GFiber and Nokia Experiment with PON Network Slicing Technology

Nick Saporito, the product manager of GFiber, stated that through the PON network slicing experiment in collaboration with Nokia, users may be able to independently regulate network performance like operators in the future, achieving a truly personalized broadband experience. This mature technology in the 5G field has been extended to the XGS-PON network for the first time. In the experiment, the bandwidth specifically reserved for game consoles was “sliced” to reduce latency from 90 milliseconds to 10 milliseconds even in the face of artificially created congestion.

Breaking the ‘one size fits all’ broadband model

With the widespread use of multi gigabit (up to 8Gbps/20Gbps) broadband by GFiber users, Saporito has raised questions: “Is a unified specification broadband pipeline still applicable? Can we allow customers to customize the network according to their needs?” This thinking has led to a recent PON slicing demonstration conducted in GFiber laboratory with Nokia. In the experiment, the technical team caused congestion on the local area network side, resulting in game latency skyrocketing to 90 milliseconds, and screen lag and pixelation. After enabling network slicing, the latency dropped sharply to 10 milliseconds, verifying the significant optimization effect of this technology on real-time applications.

Technology achieves lightweighting

Although network slicing is a core technology of 5G, GFiber and Nokia have successfully ported this technology to XGS-PON networks by adding proxy programs to their routers and pairing them with Nokia Optical Line Terminals (OLTs) that support slicing. Saporito emphasized that “this experiment did not adopt a complex approach.” Although a Nokia router was used for the demonstration, there are plans to integrate slicing functionality into GFiber’s own devices in the future.

Exploration of commercialization path

GFiber has not yet determined a commercial timeline, but its existing XGS-PON, 25G PON, and future 50G PON networks can all support this technology. A year ago, GFiber became the first operator in the United States to test the Nokia 50G PON platform. Saporito stated that this experiment is a fundamental step in understanding the potential of technology. At present, the team is brainstorming deployment plans, such as opening up “game mode” or “home office mode” through the GFiber application. The former allocates dedicated bandwidth for games, while the latter prioritizes ensuring smooth video conferencing.

Network Security and Future Scenarios

Saporito revealed that the team is researching network security applications, such as automatically triggering “transaction slicing” when users log in to financial institutions. In addition, if augmented reality (AR) or virtual reality (VR) live streaming becomes popular, slicing technology can also provide support. Nokia’s previous “end-to-end” slicing demonstration with Emirates Telecom e&also focused on gaming scenarios.

Industry competition for low latency technology

GFiber is not the only company that focuses on experience optimization. After launching trials in 2023, Comcast deployed low latency technology in its DOCSIS network in January of this year and plans to further promote it to fiber to the home (FTTP) networks. This technology can reduce work latency by 75%, and initially supports FaceTime, Meta mixed reality headset applications for all Apple devices, NVIDIA GeForce Now cloud gaming, and multiple games on the Steam platform.