Alphabet’s (NYSE: GOOG) Google announced in a blog post on Wednesday that the company is making a $1 billion investment in digital connectivity to Japan. The investment is an expansion of its Pacific Connect initiative that connects the U.S. to Australia via the Fiji Islands and French Polynesia.
The new project delivers two subsea cables, named Proa and Taihei, that will create new fiber-optic routes between the continental U.S. and Japan in support of Google’s Japan Digitization Initiative. The new cables are designed to improve the reliability and resilience of digital connectivity between the U.S. and Japan and will include multiple Pacific Island countries and territories along the route. Google is collaborating with several partners including Japanese telecom service providers, KDDI and ARTERIA Networks, telecom infrastructure holding company Citadel Pacific, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI).
The Proa subsea cable, supplied by Japanese telecom equipment manufacturer NEC, will connect Japan, the CNMI, and Guam. Proa is the name of the traditional sailing canoes of the Marianas. To further increase reliability in the region, the NEC cable system Taiwan-Philippines-U.S. (known as TPU) will be extended to the CNMI. As the CNMI’s first international subsea cables, Proa and TPU will together establish a new route between the continental U.S. and Shima, Japan.
Taihei, the Japanese word for both “peace” and “Pacific Ocean,” is another NEC cable that will connect Japan to Hawaii. Additionally, another undersea cable will be extended to Hawaii, building on the plans announced last year to run the cable, called Tabua, from the continental U.S. and Australia via Fiji. Once complete, the Taihei and Tabua systems will create a diverse path between the continental U.S. to Takahagi, Japan.
Google will also fund the construction of an interlink cable connecting Hawaii, the CNMI, and Guam. This interlink will connect the transpacific routes, improving their reliability and reducing latency for users in the Pacific Islands and around the world.
“The name ‘Proa,’ drawing inspiration from our traditional sailing canoes, encapsulates the essence of connectivity and cultural heritage,” says Arnold I. Palacios, Governor of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. “It signifies the collaborative journey this project embodies, reflecting resilience and progress as we collectively move towards a future brimming with opportunities and prosperity for our islands.”
“The Pacific Connect initiative perfectly complements our planned efforts [under Hawaii’s Connect Kakou initiative] and will significantly enhance our future connections from Hawaii to the continental U.S. and Japan as well as ensure communities across the Pacific have equitable and reliable access to digital services,” comments Sylvia Luke, Lieutenant Governor, State of Hawaii.
Google points out that subsea cables have a significant role in digital infrastructure as the backbone of the internet, carrying 99 percent of global data traffic. The company says that subsea cables can bring significant economic and productivity gains to the places where they land.
By John Celentano, Inside Towers Business Editor
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