ADVA AG Optical Networking (Frankfurt: ADV) will announce today that it's been chosen to supply the DWDM metro transport platform of Texas-based GigX Communications, a startup metro transport carrier.

The announcement is the latest of several touted by ADVA as evidence of its growing presence in core metro networks. The company has had a strong presence in the European market and looks to be branching out now around the globe (see German Companies Seek Access and ADVA and Siemens Team Up). The company announced last week that Brasil Telecom will be using its gear to establish a storage network to back up data at the Brazilian Central Bank.

In GigX's network, ADVA's FSP 3000 will mostly be used to supply Sonet and transparent wavelength services in the Houston area.ADVA also hints its gear will be the backbone of a bandwidth trading venture GigX's CEO, Timothy Broadous, has spoken about publicly in the past. (GiGX did not get back to us to confirm this plan today, however.)

In an interesting twist, ADVA apparently stands to displace Sorrento Networks Corp. (Nasdaq: FIBR) on the startup carrier's network.

GigX confirmed this Monday. "Yes, it is true. We are considering changing our platform," said GigX general manager Heimir Eidskrem. When pressed, he said he "preferred not to say" why the change is being considered.

GigX also reportedly tested gear from Ciena Corp. (Nasdaq: CIEN) and Cisco Systems Inc. (Nasdaq: CSCO) but apparently didn't get anything installed from those vendors on its network.

A spokesman for Sorrento said he had no knowledge that GigX had changed its mind about using the company's gear. Back in June, Sorrento boasted of its GigX contract (see GigX Deploys Sorrento GigaMux).

Chances are, however, that if ADVA indeed replaces Sorrento on the GigX network, it won't be the end of the world. For one thing, GigX is a new carrier, still proving itself as an alternative to expensive RBOC leased lines in metro networks.

Meanwhile, another startup carrier, Looking Glass Networks, which is making its first public announcement as a facilities-based metro carrier's carrier today (more on that later), says it's content so far with the performance of Sorrento's kit on its metro facilities, which also are based on the ONS 15454 platform from Cisco.

"We're quite happy [with Sorrento] so far," says Sunit Patel, Looking Glass's CFO. "Of course, it's still early."

— Mary Jander, Senior Editor, Light Reading
http://www.lightreading.com