Amendment 1 to Recommendation ITU-T G.7712/Y.1703 (2010) contains the specification and requirements for using the data communication network (DCN) for optical channel (OCh) overhead communication. A DCN that is used for overhead communication is referred to as the overhead communications network (OCN). The OCN provides one or more point-to-point channels for the communication of the overhead. These channels are referred to as the overhead communications channel (OCC).