HONG KONG - August 31, 2005 - Cisco Systems® today announced that Hong Kong Broadband Network (HKBN) is expanding its coverage and capacity with a Cisco IP Next Generation Network (IP NGN), using Cisco ROADM (Reconfigurable Optical Add/Drop Multiplexer) technology together with HKBN's existing ONS 15454 Multiservice Transport Platform (MSTP) optical core. Providing total network capacity approaching 2 Terabits per second, the Cisco ROADM technology will assist HKBN in achieving its goals of increasing the scope of its service offerings and expanding its network coverage to 80% of homes in Hong Kong.
IP NGN is a Cisco initiative to enable service providers to migrate to an IP-centric network. This will increase their ability to deliver innovative new services, improve their operational and capital expenditure efficiencies, and advance the network and service control that they and their customers need for long-term business success.
The first service provider to deploy Cisco's ROADM solution in Asia Pacific, HKBN was seeking a flexible and highly scalable DWDM (Dense Wavelength Division Multiplexing) solution to help reduce maintenance and support costs. Cisco ROADM gives HKBN a versatile and easy-to-maintain infrastructure, enabling the carrier to improve the quality of services delivered to customers in Hong Kong, and accelerate the deployment of new services.
"Unlike the standalone offerings from other companies, the Cisco solution gives us a completely integrated optical network that delivers ongoing CapEx and OpEx savings," said Ricky Wong, Chairman of HKBN. "The deployment of the Cisco solution further underpins our guarantee of 80% throughput for the 10 Mbps and 100 Mbps high-speed broadband service. It is also in line with our commitment to extending coverage to 80% of homes in Hong Kong and providing the region's fastest and the most innovative IP-based services."
The implementation of the ROADM solution on HKBN's network infrastructure will start at the end of August and finish by early October. Upon completion, HKBN's optical core will consist of multiple rings spanning the territory of Hong Kong. The new network capacity will be about 2 Terabits. This will allow faster and more flexible service deployment and maintain smooth operation as the number of customers increases.
ROADM technology, available on the Cisco ONS 15454 Multiservice Transport Platform (MSTP), is a networking advancement that brings SDH/SONET-like manageability to metro DWDM.
ROADM enables service providers to add, drop or pass through any combination of the available wavelengths by remote control without having to bring in DWDM experts on-site to manually configure or adjust node configurations. As a result, ROADM deployment offers service providers benefits such as operational simplicity, flexibility and lower operational costs. The technology also allows service providers to include Gigabit Ethernet and 10 Gigabit Ethernet anywhere in their networks. All currently installed Cisco ONS MSTP platforms are ROADM upgradeable.
"Cisco is delighted to enhance HKBN's optical network with ROADM. As a truly innovative triple-play network operator in Hong Kong, HKBN has been leading the industry with timely rollout of high-quality services. By deploying Cisco IP NGN and optical solutions, HKBN is set to further strengthen its market status, raise the industry's service quality benchmark and provide even better, faster services to its customers," said Fredy Cheung, Managing Director, Cisco Systems (HK) Limited.
About Hong Kong Broadband Network
Hong Kong Broadband Network (HKBN) is a wholly owned subsidiary of City Telecom (H.K.) Limited (NASDAQ: CTEL and HKSE: 1137.HK). Since HKBN's inception in 2000, it has become the largest alternative end-to-end residential broadband network in Hong Kong, with 500,000 subscriptions across its service offerings of voice, broadband and IP-TV. HKBN has committed to expanding its Metro Ethernet coverage from 1.2 million homes passed today to 1.8 million homes passed (80% of Hong Kong's homes) within the next 3 years. Information about HKBN can be found at http://www.ctihk.com.
