Instead of replacing the fiber optic cable, Fujitsu will upgrade the terminal station equipment, doubling the capacity of the network from 10Gbps to 20Gbps, with the possibility of increasing the capacity further--to as much as eight times the original, or equal to one million telephone lines.
FLAG Telecom Group, a network provider specializing in fiber-optic links between Europe and Asia, awarded the contract to Fujitsu.
The upgrades will mainly affect portions of the Europe-Japan cable lying between Alexandria, Egypt and Fujairah, United Arab Emirates.
FLAG Telecom's Chief Technology Officer Andrew Evans said that such upgrades give undersea cables a much longer lifespan than originally planned.
"By applying technology that is available today, we expect to be able to add capacity significantly in excess of the original design capacity...in a cost-effective manner, and with virtually no impact on our customers," he said.
Fujitsu said in a statement that despite the spending spree that network providers went on during the 1990s, capacity is fast being soaked up by broadband needs, with cheaper alternatives to replacing undersea cable being a priority.
Over the next two years, Fujitsu seeks to capture over 50 percent of the upgrade market, it said.
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