Subsea Cable

IOActive, Inc., the worldwide leader in research-driven security services, released a new advisory documenting critical cybersecurity vulnerabilities affecting Stratos Global’s AmosConnect communication shipboard platform. Stratos Global, an Inmarsat company, is the leading provider of maritime communications services in the world and used by thousands of ship vessels globally.

IOX Cable Ltd and Alcatel Submarine Networks, part of Nokia, have commenced work for cable route survey for the IOX Cable System, which will span more than 8,850 kilometers.

Crews aboard the Alcatel Submarine Networks’ C/V Ile de Batz installed the last segment of cable beneath the ocean floor, completing physical installation of the Alaska portion of the international Quintillion Subsea Cable System. The system is on schedule to be in service this December, enabling 21st Century communications in the North American Arctic for the first time.

Huawei Marine hosted the 3rd Asia Pacific Submarine Networks Forum in Hangzhou with the theme: “Developing ICT Hubs: Make Submarine Cables a Strategic Asset.” This year’s forum discussed the submarine cable industry’s role as a key facilitator of Asia-Pacific ICT development.

FP Telecommunications (FPT) and Alcatel Submarine Networks (ASN), part of Nokia, have signed a turn-key agreement for the deployment of AURORA Submarine Cable System. Supporting the increasing bandwidth demands for broadband applications in North, Central and South America countries, AURORA will be based on ASN's advanced submarine system technology supporting the regional social and economic development.

Deep Blue Cable, the developer, owner and operator of a state-of-the-art subsea fiber-optic system providing connectivity across the Caribbean islands and to the Americas, has announced plans to extend its pan-Caribbean subsea network to Colombia and Panama, as well as expand to additional landing points throughout the region.

Vocus Group Limited announced the successful connection of its high-speed fiber-optic North-West Cable System (NWCS), to the INPEX-operated Ichthys LNG Project and Shell’s Prelude FLNG facility located off the north-west coast of Australia.

PLDT is set to open another international submarine cable link for the Philippines to three continents with the launch of the new Asia-Africa-Europe 1 Submarine Cable System (AAE-1) before the end of the year.

Mackay Communications Inc., a worldwide marine electronics and airtime service provider, announces it has signed a Partner agreement with Inmarsat (LSE: ISAT.L) to distribute its award-winning Fleet Xpress service to the global maritime market including deep sea vessels, commercial fishing, oil and gas, defense, and cruise-passenger lines.

Speedcast International Limited (ASX: SDA), the world’s most trusted provider of highly reliable, fully managed, remote communication and IT solutions, announces that the company has been selected to provide Middle Earth Orbit (MEO) Ka-band managed communications services to a production asset owned and operated by a major U.S.-based operator in Equatorial Guinea on Bioko Island, off the coast of West Africa.

In the always-on hyper-connected world it is easy to forget how heavily the world economy depends on submarine cables. Estimates show that 99 percent of all intercontinental trade and a major volume of international web traffic are carried via subsea connections.

People and organizations rely on global networks every day to provide access to internet and cloud technology. Those systems enable tasks both simple and complex, from uploading photos and searching webpages to conducting banking transactions and managing air-travel logistics. Most people are aware of their daily dependency on the internet, but few understand the critical role played by the subsea networks spanning the planet in providing that connectivity.