Link Net Achieves Fast End-to-End FTTH Deployment in Indonesia Using Light PON Solution

Accelerating FTTH Deployment

As the global fiberization process accelerates, FTTH has found widespread deployment worldwide for its excellent technical features such as ultra-high bandwidth, long-haul transmission, and energy efficiency, making it a critical access technology for fixed broadband networks. However, due to Indonesia’s extensive island geography, the cost of FTTH construction remains high, resulting in a relatively low maturity in fixed broadband infrastructure with a penetration rate of only 17%. To improve national broadband accessibility and boost digital growth, the Indonesian Ministry of Communication has outlined strategic broadband network development goals for the 2020–2024 period. This plan aims to increase the country’s fixed broadband penetration rate to 30%, necessitating the construction of approximately 28 million lines of FTTH networks. As a leader in Indonesia’s fixed-line market, Link Net actively responds to the national strategy and has launched large-scale FTTH deployments in regions like Java, Sumatra, Sulawesi, and Kalimantan according to its own growth plans.

New Challenges

Link Net, the second largest fixed-line operator in Indonesia, has a fixed broadband network with more than 3 million home passed, among which 2.4 million belong to the hybrid fiber-coaxial (HFC) network. During the network upgrade and transformation process, Link Net has two options to consider: one is to upgrade the existing HFC network using the Docsis technology, and the other is to build an FTTH network using the PON technology. After a thorough assessment, Link Net prefers PON that utilizes a passive optical fiber network over Docsis that involves active access, as PON has substantial cost savings in O&M. Moreover, considering the limited global applications and unclear future evolution path of the Docsis technology, Link Net has made a firm decision to use the PON technology for the construction of its fixed broadband network.

Throughout this process, Link Net has consistently selected ZTE as its partner to build FTTH networks and explore PON applications. After in-depth analysis of the fixed-line market in Indonesia, Link Net took the lead in commercializing the Any PON solution in 2021, which enables its network to support GPON access while satisfying the uplink/downlink symmetric 10G PON bandwidth needs of government and enterprise users, as well as the smooth evolution to 10G PON for home users in the future. As the scale of FTTH construction continues to expand, Link Net not only considers optimal solutions for active equipment but also places increasing emphasis on cost savings within the ODN segment. Traditional FTTH construction modes come with the following challenges:

• High costs of building a new equipment room: Traditional PON construction involves building a new equipment access room for optical line terminal (OLT), which has a large footprint, leading to high costs for site construction and right-of-way permits.
• Long debugging time: Each OLT requires technical engineers to perform on-site service configuration, with a debugging and commissioning time of more than one day.
• Much fiber fusion splicing: Traditional ADSS optical cables require core-by-core fiber fusion using a dedicated fusion splicer. Link Net needs skilled fusion splicing technicians to perform these operations. Moreover, due to the large number of fiber cores in ADSS cables, their installation is both time-consuming and labor-intensive.
• Difficult optical network O&M: In the FTTH network O&M phase, Link Net finds that as ODN devices are replaced and some FTTH users disconnect, a growing number of ODN ports fail to be identified in terms of their availability. Additionally, managing the ODN port connections results in substantial O&M costs.
• Difficulties in planning for discrete regions: On the one hand, due to construction permits and user intentions, some existing HFC network areas that cover tens of thousands of users have to be divided into several discrete sub-regions for phased FTTH network upgrades. On the other hand, with the increasing prevalence of FTTH construction, scenarios involving distributed deployments in rural, suburban, and island areas are on the rise. Continuing to employ traditional ODN centralized deployment approaches will inevitably reduce the utilization of OLT ports and the ODN network, which hinders the protection of investments.

Light PON Solution for Fast End-to-End FTTH Deployment

To address these challenges, Link Net made an extensive technical analysis and a business case study, and worked with ZTE to explore tailored solutions that cater to Link Net’s needs—the Light PON solution. This innovative modular network construction solution composes lightweight OLT, Light ODN, and cloud network management Zenic One. It can address the range of challenges that Link Net encounters when using traditional solutions, enabling Link Net to expedite FTTH deployment at a lower cost.

• Zero equipment room construction: Using the small-capacity OLT product C610, there is no need to build an equipment room. It can be installed on existing steel poles, effectively reducing the difficulty and cost associated with obtaining right-of-way permissions.
• Zero-configuration commissioning: Customized OLT zero-configuration commissioning technology enables personnel to commission the equipment without the need to visit the site. Based on calculations, for every 500 OLT installations, Link Net can save 120 person-days of work, resulting in a 99% increase in installation efficiency.
• Zero on-site fusion splicing: By introducing pre-connectorized optical cables with connectors pre-installed in the factory, there is no need for on-site fusion splicing by the construction personnel. These pre-connectorized optical cables support lengths ranging from 50 meters to 1000 meters, allowing for flexibe adaptation to the existing network infrastructure. Moreover, the pre-connectorized optical cables are lightweight with fewer fiber cores, enabling installation by just two on-site personnel. This has led to a reduction of approximately 40% in the construction timeline of Link Net’s FTTH network.
• Visible and manageable optical network: The Light up ODN functional module is added to the ODN device, where each Light ODN device has a unique QR code or pre-connectorized cable barcode. With the customized Light up app on a mobile phone, the user can easily scan and record the serial number and port information. At the same time, using AI cameras to identify ODN port usage and automatically upload the data to the network management platform. The platform, which integrates a GIS system, displays the  ODN topology, significantly reducing the workload for the Link Net O&M team. This achieves a a visual and manageable ODN network, leading to a reduction of approximately 30% in O&M costs for Link Net, with an operational cost reduction of $0.20 per ODN port per year.
• Precise deployment for investment protection: The deployment ratio of distributed sites, especially in base station areas, rural suburbs, and phased HFV transformation areas, can be increased. Link Net selects the deployment of small-capacity Light PON solutions to ensure precise network deployment, accurate user coverage, and ultimately safeguard investments.

Promoting Large-Scale FTTH Development to Create Digital Future in Indonesia

At present, Link Net has built a FTTH network with over 3 million home passed, covering 27 cities across the country. The construction of all-optical broadband infrastructure has also provided Link Net with a higher competitive edge in the market, facilitating the growth of new services. By employing leading and innovative high-end products on a long term, Link Net has achieved a high ARPU of over IDR340,000 and a fixed broadband package bundling rate of more than 95%. By the end of 2022, its enterprise business revenue had grown by 16.4% year-over-year. In the future, it aims to become an infrastructure provider with the goal of 8 million FTTH home passed in the next five years, offering all-optical access network services to more enterprise and home users. After the FTTH network is delivered quickly on a large scale, Link Net will offer faster and more stable fixed broadband network connections for Indonesian fixed-line users, along with a wider range of innovative digital services, ensuring that every household can fully enjoy the convenience and opportunities of the digital era.