Fiber Broadband Association Awards Connected Home, Subscriber Experience Concepts at Fiber Connect 2025

Proof of Concept demonstrations showcase innovation and value of fiber broadband

NASHVILLE, Tenn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Today at Fiber Connect 2025, the Fiber Broadband Association (FBA) announced the winners of the Proof of Concept (PoC) Showcase. This year’s showcase featured six concepts from 11 companies, all demonstrating the power of fiber to transform the Connected Home and/or the broadband subscriber experience.

The PoCs were centered around one of three BBF specifications (BBF.247 (OLT/ONT Interoperability), TR-369 (User Services Platform), and/or BBF.398 (Wi-Fi Performance)), and evaluated by industry analysts. The three award-winning PoCs include:

• Most Innovative Award – presented to Incognito, Harmonic, Vecima, and Innago, for their “Lighting Up the Future: Showcasing Fiber Interoperability & Smart Connectivity” PoC. This demonstration showcased fiber interoperability and smart connectivity in fiber access, CPEs, and apps. It highlighted service and network automation in the connected home, managing both next-gen and legacy devices to maximize FTTx investments and leave no device behind.
• Biggest Impact Award – presented to Ciena, for its “Maximizing Network Profitability through Open Access, Interoperability, Service Management, and Advanced Services” PoC. The company presented subscriber self-serve portal and cloud instance of multi-domain service orchestration to drive service automation from a marketplace of providers and services. It also demonstrated the power of open standards to maximize choice and cloud-managed platforms for advanced Wi-Fi management and in-home experience control.
• Game Changer Award – presented to Precision Optical Technologies (Belden), for its “Precision OT PON Extender” PoC. The demonstration enabled a unique approach to low noise optical amplification that enables truly passive and extended reach PON links for distances up to 80km (for a 1×32 split). It demonstrated how this technology sits next to an OLT in the hub/central office and interoperates with off the shelf ONTs.

"The innovation showcased at this year’s Proof of Concept demonstrations underscores the transformative potential of fiber broadband,” said Evann Freeman, Fiber Broadband Association Board Member and Conference Committee Chair, and Vice President of Government & Community Relations at EPB of Chattanooga. “Congratulations to the winners—their concepts exemplify how the industry is collaborating to bring smarter, more interoperable, and user-centric solutions to market.”

"The Broadband Forum-based Proof of Concept demonstrations have highlighted how technical excellence and forward-thinking design can redefine the broadband experience,” said Ken Pyle, Director of Marketing at Broadband Forum. “This week, the PoCs proved that fiber-based innovations are leading the way in delivering seamless connectivity and next-generation services to homes and communities."

Additional PoCs were presented at Fiber Connect 2025, including “AI-powered Wi-Fi Experience with Cross TR-069/TR-369 Interoperability,” presented by AVSystem and Gemtek; “Advancing Multi-Tenant, Multi-Access Wholesale Wireline and Wireless Connectivity,” presented by Radisys Corporation, Zoom Technology Group; and “Precision Meets Efficiency: 3D Scanning and Digital Twin Technology for Enhanced Build Quality and Streamlined Documentation,” presented by TKI Infrastructure Solutions.

To learn more about Fiber Connect 2025, visit the conference website here or subscribe to FBA’s Fiber Forward Weekly newsletter here to stay updated on conference news and more.

About the Fiber Broadband Association

The Fiber Broadband Association is the largest and only trade association that represents the complete fiber ecosystem of service providers, manufacturers, industry experts, and deployment specialists dedicated to the advancement of fiber broadband deployment and the pursuit of a world where communications are limitless, advancing quality of life and digital equity anywhere and everywhere. The Fiber Broadband Association helps providers, communities, and policymakers make informed decisions about how, where, and why to build better fiber broadband networks. Since 2001, these companies, organizations, and members have worked with communities and consumers in mind to build the critical infrastructure that provides the economic and societal benefits that only fiber can deliver. The Fiber Broadband Association is part of the Fibre Council Global Alliance, which is a platform of six global FTTH Councils in North America, LATAM, Europe, MEA, APAC, and South Africa. Learn more at fiberbroadband.org.