There are a lot of reasons to attend an industry conference. To name just a few, events like SCTE TechExpo or the recent CableLabs Winter Conference provide opportunities to:

• Learn about the latest technology research.
• Discover emerging products.
• Network with colleagues.
•  Identify technology trends.

The last of these was very much evident at this year’s Optical Fiber Communications (OFC) conference, the world's leading event for fiber optic technologies, where there was a palpable shift in how CPON technology is being viewed. In past years, much of the conversation has centered around if coherent optics technology could viably and practically be applied to passive optical networks. This year, it was much more about when the technology would come to market and how to make it cost effective.

What was once a forward-looking vision is evolving into a real-world opportunity with long-term potential.

CPON, a mainstay in CableLabs’ optical fiber portfolio, is entering a new, more active phase of industry planning. Network operators are exploring opportunities to implement it sooner rather than later, and the broader ecosystem — including vendors and standards bodies — is also signaling interest.

We’ve often seen the technology talked about in the context of long-term evolution, but it also holds the potential to solve immediate challenges for operators. With speed no longer a key service differentiator, providers are tasked with delivering superior online experiences and services that adapt to the needs of the user.

CPON technology contributes to experience and adaptability by enabling:

• Lower latency.
• Streamlined integration with existing architectures.
• Simplified, cost effective capacity scaling.
• Reduced operational complexity.

These capabilities parallel the Technology Vision for the industry, which emphasizes competitiveness, scale and alignment across the ecosystem while also cultivating next-generation technology solutions.

What Is Coherent PON, and How Did We Get Here?

Amid ever-increasing demands for a faster, more reliable exchange of data, PON technologies remain one of the dominant architectures capable of meeting that growth. Existing PON technologies transmit data over fiber optic cables using a technique known as Intensity Modulation – Direct Detect (IM-DD), which has proven to be a simple, cost-effective means of supporting multiple users over a shared optical data network (ODN).

However, there’s a problem. As speeds ramp up higher and higher, IM-DD based PON solutions require more and more power, require more complicated signal processing, have more limitations on operating frequencies, and can only reach more limited distances. As capacity increases, IM-DD is no longer the simple, cost-effective solution it was before.

So, what’s the alternative?

Coherent optics is an advanced fiber optic technology, which uses coherent modulation and detection to transmit more data for a given unit of time with greater sensitivity over longer distances than comparable IM-DD solutions. Coherent optics has long been used for point-to-point connections in submarine, long-haul and metro networks. More recently, it has begun to be applied to the access network as well, driven in part by work done by CableLabs to demonstrate that it can be a practical, cost-effective solution with a wide range of benefits.

CPON, for the first time, applies coherent optics technology to PON, resulting in a whole host of benefits.

Compared with traditional PON technologies, CPON solutions enable data transmission rates starting at 100 Gbps upstream and downstream — with the ability to easily scale to even higher capacities — while covering greater distances with better signal quality. This combination allows CPON systems to support more users and services on the same network.

More than simply an upgrade in speed and capacity, CPON technology also enables a shift in how networks are built. Combined with expanded, scalable capacity and ultra-low latencies, CPON technology also expands the services that can be provided over those networks. This enables CPON to provide a foundation for scalable service delivery across increasingly complex network architectures. As operators shift their network strategies to include a mix of technologies — hybrid fiber coax (HFC), fiber, wireless and even satellite — the technology is emerging as a key enabler of unified, flexible architectures.

Coherent PON On the World Stage

While CPON has long been a priority within CableLabs’ optical strategy, it’s exciting to see the broader industry begin to take notice, too.

As we mentioned earlier, the energy around CPON was especially visible this year in San Francisco at OFC 2025. We saw a significant uptick in technical contributions related to coherent technology, providing further proof that momentum is building beyond CableLabs’ own efforts. Multiple sessions, presentations and demos focused on coherent optics and access network applications, drawing particular interest from network operators considering new avenues to rethink network design and service delivery.

The event made it clear that coherent technology has entered mainstream planning discussions for PON. The increase in engagement signals a growing recognition that CPON is becoming a necessary component of next-generation broadband strategy. Much more importantly, it demonstrates the industry’s collective commitment to moving the technology forward.

Additionally, even as CPON gains more attention from the broader industry, CableLabs continues to serve as a leader in advancing this technology. At OFC 2025, our CableLabs working group participants were particularly productive, covering next-gen PON solutions generally and CPON technology and solutions specifically in several engaging talks (both invited and contributed) as well as panel discussions. Here are some of the highlights from the PON-related contributions presented by our working group collaborators:

• Single-Laser BiDirectional Coherent PON: a Hybrid SC/DSC Architecture for Flexible and Cost-Efficient Optical Access Networks — Showcased a novel single-laser BiDirectional CPON capability featuring hybrid single-carrier and dual-subcarrier support.
• Low-Complexity 100G Burst-Mode TDMA-CPON Transmission Achieving 38 dB Link Budget — Experimentally demonstrated practical 100 Gbps burst-mode coherent transmission and reception without optical amplification.
• Robust Colorless Coherent Receiver for Next-Generation PONs: Coexistence With Legacy Systems and Multi-Wavelength Operation — Explored a colorless coherent receiver designed for next-generation PONs, emphasizing its ability to coexist with legacy PONs and support multi-wavelength operation.
• Crafting Fiber Access Networks for Service Excellence Assurance — Provided in-depth analysis and insights into the evolving landscape of fiber access networks.
• Harmony From Chaos: Orchestrating and Interoperable Ecosystem for the Future of PON — Explored standards and strategies for streamlined future-ready deployment and management across diverse vendor systems.
• Out of the Darkness: A Sneak Peek at CableLabs’ CPON Specifications — Covered how CPON is shifting from feasibility to implementation.

Accelerating Adoption Through Collaboration

Together with our member operators and vendor community, we’re actively shaping the direction of CPON technology. A CableLabs-led working group continues to advance this effort, with a shared goal of moving CPON from specification to broader adoption. Our work to develop and refine the suite of specifications is ongoing, and we expect to publicly issue the full suite by the end of 2025.

These working groups play a critical role in building a healthy, collaborative broadband ecosystem: ensuring that resulting solutions align with the real-world needs of both operators and end users, and can be developed and built by manufacturers at a reasonable cost. If you’re a CableLabs member or vendor interested in contributing to this effort, we encourage you to learn more about our working groups and how you can get involved.

Continuing this shared development and ecosystem-wide collaboration is critical, especially as the suite of specifications moves closer to public release and industry interest ramps up.

As CPON systems move closer to widespread implementation, this collaborative model will be key to its success. More than a next-gen PON technology milestone, CPON is a foundation for seamless, scalable connectivity — enabling a faster, more responsive and more reliable broadband experience for the future.