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Nokia, nbn complete XG-FAST trials

October 18, 2016

Nokia and nbn have announced the successful completion of an XG-FAST trial that achieved throughput speeds of 8 Gigabits per second (Gbps) in lab conditions. The lab trial demonstrated the capability of XG-FAST to meet nbn’s future demands for high-quality Internet services using widely deployed copper infrastructure.

XG-FAST, a Nokia Bell Labs-developed extension of Nokia’s commercially available G.fast technology, enables service providers to generate fibre-like speeds of more than 10Gbps over short distances using existing copper infrastructure. With a significant proportion of nbn’s nationwide broadband network rollout being completed using existing copper networks, XG-FAST is being tested as a potential asset for future upgrades.

The XG-FAST trial conducted in nbn’s North Sydney-based lab facilities generated peak aggregate data throughput speeds of more than 8 Gbps over a 30-meter twisted-pair copper cable typically deployed in field. A 5Gbps peak aggregate speed was achieved over 70 meters of twisted-pair copper cable.

Dennis Steiger, CTO at nbn said: “Although XG-FAST is still in its very early stages of development, the lab trials we have conducted demonstrate the huge potential that the technology offers. XG-FAST gives us the ability to deliver multi-gigabit speeds over copper lines – virtually on a par with what is currently available on Fiber-to-the-Premises – but at a lower cost and time to deploy. We are really thrilled to be the third operator in the global market to run lab trials of XG-FAST, following in the footsteps of BT last year and Deutsche Telekom in February. This shows that nbn is committed to delivering Australians the best possible broadband experience on the nbn network.”

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