A new technical white paper from CommScope offers a detailed comparison of GPON and EPON systems. The paper notes that Passive Optical Networking (PON) technology has been available since the mid 1990s; and that significant development activities occurred during the early 2000s to develop Gigabit-rate solutions designed to deliver Ethernet and IP services. Two very different solutions were developed by the IEEE and ITU-T, i.e. EPON and GPON, respectively.
The analysis states that, while general concepts for both systems are the same (PON operation, ODN framework, wavelength plan, and application), their operation is very different, as are the features and services supported by each. EPON is defined as a native Ethernet solution that leverages the features, compatibility and performance of the Ethernet protocol; while GPON is seen leveraging the techniques of SONET/SDH and GFP (Generic Framing Protocol) to transport Ethernet.
