European Business
  • HOME
  • SUSTAINABILITY
  • INVEST
  • MARKET
  • PARTNERSHIP
  • INNOVATION
  • PEOPLE
  • INSIGHTS
No Result
View All Result
European Business
  • HOME
  • SUSTAINABILITY
  • INVEST
  • MARKET
  • PARTNERSHIP
  • INNOVATION
  • PEOPLE
  • INSIGHTS
No Result
View All Result
European Business
No Result
View All Result
Home < INDUSTRIES Telecom

BT and Toshiba launch first commercial trial of quantum secured communication services

by Alex Weber
April 28, 2022
A A
Share on LinkedinShare on Twitter

EY becomes first commercial customer to connect quantum secure data transmission between its major London offices.

London, England and Japan – At an event held at BT Tower yesterday (Tuesday 26th April), BT and Toshiba, along with EY launched the trial of a world first commercial quantum-secured metro network. The infrastructure will be able to connect numerous customers across London, helping them to secure the transmission of valuable data and information between multiple physical locations over standard fibre optic links using quantum key distribution (QKD). QKD is an important technology, playing a fundamental role in protecting networks and data against the emerging threat of cyber-attack using quantum computing. The London network represents a critical step towards reaching the UK government’s strategy to become a quantum-enabled economy.

The network’s first commercial customer, EY, will use the network to connect two of its sites in London, one in Canary Wharf, and one near London Bridge. It will demonstrate how data secured using QKD can move between sites and will showcase the benefits this network brings to its own customers.

BT and Toshiba announced their commitment to creating a trial network in October 2021. BT will operate the network, providing a range of quantum-secured services including dedicated high bandwidth end-to-end encrypted links, delivered over Openreach’s private fibre networks, while Toshiba will provide quantum key distribution hardware and key management software. In the network, QKD keys will be combined with the in-built ethernet security, based on public-key based encryption, which will enable the resultant keys to be used to encrypt the data.

Howard Watson, CTO, BT, commented: “Quantum-enabled technologies are expected to have a profound impact on how society and business operates in the future, but they are remarkably complex to understand, develop and build: in particular, ensuring that the end-to-end service designs meet the stringent security requirements of the market. I’m incredibly proud that BT and Toshiba have successfully united to deliver this unique network, and with EY as our first trial customer, we are paving the way for further commercial explorations for quantum technologies and their use in commercial, and societal applications in the future.”

Shunsuke Okada, Corporate Senior Vice President and Chief Digital Officer of Toshiba commented: “Both Toshiba and BT have demonstrated world-class technology development and leadership through decades of innovation and operation. Combining BT’s leadership in networks technologies and Toshiba’s leadership in quantum technologies has brought this network to life, allowing businesses across London to benefit from quantum secured communications for the first time.”

Preparation, technical deployment and testing for the network commenced in late 2021. This included equipment deployment in racks, adding security systems and resilience testing, and finally running and optimising the network. While Tuesday 26th April marked the official launch of the network, it has been running since early April, and will operate for an initial period of up to three years.

Praveen Shankar, EY UK & Ireland Managing Partner for Technology, Media and Telecoms (TMT), commented: “Quantum technology creates new and significant opportunities for business, but presents potential risks. Quantum secure data transmission represents the next major leap forward in protecting data, an essential component of doing business in a digital economy. Our work with two of the world’s leading technology innovators will allow us to demonstrate the power of quantum to both EY and our clients.”

The UK Government’s “strategic intent” to develop a quantum-enabled economy was first published in 2020. It sets out a vision for the next 10 years in which quantum technologies will become an integral part of the UK’s digital backbone, unlock innovation to drive growth and help build a thriving and resilient economy, and contribute significant value to the UK’s prosperity and security.

The London network represents an important step to building a national network for quantum secured communications, which will stimulate the growth of a quantum ready economy in the UK.

Howard Watson continued: “This is a significant moment in the UK’s journey towards a quantum-enabled economy, but we’re not there yet. Further investment commitments will be required to broaden the study of quantum technologies that will contribute to this new economy, including quantum computing, quantum cryptography and quantum communications. We look forward to working with our government and industry partners to continue the momentum BT has started and shaping the UK’s quantum strategy.”

The technical collaboration for this network was conducted in BT’s Adastral Park labs in Suffolk, UK, and the Quantum technology Business Division of Toshiba, based in Tokyo, Japan and Cambridge, UK, where the quantum key distribution technology has been developed and is manufactured.

Tags: < Partnership

Related Industries

Telecom

Huawei and Ocean Research and Conservation Association (ORCA) Show How They Go About Protecting Ireland Marine Life

September 15, 2023
Telecom

Huawei Ireland launches new 2023 STEM programme with global prize fund of $100K

September 13, 2023
Telecom

Ericsson and M1 partner to deploy the new generation of 5G routers to enable a future- ready mobile transport network

September 1, 2023
Telecom

Ericsson ups the tempo on 5G Carrier Aggregation with world’s first downlink 6CC data call

August 18, 2023
Telecom

Ericsson drives sustainability improvements in supply chain with plastic-free packaging

August 15, 2023
Telecom

Ericsson, MediaTek reach new technology milestone for the Fixed Wireless Access market

July 14, 2023

Air Liquide takes a further step in developing the hydrogen sector in France

September 15, 2023

...

Paysend and Visa Strengthen Their Strategic Collaboration to Help Transform Global Money Movement

September 15, 2023

...

Huawei and Ocean Research and Conservation Association (ORCA) Show How They Go About Protecting Ireland Marine Life

September 15, 2023

...

Amazon boosts European charging infrastructure planning with new technology

September 13, 2023

...

Kate Thomson appointed as bp interim chief financial officer

September 20, 2023

...

Rio Tinto appoints new Aluminium Chief Executive

September 6, 2023

...

Beiersdorf appoints OMD as single media agency and transformation partner for Europe and North America

September 2, 2023

...

SKF appoints Sophie Arnius as Head of Investor Relations

September 1, 2023

...

Menzies Aviation renews Jazeera Airways contract in Kuwait and wins new business in Europe and Pakistan

September 6, 2023

...

Bayer to invest EUR 220 million in new R&D facility at its Monheim site

September 1, 2023

...

Asia Pacific Business Asia Pacific Business Asia Pacific Business

EUROPEAN BUSINESS is a premier source of corporate news, business information and insights across broad spectrum of industries in Europe and worldwide.  We are one of the members of the Business World Network.

RESOURCES

  • HOME
  • SUSTAINABILITY
  • INVEST
  • MARKET
  • PARTNERSHIP
  • INNOVATION
  • PEOPLE
  • INSIGHTS

CONTACT US

EDITORIAL:     editor # european-biz.com

PARTNERSHIP:     partnership # european-biz.com

HUMAN RESOURCE:     hr # european-biz.com

* (replace # with @)

  • Official Site

Copyright © EUROPEAN-BIZ.COM All rights reserved.

No Result
View All Result
  • HOME
  • SUSTAINABILITY
  • INVEST
  • MARKET
  • PARTNERSHIP
  • INNOVATION
  • PEOPLE
  • INSIGHTS

Copyright © EUROPEAN-BIZ.COM All rights reserved.

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In

Add New Playlist