Telefonica and Armancio Ortega, through his family office Pontegadea, have increased their ownership to 70 percent and 30 percent, respectively, in the infrastructure group Telxius Telecom, which owns an international network of more than 58,000 miles of high-capacity submarine fiber optic cables, one of the largest in the world. The two companies partnered to purchase KKR’s 40-percent stake. The transaction was valued at $243.77 million.
Through its Tier 1 IP network, Telxius Telecom has connected the U.S. with Latin America since 2000. All told, it provides direct connectivity to the internet with a coverage of 93 points of presence and 27 landing stations in 23 countries. In addition, Telxius Telecom offers an extensive range of capacity services, co-location and security services. Telxius Telecom sold its tower business to American Tower in 2021.
Why Submarine Fiber-optic Cables Matter
Four tech companies — Microsoft, Google parent Alphabet, Meta (formerly Facebook) and Amazon — are the dominant users of undersea-cable capacity, according to the Wall Street Journal. In fact, their use has grown from 10 percent of the world’s undersea fiber-optic capacity in 2012, to 66 percent today.
“By 2024, the four are projected to collectively have an ownership stake in more than 30 long-distance undersea cables, each up to thousands of miles long, connecting every continent on the globe save Antarctica,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
By J. Sharpe Smith, Inside Towers Technology Editor
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