Communications and information technology company Nokia early last month announced its plans to acquire US-based Distributed Access Architecture (DAA) solutions provider Gainspeed through Nokia’s virtual Converged Cable Access Platform (CCAP) product line, reports Nokia fixed networks business group president Frederico Guillen.

Gainspeed was founded in 2012 and is privately held, employing about 70 people. The planned transaction is expected to close in the third quarter of 2016, subject to customary closing conditions.

Guillen states that Gainspeed is widely regarded as the industry leader in DAA, which the cable industry has adopted as its next generation solution to address increasing capacity requirements.

“Gainspeed’s Virtual CCAP solution will strategically diversify Nokia’s product portfolio for cable access customers and expand Nokia’s footprint in this growing market,” states Guillen. He adds that, on closing of the planned transaction, Gainspeed will become part of Nokia’s Fixed Networks business group.

Guillen highlights that virtual CCAP enables cable operators to meet growing customer demand for high-speed data services and Internet Protocol (IP) video. With virtual CCAP, cable operators can increase the capacity of their existing hybrid fibre coaxial infrastructure and rapidly deploy new services, while simultaneously reducing space and power requirements in the headend, while, at the same time, Guillen states, customers can cost effectively migrate their networks to a software-driven, all-IP architecture.

With the acquisition of Gainspeed, Nokia will have an extendable and flexible platform that can host the future innovations of the cable industry, he says.

“We are very excited to have Gainspeed, the technology leader in its field, joining us. Cable is one of the fastest-growing areas in our fixed networks business, and we are committed to delivering a complete solution set to cable operators. Gainspeed’s virtual CCAP perfectly complements our leading fibre access solutions for cable multiple-system operators,” concludes Guillen.

Nokia’s Optical Communications Network
In a turnkey project, Nokia has delivered high-quality IP/multiprotocol label (IP/MPLS) switching and optical technology and services to Swiss electricity transmission system operator Swissgrid for the management of its electricity grid.

Nokia global enterprise and public sector, central Europe head Patrick Langelaan reports that Nokia has implemented two IP/MPLS-based networks, one an operational network and the other a business communications network. He adds that the networks are both overlaid on an encrypted dense wavelength division multiplexing and coarse wavelength division multiplex network, also from Nokia.

Langelaan states that supporting mission-critical operational services such as supervisory control and data acquisition systems, teleprotection, video surveillance by means of closed-circuit television, site access control and intrusion detection are vital. This will allow Swissgrid to maintain the highest level of reliability, safety and security across the entire grid, he explains.

The network, he highlights, also enables business communications between electricity substations and Swissgrid locations for tasks such as office local area network and Voice over IP in a highly secure way.

The “grid control network” is being operated by Swissgrid from two mission-critical grid control centres (data centres), which are interconnected through encrypted, redundant dense wavelength division multiplexing wavelength services.

Langelaan concludes: “Our leadership in IP/MPLS and in agile optical networking allows us to deliver a robust, resilient and intelligent network for Swissgrid that will drive new efficiencies in [the company’s] transmission network and meet the highest level of availability and security, which is essential in supporting smart grid applications.”