This part of IEC 61292, which is a technical report, deals with distributed Raman amplification (DRA). The main purpose of the report is to provide background material for future standards (specifications, test methods and operating procedures) relating to DRA. The report covers the following aspects: – general overview of Raman amplification; – applications of DRA; – performance characteristics and test methods related to DRA; – operational issues relating to the deployment of DRA. As DRA is a relatively young technology, and still rapidly evolving, some of the material in this report may become obsolete or irrelevant in a relatively short period. This technical report will be frequently updated in order to minimize this possibility.