Petaluma, CA – October 12, 2015 – Calix, Inc. (NYSE: CALX), the world leader in gigabit fiber deployments, today announced that SandyNet, the city of Sandy, Oregon’s municipal broadband utility, will utilize the 802.11ac Multi-User Multiple Input Multiple Output (MU-MIMO) capabilities of the 844G GigaCenter to further enhance its subscribers’ gigabit broadband experience. By sending Wi-Fi signals to multiple MU-MIMO capable devices operating at 5 GHz simultaneously instead of sequentially like traditional Wi-Fi technologies, MU-MIMO allows concurrent streaming from the cloud. SandyNet already delivers the fastest broadband speeds in its market, but MU-MIMO will further differentiate the broadband experience for their “power users” – those subscribers who are heavy video streamers, online gamers, and have more broadband-ready devices in the home.
2016 is projected to be the tipping point for MU-MIMO, which uses advanced beamforming and MIMO technologies to maximize network efficiency for more devices and more data at the same time. As the next generation of smart phones equipped with high resolution cameras and 4K video capabilities begin to debut this holiday season, MU-MIMO will be integrated into these devices for higher transfer rates as well. Consumer demand for these technologies is expected to rapidly accelerate concurrently. In order to keep pace, the Wi-Fi Alliance is planning to begin certification of MU-MIMO devices in 2016.
“After offering gigabit services for more than a year in Sandy, we have been looking for the next service or application that will allow us to differentiate ourselves and help our subscribers leverage the power of our fiber network and Carrier Class Wi-Fi,” said Joe Knapp, IT director for the city of Sandy. “We have seen a dramatic increase in the number of devices connecting to the Calix GigaCenters within a given subscriber home and expect that number to keep rising as new gadgets hit the market this holiday season. Now, with the capabilities of MU-MIMO, we can further differentiate our services by providing our subscribers with a holiday present that includes an even more extraordinary whole home broadband experience.”
Through the integration of the Calix GigaCenter family with Compass Consumer Connect software, new features like MU-MIMO can be bulk distributed to all subscriber GigaCenters at the service provider’s discretion. This cloud-based upgrade approach greatly enhances service provider service velocity and enhances the subscriber experience – all without a truck roll.
“The GigaCenter family was built to support MU-MIMO from the start, which lets our customers use the technology today without replacing any equipment,” said Shane Eleniak, vice president of product line leadership at Calix. “With the software-as-a-service model of Compass software and the underlying GigaCenter architecture, we will continue to bring new functionalities to service providers at an accelerated rate. This steady introduction of new innovative features will keep our customers ahead of the competition and allow their subscribers to get the most from their gigabit broadband experience.”
