Two Atlanta-based optical networking companies hope to become key players in the bandwidth game. As major telecommunications carriers like BellSouth Corp., EarthLink Inc. and Qwest Communications International Inc. search for ways to ease the bandwidth bottleneck, Movaz Networks and Luxcore want to provide the technology necessary to help data flow over the Internet like water.
Optics is the use of light to transmit data.
The problem with the current optical network is one of convergence. When bits and bytes jump on the optical network, in the form of an optical signal, they are free to move around as fast as the optical network can carry them. When those same bits and bytes are ready to exit the optical network and be routed to a PC, they must be converted into an electronic signal, be assigned a destination, then be converted back into an optical signal. Both Movaz Networks and Luxcore believe they have created switching technology that alleviates the need for optical signals to be converted to electronic signals. Engineers by trade Movaz Networks is the newest kid on the block.