Oct 9 2007
An Australian telecommunications news service, Communications Day, reports that Google is allegedly planning a multi-terabit undersea fiber optic cable across the Pacific Ocean for launch in 2009. Apparently, a group of carriers and Google were meeting in Sydney for high-level talks on the plan, dubbed "Unity", over the last week.
Under the alleged deal Google is to get access to a fibre optic pair at build cost, allowing the company to peer with Asia ISPs behind their international gateways. Asia Netcom and Telstra have discussed the concept with the California-based search engine leader, Communications Day reports, with up to a dozen companies involved in the Unity cable. They do not include, however, the company behind the upcoming Asia America Gateway cable, Telekom Malaysia, which has not been invited to participate in talks.
"Additional infrastructure for the internet is good for users and there are a number of proposals to add a Pacific submarine cable. We're not commenting on any of these plans," a tight-lipped Google spokesman Barry Schnitt said in a Google statement.
The Unity project was previously announced by Mike Saunders, the Level 3 executive, who said at a Singapore conference that the fiber cable is one of a few new communications channels to be laid under the Pacific. Unity was planned for a service launch in 2009, Saunders said at the time.
Fiber optics is not the only data communications medium eyed by the search giant. Google¡¦s CEO Eric Schmidt confirmed late August the company¡¦s intention to pursue its interests in the upcoming auction set by the FCC for the wireless spectrum in the 700 MHz band.
Google¡¦s bid is conditioned by the acceptance of a framework which the Mountain View behemoth has long lobbied for, aimed at ensuring "greater competition and consumer choice".
The Internet search giant urged the FCC to accept and implement rules for the auction which should benefit consumers¡¦ interest first, no matter what company wins. Specifically, Google encouraged the FCC to require the adoption of four types of "open" platforms as part of the license conditions: open applications (no restrictions should be imposed to downloading and using any software applications, content, or services), open devices (consumers should be able to freely switch with their handheld communications device between any wireless network available), open services (third parties (resellers) should be able to acquire wireless services from a 700 MHz licensee on a wholesale basis, based on reasonably nondiscriminatory commercial terms) and open networks (third parties (resellers) should be able to acquire wireless services from a 700 MHz licensee on a wholesale basis, based on reasonably nondiscriminatory commercial terms).