Open XR Forum announced that Juniper Networks, Sumitomo Electric and Arrcus, have joined the industry initiative to advance the deployment of software-configurable point-to-point and point-to-multipoint coherent optical networks utilizing XR optics pluggable transceiver technology. 

These new members bring essential expertise and world-class experience in routing, access/edge networks and software to the Open XR ecosystem. Their contributions and participation in the Forum will help drive multi-vendor, interoperable solutions to enable high bandwidth, software-configurable, coherent optics from the core to the edge of the network.

Juniper is a leading supplier of routing and switching solutions, network security, AI-enabled enterprise networking operations and software-defined networking technologies. Sumitomo Electric Industries is a leading global provider of advanced optical communications and radio frequency solutions with a proven track record supplying access network equipment to telecommunications carriers and CATV operators. Arrcus provides virtualized routing solutions with best-in-class software for Data Centers, 5G/Access networks and Cloud Networking. 

"Juniper is pleased to work with the Open XR Forum members, to advance the development of intelligent coherent pluggables. We are excited to be part of the Open XR vision of transforming network architecture to deliver major advances in performance, cost and network agility to meet the rapidly expanding capacity requirements for cloud, datacenter and 5G traffic," said Brendan Gibbs, SVP Product Management, Juniper Networks.

"Building a robust multi-vendor ecosystem is essential to enable network operators to achieve the substantial savings and increased network capabilities provided by XR optics technology. As critical members of the value chain, these new members mark a significant step forward in the realization of the XR optics network vision," said Dave Welch, Infinera Co-Founder.

Open XR Forum is an MSA consortium bringing together network operators, equipment vendors, and component suppliers committed to building the foundation for a new generation of coherent optical solutions that will cost-effectively meet demand for greater network scalability and flexibility. XR optics is the industry's first coherent optical solution to solve the access and aggregation challenges faced by network operators caused by the misalignment between network traffic patterns and the technology used to transport that traffic. 

Open XR Forum membership is expanding rapidly to cover a wide range of industry participants which currently includes AT&T, BT, Colt, Crown Castle, Infinera, Liberty Global, Lumen Technologies, Telefónica, Verizon, Windstream and ZAYO. Read more about the benefits of Open XR Forum. An introductory whitepaper about Open XR Concept is also available as well as the Forum's first set of specifications. 

To learn more about becoming a member, visit www.openxrforum.org.