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G-PON Certification

 

 

Broadband Forum Certification Program FAQs

Motivations

  
Category Strategy
Why have a certification program? To create an interoperable, competitive environment for G-PON, offering faster time to market, decreasing costs and increasing market traction through standards based compliance.

Program assures that G-PON equipment meets Service Provider requirements for efficient network operation and high quality broadband access options.

Ensures faster procurement/deployment and time to market.

What sets this Certification opportunity apart from the rest?Industry's first G-PON certification program based on test plans joint developed by FSAN and Broadband Forum.
What's most important about the Broadband Forum Certification Program?
  • Service Provider driven/required in RFPs.
  • Will help testing costs decrease.
  • Provides vendors with a better ability to competitively position products globally.
  • Shortens test cycles. Offers single round of universally recognized tests.
  • Independent standards based certification creates a common language.
  • Common comprehensive industry recognized certification-avoiding multiple service provider re-tests.
  • Easier launch of products and expedites fiber deployments.
  • Internationally recognized program.
What is the Broadband Forum achieving this year- 2011?Development of a comprehensive ONU test plan, launch of certification program and announcement of the first group of certified products.

Program Basics

  
Category Strategy
Certification Program Offering: The BBF.247 certification program is open to GPON ONU products with Ethernet interfaces and is based on the OD-247 test plan. It proves conformance to TR-156 using OMCI as defined in the ITU G.998, which are the most critical standards to interoperable implementations. Additional test cases and modules for other configurations and functionalities will be added in the future.
Target Participants: All ONU vendors; members and potential members of the Broadband Forum.
Logo Strategy:
BBF Certified

A Broadband Forum Certified logo is available for use on all certified products.
Where can a vendor get approved testing done?Service Strategy- multi-location options with one independent laboratory:

LAN (offices in France and China)

Pass status promotion/posting plan:Receive certificate, logo, test report registry.

Quarterly report/RSS feed to service providers alerting to new product certifications.

Certified products page on BBF website.

Technical Questions

  
Category Strategy
What qualifies an ONU for a certificate? Any Broadband Forum member's ONU that passes formal certification testing at an approved lab.
What specifically is being certified? A qualifying ONU of a specific hardware and software release (which will be listed on the certificate).
What are the similarity considerations? Certification by similarity is a procedure by which the equivalence between an uncertified product and certified product may be evaluated and a determination made as to whether the uncertified product is sufficiently similar to the certified product to not warrant testing.

Although there is an expectation that products that are obviously similar to a certified product will be understood as such, the BBF.247 Certification Program does not support certification by similarity and only certifies products that have undergone the actual certification testing. Considerations of similarity are left to the sole responsibility and discretion of the equipment vendors and their service provider customers.

Specifically, equipment vendors and their service provider customers may at their joint discretion, consider that a given product, which is not BBF.247 certified, is sufficiently similar to another product, which is BBF.247 certified, and therefore doesn't need testing or certifying.

Some examples of "sufficiently similar" may be:

  • "Similar" products only differs by strictly unrelated hardware e.g., power adapter, power supply.
  • "Similar" products only differs by packaging, branding or another marketing related distinction.
  • "Similar" products only differ by configuration or functionality of their applications, but are strictly identical from the perspective of certified behavior. (e.g., Ethernet and OMCI)

Note: The examples above are intended only as an illustration of similarity criteria. Actual similarity criteria can only be established between the equipment vendor and their service provider customers.

How long do you need my product for testing? Typically one week, but contact the test lab for detailed scheduling:

(www.lanpark.eu)

What other certifications will be offered in the future? Ethernet interfaces. Future certifications, including XG-PON1, are expected.
Can certificates be superseded? No.
If my membership in the BBF lapses, what happens to my certification? Your product's compliance report to BBF.247 will remain valid, but your listing on the Broadband Forum Certified Products webpage and in all other BBF marketing will be removed.
What level of Broadband Forum membership is required? Any member in good standing can participate.