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UNH-IOL Preps Industry for G.fast CertificationThe University of New Hampshire InterOperability Laboratory (UNH-IOL (News - Alert)), an independent provider of broad-based testing and standards conformance services for the networking industry, today announced at the Broadband World Forum extensive support for the ultra-fast broadband standard, G.fast, including an ongoing G.fast Certification Beta Program prior to the official program launch in 2016, a growing G.fast Consortium, one of the first public demonstrations of G.fast interoperability to deliver 4K Ultra HD TV, and an upcoming seventh G.fast plugfest in November. At the Broadband World Forum, UNH-IOL Senior Engineer Lincoln Lavoie (News - Alert) will speak to how G.fast and G.fast certification support the recently announced Broadband Forum 20/20 Vision. He'll present on the topic, The Impact of G.fast on the Wider Network, during the session, Interoperability for G.fast across the Network, on 21 October 2015 at 14:00 BST inside the exhibition floor Access Zone. The UNH-IOL's booth is located within the Broadband Forum's (News - Alert) Interoperability Pavilion (D20). Service providers are supporting G.fast because it can significantly reduce the cost of the last-drop into a home or business, as compared to an all-fiber deployment. They are looking for certified assurances that customer premise equipment (CPE) and demarcation point unit (DPU) devices will interoperate correctly, lowering testing, rollout and troubleshooting costs. The high throughput of G.fast also promises to boost customer satisfaction, thus reducing churn and driving revenue. Ensuring interoperability of CPE and DPU devices is critical to maintaining satisfactory customer experiences. Additional conformance testing ensures that products deliver the performance required to maintain a high level of customer satisfaction. G.fast Consortium, Certification Beta Program, Plugfests and White Paper Selected in 2014 as the Broadband Forum's first and only official test site for the G.fast Certification Program, the UNH-IOL launched the G.fast Consortium a year ago to nurture a vibrant ecosystem of manufacturers and support the accelerated adoption of the G.fast standard by service providers. As with similar UNH-IOL programs, membership in the G.fast Consortium benefits manufacturers by giving them access to a certification program that service providers are including in their RFP requirements. The formal G.fast Certification Program, which will be housed at the UNH-IOL, is currently on target to launch during the first half of 2016 with the first certified devices also expected in 2016. However, to date, more than a dozen Broadband Forum member companies, including CPE and DPU manufacturers and chipset companies, are already engaged in the G.fast Certification Beta Program, debugging issues early on and preparing the test plan, interoperability test bed, and first devices to be certified. In addition to ensuring that all testing is completely accurate, the G.fast Consortium is also developing in-house automation software that will keep testing times short for member companies after launch. "We're grateful to our Beta Program participants, who are helping to ensure that the official G.fast Certification Program will provide the best possible quality right from the start," said UNH-IOL Senior Engineer Lincoln Lavoie. "We'd also like to encourage all G.fast stakeholders to contact us now to get a head start on prepping their products and scheduling testing in advance of the formal program launch." Multiple vendors already have engaged in a series of six G.fast chipset interoperability plugfests, which began in January 2015. The next plugfest, scheduled for November 2-6, will involve updated software and firmware developed by participants during the past several months. To help companies interested in certification going forward, the UNH-IOL has produced a downloadable white paper on the topic, "G.fast Certification Test Setup & Calibration." G.fast Interop (News - Alert) Demo at Broadband World Forum The UNH-IOL is also leading one of the first public demonstrations of G.fast interoperability with multiple vendors. The live exhibit is taking place at the Broadband Forum's Interoperability Pavilion at the Broadband World Forum. This demonstration verifies interoperability between systems vendors using the chipset from Sckipio Technologies, showing the high-bandwidth, low-latency capabilities of G.fast to deliver exciting new applications and services, such as 4K Ultra HD TV. The demonstration will include multiple CPE devices connected to each DPU, and also will show the vectoring - or crosstalk cancellation - capabilities of G.fast. This demonstration marks a significant milestone in G.fast interoperability testing, but it is only the first step, as the official G.fast Certification Program is being designed to prove true any to any interoperability. "The Broadband Forum's Interoperability Pavilion will showcase a number of technologies, including GPON, VDSL2, TR-069 and G.fast. We are delighted to welcome our partners at the UNH-IOL and applaud their progress toward G.fast testing that will deliver the range of certified products that the industry expects," said Robin Mersh, CEO of the Broadband Forum. About the UNH-IOL Founded in 1988, the UNH-IOL provides independent, broad-based interoperability and standards conformance testing for data, telecommunications and storage networking products and technologies. Combining extensive staff experience, standards-bodies participation and a 32,000+ square foot facility, the UNH-IOL helps companies efficiently and cost effectively deliver products to the market.
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