NTT Group plans to use an optical network disaggregation platform from Coriant to interconnect multiple data centers in Hong Kong.

The companies said the move allows NTT to use its fiber infrastructure to provide 100G+ data center interconnect services. The data centers support software-defined networking (SDN) connectivity between enterprise clouds, colocation data centers, and customer-owned data centers.

The Coriant product is being deployed over existing NTT dense wavelength division multiplexing (DWDM) infrastructure. The open application programming interface (API) platform is capable of 3.2 terabits of capacity. It also supports programmable DWDM line interface in managing transmissions between 100G and 400G across various geographic scenarios.

Coriant earlier this year scored a deal with PacketFabric as part of a SDN deployment. The greenfield network is being used to conduct medical research, including a project to cure cancer. Network capacity is also being sold to third-party customers.

IHS Markit noted the global optical data center interconnect market surged 49 percent last year to $1.9 billion. Growth was driven by investments from service providers, Internet content providers, and enterprises expanding their data center facilities.

The research firm said it expects the market to reach $4.5 billion in revenues by 2021, increasing at an 18 percent compound annual growth rate. Market leaders in the space include Ciena, Infinera, and Fujitsu.

A number of open and interoperable optical networking projects are currently on the table through various organizations. These include the Open ROADM MultiSource Agreement, the Telecom Infra Project's Open Optical Packet Transport group, the Open Networking Foundation (ONF), and Optical Interworking Forum (OIF).

IHS found interoperability and ecosystem maturity were two of the biggest service provider challenges with the current optical SDN market. However, the predicted increase in market spending indicates those issues pale in comparison to the potential reward.

“Instrumenting the network via telemetry, and parsing through the resulting data via machine learning will open up a vast world of opportunity for improving network operations, and taking on the challenging issue of reducing operational expenses,” said Heidi Adams, senior research director for transport networks at IHS Markit, in a report.

Looking to tap into the potential, Coriant recently drew a new round of financial backing from new investor Oaktree Capital working with current investor Marlin Equity Partners. Details of the investment were not released.