By T. Neel, Alloptic
One of the key challenges to Internet protocol (IP) video in the past has been the large amount of bandwidth needed to deploy it. Optical fiber is recognized as the most effective means for transporting voice, video, and data traffic; however, it is expensive to deploy and manage point-to-point (PP) fiber connections between every subscriber location and the central office. Ethernet passive optical network (EPON) is an emerging broadband fiber infrastructure that addresses the high cost of PP fiber solutions. Gigabit EPONs were also developed to address the shortcomings of asynchronous transfer mode passive optical networks (APON), which are inappropriate for the local loop as they are complex and expensive and lack sufficient video capabilities and bandwidth capacity. EPONs provide greater service capabilities and higher bandwidth at reduced costs. Though EPONs are in the early stages of development, they figure to become the primary means for delivering converged video, voice, and data over a single optical access system. This paper discusses the benefits, features, and technological foundation of EPON, in comparison with APON, as the best alternative end-to-end architecture for IP video.