DIGITAL services provider PLDT Inc. is investing an initial $10 million (P499.25 million) to join an international cable-landing system that will run across Asia, Africa and Europe.
Eric R. Alberto, the company’s chief revenue officer, said his group will join the Asia-Africa-Europe (AAE-1)sometime in the second or third quarter of 2017 to enhance the telco’s international bandwidth capacity.
“In the middle of the year, we’re firing up our partnership in the AAE-1 with PCCW. Investment is initially at $10 million,” he said, referring to a telco in Hong Kong.
Aside from PLDT and PCCW, “about eight or nine” other members will join in the consortium.
“The cable-landing station is in Hong Kong, then we will pick up from there,” Alberto said. “We are still choosing from any of our four cable-landing stations.”
PLDT has four cable-landing stations in the Philippines, namely, Nasugbu, Batangas; Daet, Camarines Norte; Bauang, La Union; and Davao.
The AAE-1 is a 25,000-kilometer consortium cable system connecting South East Asia to Europe via Egypt.
It connects Hong Kong, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, with Malaysia and Singapore, then onward to Myanmar, India, Pakistan, Oman, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Yemen, Djibouti, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Greece, Italy and France.
AAE-1 cable system deploys state-of-the-art 100 Gbps transmission technology, with a minimum design capacity of 40 Tbps.
While it terminates at two points of presence (PoPs) in Singapore, it also continues further into Asia via diverse terrestrial routes across Thailand connecting Vietnam, Cambodia and Hong Kong. This routing enables AAE-1 to have one of the lowest latency between Hong Kong, India, the Middle East and Europe.
By connecting major carrier-neutral PoPs in Hong Kong, Singapore and Marseilles, AAE-1 members can choose their preferred backhaul providers available in these PoPs or in AAE-1 cable-landing stations in Asia, the Middle East, Africa and Europe.