Reliance Communications, an Indian telecom service provider announced its plans to expand FLAG Telecom’s global optic fibre network. Over the next 36 months, FLAG Telecom claims to build the world’s largest IP network over submarine cable systems.
Termed - FLAG Next Generation Network (NGN), the project will cater to the fast-growing telecom needs of over 5 billion customers across the globe.
FLAG Telecom Limited, currently the world’s largest private undersea cable system, would invest$ 1.5 billion (nearly Rs. 7000 crore) in laying 50,000 additional kms of undersea optic fibre cable which would ultimately cover 6O countries.
On completion, FLAG Global Network would span over 1,15,000 kms by December 2009 taking the total optic fibre assets of Reliance Communications Group to over 2,30,000 kms.
“We live in a world where there is too much of bandwidth for some, little for others and none for many " there is unequal access to bandwidth in and across countries, continents and communities,” said Anil Dhirubhai Ambani, chairman " Reliance Communications. “FLAG NGN will democratize digital access and give nearly everyone in the world the opportunity to be part of a massive lifestyle change which might have surprised even a visionary as big as Dhirubhai,” he added.
Dedicating the worlds largest IP Network in the memory of his father, Anil Dhirubhai Ambani said, “Dhirubhai dreamt of a world without borders and man-made limits " a global village where everyone, but most of all every Indian, would have the chance to communicate and connect, compete and collaborate. FLAG NGN will help realize that dream”.
FLAG NGN will comprise of 4 systems:
FLAG NGN System 1: Asia " India, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Vietnam, Philippines, Brunei, Honk Kong
FLAG NGN System 2: Africa " Kenya, Mozambique, Republic of South Africa, Tanzania, Madagascar, Mauritius
FLAG NGN System 3: Mediterranean " Greece, Cyprus, Turkey, Malta, Libya, Lebanon
FLAG NGN System 4: Trans-Pacific " US West Coast, Japan, China and Hong Kong
As stated in a release, FLAG Global Network would have the capability to carry 2.5 billion simultaneous voice calls, 300 million simultaneous web chats, 52 million simultaneous Video Chats and enable 20 mn students in educational institutions of India to access e-learning.
FLAG Telecom’s clientele includes names like NTT, AT&T, Verizon, British Telecom, Orascom, QTel, Vodafone, Hutch, AOL, Google, Yahoo, Microsoft, Citigroup, HSBC, UBS, Deutsche Bank, Morgan Stanley to name a few.
Reliance Communications had recently launched FALCON Cable system connecting 12 countries in the Middle East to rest of the World.