A point of presence (POP) capable of supporting multiple gigabit-per-second lines at once. A gigaPOP has lower-speed Internet Protocol (IP) routing capabilities at the fringes of the backbone networks, and an asynchronous transfer mode (ATM) switching core that can carry IP, X.25, frame relay and ATM traffic — eliminating the need for separate and costly networks to support different types of traffic.

Gigabit Point of Presence -- a network access point that supports data transfer rates of at least 1 Gbps (1,000,000,000 bits per second).

Gigapop is short for gigabit-point-of-presence, an access point to Internet2, the network collaboration between universities and partners in industry and government to develop advanced Internet technologies and applications such as telemedicine and digital libraries. Currently, over 170 U.S. universities take part using approximately 30 gigapops for access. Gigapops are distributed geographically across the United States and generally support data transfer rates of at least one gigabit per second (Gbps). One gigapop is intended to serve up to 12 participating institutions.