63 M a y Voice 2012 of the ISSN 1948-3031 Industry Subsea Capacity Edition In This Issue: The Emergence Of Carrier Neutral Networks and The Increased Capacity Submarine Cable Systems and the Rise of Privately Led Builds Leveraging Subsea Cable Systems for Video Transport Solutions ISSN No. 1948-3031 PUBLISHER: Wayne Nielsen MANAGING EDITOR: Kevin G. Summers A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to spending. Both groups seemed convinced the Occupy Rally… of their divergent correctness in managing CONTRIBUTING WRITERS: Stewart Ash, Sean through the mess. Bergin, Simon Brodie, Derek Cassidy, Erick I was really torn last week when I finished Contag, Jorn Jespersen my last meeting in Chicago. It was a really What the results of this split amongst our Submarine Telecoms Forum magazine is beautiful day in the Midwest, typical for world leaders portend for the future is published bimonthly by Submarine Telecoms May, and blustery, typical for the “Windy still anybody’s guess, but at a minimum, Forum, Inc., and is an independent commercial City.” The streets to the south were starting it suggests more stormy seas ahead. And publication, serving as a freely accessible to fill; the fencing was up. Chicago’s finest yes, weather that will eventually impact forum for professionals in industries connected were in full force, but somehow I just did significantly our little industry. So I guess with submarine optical fiber technologies and techniques. Submarine Telecoms Forum may not feel the rising spirit of the day. I’ll just curl up with a good book and ride not be reproduced or transmitted in any form, it out. in whole or in part, without the permission of So instead I headed west to Oak Park, to the publishers. a somewhat famous novelist’s birthplace, “You do not know how long you are in a and stole away a few personal, thoughtful river when the current moves swiftly. It Liability: while every care is taken in hours in Ernest Hemingway’s boyhood seems a long time and it may be very short. preparation of this publication, the publishers home and museum. I studied letters, type The water was cold and in flood and many cannot be held responsible for the accuracy of the information herein, or any errors which written notes and numerous international things passed that had been floated off the may occur in advertising or editorial content, accolades, and breathed in the musty banks when the river rose. I was lucky to or any consequence arising from any errors bouquet of the lost generation. have a heavy timber to hold on to, and I lay or omissions, and the editor reserves the right in the icy water with my chin on the wood, to edit any advertising or editorial material Upon my return to God’s country, Virginia, submitted for publication. holding on as easily as I could with both the next day, I was greeted with the news of hands.” - A Farewell to Arms Contributions are welcomed. Please forward to the G8 leaders' meeting across the Potomac the Managing Editor at [email protected]. at Camp David. Reports of discord between the leaders had already surfaced, and there Submarine Telecoms Forum, Inc. now seemed to be two distinct schools 21495 Ridgetop Circle, Suite 201 of thought regarding the latest financial Sterling, Virginia 20166, USA subtelforum.com crisis. One group wanted to continue an austerity approach to the problem, and Copyright © 2012 Submarine Telecoms Forum, Inc. the second, a newer and increasingly vocal 2 chorus, wanted to promote increased debt In This Issue... Exordium 2 Leveraging Subsea Cable 28 Wayne Nielsen Systems for Video Transport Solutions Erick Contag News Now 4 Protection Of Submarine Cable 33 Landfall In Arctic Waters The Emergence Of Carrier 6 Neutral Networks And The Jorn Jespersen Increased Capacity: An Irish Sea Perspective Back Reflection 41 Derek Cassidy Stewart Ash So You Think You Know Your 15 Conferences 46 Cables? Simon Brodie Advertiser Index 47 Submarine Cable Systems 23 and the Rise of Privately Led Coda 48 Builds Sean Bergin Kevin G. Summers 3 News Now Africa: Continent Calls for Harmonised Policies on Digicel Buys Rival Telecom In Haiti Submarine Cables Digicel Leads Project To Deliver High-Capacity Undersea Alcatel-Lucent Wins Contract To Lay Tonga Fibre-Optic Cable To Haiti Submarine Cable Emerald Networks Signs A System Supply Contract For APTelecom Appointed as Pre-Sales Manager for Pacific Fibre New Generation Trans-Atlantic Fibre Optic Cable System BRICS Cable Unveiled for Direct and Cohesive Epeg - New Submarine Cable To Link Oman With Europe Communcations Services between Brazil, Russia, India, GBI Crosses the Mediterranean with the First 100G China and South Africa Repeatered Submarine Link from Xtera Columbus Networks and Xtera Communications First to Haiti Moves Forward With Fibralink Submarine Cable Unveil 100G in Pan-American Caribbean Region Network CTC Marine Projects Appoints New Managing Director i3 Africa Calls For BRICS Submarine Cable Cash CTC Marine Projects Invests in Integrated Trenching Spread Is Globe-Encircling Fibre Optic Cable Business Making Solution Money for RCom, Tata and Airtel? CTC Marine Projects, Trico Offshore and DeepOcean Become Main One Cable Company Upgrades Network Infrastructure One Together With TE SubCom And Business Unusual Limited Dhiraagu Tests Submarine Cable After Repairs Malawi Keen On Submarine Cable Connection With Prysmian Group Secures Order For Cables Worth Over Tanzania Reliance To Divest 75% Stake In FLAG Submarine Cable System MTN - Why Telecoms Operators Are Focusing On Data Solutions Seychelles Set For Its First Underwater Fiber-Optic Cable Link MTN, Vodacom Consortium Launches West Africa Undersea Cable Submarine Cable Construction Continues Despite Untapped Potential Capacity MTN NCC Approves Second Submarine Cable Link Between Taiwan And China SubOptic 2013 Call for Papers Now Issued New Fibre-Optic Cable To Benefit SKA Project Taiwan Approves First Direct Submarine Cable Link With China New Submarine Cables Set to Revolutionize West African Internet Tata Communications Completes Cable Network Ring Around The World Nexans Establishing Cable Plant In Berkeley County, S.C. TEAMS Submarine Cable Hitch Disrupts Internet Services In Nexans Stock Declines on Submarine-Cable Production East Africa Delay Telkom Kenya Undersea Cable Goes Live In Kenya Optical Delusion? Fiber Booms Again, Despite Bust Telstra International Deploys Infinera Telstra Sparks Up Pacific Fibre Sets Mid-June Deadline Reach Cable Pacific Fibre Stirs Up FUD About Huawei’s Sub Cable Vodafone Bids For Cable & Wireless Technology WACS Switch-On Date Confirmed Planned Undersea Fiber-Optic Cable Projects in Arctic as Allegory for Changing Region West Africa: Bandwidth Cost to Drop As U.S.$650 Million Undersea Cable Goes Live Will MTN Crash Internet Cost With WACS Cable? 6 The Emergence Of Carrier Neutral Networks and The Increased Capacity: an Irish Sea Perspective 7Derek Cassidy he Irish Sea, a body of water that divides the UK from Ireland, Figure 1: Existing submarine Thas been the deciding factor cables between UK and behind all decisions that have driven Ireland and further afield telecommunications between the two countries. From the earliest days in the 1850s to the present, engineers have been trying to connect the two islands together so that there is a seamless communications network between them. In the late nineties and early years of the 2000’s, the majority of the fibre optic submarine cable systems that are still in operation today were laid between the UK and Ireland, see figure 1. These systems were laid when the use of dense wavelength division multiplexing (DWDM) systems began to appear and launched a new era of communications. The DWDM systems allowed for the transmission of 32+ 10 GB channels per system which used single or dual fibre working. Submarine cable operators could have had multiple DWDM systems on their cable. Soon capacity across the globe was not enough and the look towards 40Gb channels began. It was normal to hear DWDM equipment vendors offering 80+ 10Gb channel count systems and discussing their design roadmaps for the technology to reach 120 channel count systems, but their hopes of reaching the 40Gb channel system were stymied due to non-linear affects such as polarisation 8 mode dispersion (PMD) etc. However the helped drive research and recession or slowdown around 2003 had develop new technologies a negative impact on the development of that enabled DWDM these systems and they stalled and the networks to deploy these search for a way forward came to a halt. new 40Gb and 100Gb channel developments However, due to the communications and with this new slowdown there was a lull in the technology drive there development of a 40Gb channel offering was a new revitalised and the available channel bandwidth energy injected into the stayed at 10Gb. This also corresponded existing submarine cable with a lull in the development of new networks which resulted submarine cables between the UK and in new investment. Ireland. The existing cable infrastructure and capacity was capable of coping with In 2010 the first of the bandwidth demand. In the latter these new investments part of the 2000’s there was an increased took place when a new demand for bandwidth due to the submarine cable was development and rollout of broadband, landed at Portrush in a new development in communications. Northern Ireland. This This broadband development can be called new link was a branch the 7th revolutionary cycle in the evolution unit from an existing cable of communication across the globe. The connecting the UK to the development of communications also US. This new connection took a shift in a new direction, Ethernet created a new link became the flavour of the month and between Ireland and the many operators began to change from UK and the US; the latter Figure 2: A snapshot of the Irish MAN locations SDH to Ethernet and optical transport being the first since 1964 network (OTN) as a transmission protocol.