Last week at MWC in Barcelona, I had the pleasure of meeting up with Yoshitsugu Shimazu, Vice President of Innovative Technology Office, Technology Planning for NTT, at the IOWN Global Forum booth. Together with Dr. Katsuhiko Kawazoe, Representative Member of the Board, Senior Executive Vice President and Chief Technology Officer for NTT, and IP Infusion’s executive team, we continued our discussions and collaboration on the IOWN Network Solution to deliver the All-Photonics Network (APN).
Left to Right (Abhijeet Prabhune, Yoshitsugu Shimazu, Michi Uematsu, Kelly LeBlanc, Atsushi Ogata, Dr. Katsuhiko Kawazoe, Tommy Savoie)
During our discussions, Shimazu-san informed us that he would visit Fujitsu’s Open Networking Innovation Center in Düsseldorf, Germany. Launched by Fujitsu in December 2024, the lab is a global center for advancing open network innovation, fostering multi-vendor collaboration, and accelerating the adoption of scalable, energy-efficient networking technologies. Read the press release.
In this cutting-edge environment, IP Infusion will showcase its leadership in Open RAN xHaul and IP over Dense Wavelength Division Multiplexing (IPoDWDM) solutions, driving the advancement of sustainable, high-performance telecommunications and data center networks. As part of the showcase, IP Infusion’s flagship network operating system, OcNOS, will run on UfiSpace’s 25G/100G/400G white box platforms, including the S9600-56DX and S9510-28DC. These platforms are equipped with advanced 400G Open ZR+ coherent pluggables and integrated with 1FINITYOptical Line System (OLS), which contribute to the realization of the IOWN Open All-Photonics Network.
Strategically located in Düsseldorf, a major European technology hub, Fujitsu’s Open Networking Innovation Center provides a collaborative platform for service providers, technology vendors, and data center operators. This initiative enables participants to rigorously test multi-vendor interoperability, validate All-Photonics Network functionality, which includes the IOWN Network Solution, and explore innovative solutions that redefine the networking landscape.
NTT and IP Infusion announced the 400G IOWN Network Solution in September 2024, bringing together an ecosystem of partners including NTT, NTT Advanced Technology Corporation (NTT-AT), ACCESS, IP Infusion, Broadcom Inc. (Broadcom), Edgecore Networks Corporation (Edgecore), UfiSpace Co., Ltd. (UfiSpace), Fujitsu Optical Components Ltd. (FOC), and NEC Corporation (NEC). This solution allows customers such as data center operators and telecommunication carriers to construct simple and lower-cost inter-data center networks based on 400G ZR/ZR+ for high-speed and long-distance transmission. This will contribute to a 50% reduction in the construction and operation costs of the network equipment, a 40% reduction in power consumption, and rack space. Read the press release.
In December 2024, Shimazu-san joined IP Infusion’s Webinar channel to introduce the IOWN Network Solution along with Hideki Nishizawa, Senior Research Engineer, Supervisor for NTT. The complete Webinar is available here.
Now we are continuing our collaboration to advance the IOWN Network Solution with All-Photonics Network functionality for higher bandwidth such as 800G together with NTT and Fujitsu. Shimazu-san shared these photos of his visit to Fujitsu’s Open Networking Innovation Center in Düsseldorf to experience the global center for advancing open network innovation along with Yosuke Aragane, Vice President, IOWN Development Office from NTT, and Takashi Hisaizumi, Marketing Manager – Optical Network Business from Fujitsu.
Left to Right (Takashi Hisaizumi, Yosuke Aragane, Yoshitsugu Shimazu)
Left to Right (Yoshitsugu Shimazu, Yosuke Aragane)
We are proud to continue the momentum of Fujitsu’s Open Networking Innovation Center along with the IOWN Network Solution to increase the adoption of the All-Photonics Network. Here you can also watch my recent interview with Francois Moore, Optical Strategist for Fujitsu, when he announced the opening of the Open Networking Innovation Center in Düsseldorf.
Stay tuned for more updates on the IOWN Network Solution and All-Photonics Network as we continue to work with NTT, Fujitsu and the rest of our ecosystem to expand our features and performance. Next up we will be at the OFC conference in San Francisco, March 30 to April 3, 2025 and look forward to seeing you there.
Kelly LeBlanc is the Chief Marketing and Product Officer for IP Infusion.