology architect at Verizon.
As part of the initial deployment, Verizon launched One Fiber in Boston in 2016 and plans to invest $300 million over six years to deploy it throughout the city.
Verizon said it identified a shortfall in fiber supply.
“Securing the required volume of optical fiber and hardware solutions with Corning will ensure we meet our planned rollout schedules,” said Viju Menon, chief supply chain officer of Verizon.
Meanwhile, Corning plans to expand capacity and invest more than $250 million in its optical fiber, cable and solutions manufacturing facilities. Corning expects its capacity expansions will begin to come online in 2017 and become operational in 2018.
Verizon hires former Ericsson CEO Hans Vestberg
Verizon earlier announced a new operating structure focused on three areas: Media and Telematics, Network and Technology, and Customer and Product Operations.
Hans Vestberg, former CEO of Ericsson, joined the company as executive vice president for Verizon’s new Network and Technology team. Vestberg will be responsible for developing the architecture of Verizon’s fiber-centric networks.
Hans Vestberg will be developing the architecture for Verizon’s fiber-centric networks. Network and Technology will focus on delivering seamless network experiences for customers, whether on wifi, fiber, 4G, 5G or future technologies.
Verizon’s network assets consist of LTE network, the largest 5G test-bed in the U.S., the nation’s biggest residential fiber network, a global internet backbone and undersea cable network for carrying internet traffic, and fiber assets in 45 of the top 50 markets in the U.S. through the acquisition of XO Communications.
