Modern businesses use technologies like cloud computing, AI, and 5G to grow and evolve. As these technology updates require greater bandwidth, companies that want to implement these changes will need a suitable network infrastructure.
One way of doing this is through using a dark fibre network. But what is dark fibre and what is dark fibre used for?
A dark fibre is an idle fibre optic cable with no traffic running through it. Dark fibre networks give businesses greater control and flexibility levels to sustain bandwidth increases, whenever convenient.
You’ll discover more about dark fibre in this post, including how it works and what it is used for.
A dark fibre network involves fibre optic cables with no traffic or service travelling through them. These unused lines aren’t lit by light signals, so the network is known as ‘dark’. The unlit wires are yet to be hired by firms or institutions that require network solutions.
Technavio reports that the dark fibre market share is expected to rise by USD 3.94 billion between 2021 and 2026. The increase in worldwide Internet traffic is a main factor behind the global dark fibre market share growth.
Fibre can handle greater quantities of data over large distances at a fast rate, without interference. This is great for organisations with significant expansion plans and those who want to make substantial digital changes.
Businesses that use fibre optic networks can pick between a dark fibre or a lit fibre framework. Rather than going for managed services like Ethernet, a business can form a personal private network by renting or purchasing dark fibre.
Lit fibre infrastructures are sent by service providers which possess the tools needed to ignite the fibre.
Unlike lit-fibre infrastructures, organisations can rent or purchase dark fibre frameworks themselves. They can then arrange and use their own equipment and tools to ignite the fibres needed for Internet connectivity.
A common dark fibre installation method is through point-to-point arrangements, though an increasingly popular method involves Dense Wavelength Division Multiplexing.
DWDM simultaneously sends information signals from various sources through a single optical fibre. Each information stream is kept separate from each other as they travel through.
Dark fibre allows you to choose the services you want to implement, manage equipment needed to install a network and take responsibility for keeping the network running.
Now that you know what a dark fibre connection is, let’s get into its advantages.
Dark fibre’s main benefits include:
Dark fibre delivers the dependability, security and adaptivity of private networks without the drawback of owning a network framework.
If you work with an Internet provider and want to increase your bandwidth, you need to purchase additional wavelengths and wait for the provider to carry out the claim.
Dark fibre allows you to control and manage your network without contacting a provider. You can increase your bandwidth capability whenever your bandwidth needs rise, which is great for fast-growing businesses.
After you set up your equipment, you have total control over a personal, private fibre network.
We know that dark fibre gives organisations total control over their network.
If a business expands quite quickly, the company can light a dark fibre line to handle growing data requirements. Conversely, if a business cuts back, it can switch off surplus dark fibre lines to accommodate less demand.
You can light and relight dark fibre lines repeatedly, synchronising your network with your company’s developments.
Dark fibre networks are privately managed by lease owners, which prevents external sources from recording data sent through the network.
Thanks to its point-to-point links, dark fibre networks never cross into the public internet or third-party networks.
This is ideal for organisations that often handle sensitive data, like financial, research, or military industries.
Dark fibre can send many signals simultaneously through various wavelengths over one fibre thread, which means it can handle incredible speeds.
Dark fibre doesn’t need as much power compared to cable or copper. Information is sent between points in a continuous line, making it harder for interference to affect the signal.
You can find out more about increasing your internet speed with this post on improving your internet experience.
Network latency affects network communication delay, indicating how much time information needs to travel over the network. Faster networks have lower network latency.
Operating dark fibre networks involves buying and installing individual transmission gear, giving you network latency control. If connection points are near each other, you could bypass transmission gear entirely, connecting the points through a network hub instead.
Low network latency is essential for large organisations that need to communicate with each other at a fast rate.
If you plan on rapidly increasing your broadband needs, need total network control to lower latency, or have specific security requirements for your organisation, dark fibre could be the solution.
With our digital highway now open for business (2024), Ogi provides a network of dark fibre and microducts, creating a new diverse route along the southeast section of the M4 in South East Wales. This improves capacity, diversity and resilience for ISPs, data centres and carriers expanding into Wales, Ireland, and England.
Ogi wholesale is a landmark fibre project – a first of its kind for Wales – exclusively available from the only full fibre provider dedicated to Wales. Along with bespoke dark fibre and micro duct infrastructure services, Ogi is also ready to provide a suite of lit services and data centre products.
If you’d like to learn more about our services and what we do, get in touch with our business sales team on 029 2002 0535 or email wholesale@ogi.wales. And for more tips and industry insights, check out our regularly updated blog pages.
Written by Rosh for Ogi.
