Project Info
Project Description
The SEASON project aims to design and validate a sustainable transport network infrastructure that supports beyond-5G and emerging services. The SEASON infrastructure will rely on the joint use of Multi-Band (MB) and Space Division Multiplexing (SDM), spanning the access, aggregation, and metro/long-haul segments, supporting x-haul requirements, further integrating the packet/optical and computing layers, and targeting cost-effective capacity increases. A critical objective of such architecture is to ensure energy efficiency. SEASON will rely on power-efficient Digital Signal Processing (DSP), MBoverSDM optical switching, point-to-multipoint transceivers that enable traffic aggregation/router bypassing, and converged packet-optical solutions that reduce the number of O/E/O conversions. Such complex infrastructure requires rethinking the control and orchestration systems towards autonomous optical networks, addressing not only the integration of the Radio Access Network (RAN) access and transport segments into overarching control systems, but also adopting more agile DevOps methodologies. SEASON will leverage cognitive networks powered by streaming telemetry, real-time network measurements, and Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning (AI/ML)-aided service management and orchestration for near-real time network operation, moving intelligence as close as possible to the data plane, and devising a distributed system based on multiple communicating agents and data-driven closed control loops.
SEASON will have a clear impact on society, in a context of increased connectivity needs and higher capacity demand for services such as VR/AR.
The SEASON consortium includes major European telecom operators (Telefonica, TIM), major vendors (ADVA, Infinera P/G, Ericsson), three consolidated SMEs (Accelleran, Wings, and WestAquila), and four top-reputed research centres and academia (CNIT, CTTC, Fraunhofer HHI, and UPC).
!Breaking News!
All three final demonstration papers developed within the SEASON project have been accepted for publication and presentation at the Optical Fiber Communication Conference (OFC 2026, Los Angeles, March 2026), the world’s most prestigious international conference in optical communications and networking. The accepted OFC 2026 demonstration papers are:
- End-to-End Orchestration across Multi-Core Fiber (MCF) Infrastructure: Field Trial of Spatial Passive Optical Networks (PON) and Metro Convergence with O-RAN for AR/VR Services with Edge Offload
This demo presents the world’s first field trial of an energy-aware converged architecture integrating spatial PON, metro networks, and 5G O-RAN, enabling dynamic resource orchestration to support immersive AR/VR services with reduced power consumption. - Dynamic Control of Multi-Technology Optical Access Networks with PON and Coherent P2MP
This work demonstrates a unified SDN-orchestrated access and aggregation network where legacy PON systems and coherent point-to-multipoint (P2MP) optics coexist on the same physical infrastructure, enabling flexible, on-demand service provisioning across heterogeneous optical technologies. - Demonstration of Self-Healing in IPoWDM Network with Dual Protection Using MultiBand over Space Division Multiplexing (MBoSDM) and NetDevOps Solutions in Support of 6G
This demo showcases an autonomous self-healing IPoWDM network based on multi-band and space-division multiplexing (MBoSDM), achieving rapid service recovery through NetDevOps-based automation and dual protection mechanisms, addressing key reliability requirements for future 6G services.
For more information about the SEASON project and its activities, please visit the project website and follow SEASON on LinkedIn.