Asia Global Crossing Announces On Schedule Landing Of Its East Asia Crossing Cable System In Singapore
Singapore, 10 January 2002 - Asia Global Crossing (NYSE: AX) today announced the on-time fourth quarter 2001 landing of its East Asia Crossing subsea cable system in Singapore. This latest connection links Singapore to more than 200 cities and 27 countries through the worldwide Asia Global Crossing/Global Crossing Network.
East Asia Crossing is the first privately owned pan-Asian subsea cable system. It already links Hong Kong, Japan, Taiwan and Korea, and is scheduled to connect the Philippines and Malaysia in early 2002. Plans are also in place to connect China as regulations permit. The system will have an initial transmission speed of 80 gigabits per second and is upgradeable to 2.56 terabits.
The landing of East Asia Crossing is an important milestone for Singapore as it strives to develop its telecommunications infrastructure to support the country’s fast-growing demand for broadband applications.
In addition to landing East Asia Crossing, Asia Global Crossing will utilize its local partnership with StarHub to address Singapore’s bandwidth and IP services needs. In April 2001, Asia Global Crossing formed a 50:50 joint venture with StarHub. The joint venture, known as StarHub Crossing, owns and operates a high capacity backhaul network in Singapore between Asia Global Crossing’s East Asia Crossing landing station in Changi North and StarHub Crossing’s Telehouse facility at Tai Seng. StarHub Crossing also provides co-location services and termination in the Telehouse facility, plus access to local loop providers, enabling a full set of solutions on a global, regional or local basis to be presented to customers.
Independent of this joint venture, Asia Global Crossing will obtain cost effective last mile connectivity in Singapore through StarHub’s superior terrestrial network. Customers in Singapore can expect a total superior solution with direct worldwide connectivity to more than 200 major cities and 27 countries over the Asia Global Crossing/Global Crossing Network. The solution is enhanced with cost effective backhaul and co-location through StarHub Crossing, customers can gain local access to over 600 commercial buildings via StarHub’s local network.
"Singapore is a magnet for multi-national corporations and rapid deregulation is helping it become a major communications hub," said John Legere, chief executive officer of Asia Global Crossing. "We are partnering with StarHub to give customers in Singapore a real edge as they compete across the region and the world."
"We are heartened by the rapid progress and success of StarHub’s partnership with Asia Global Crossing. With this close collaboration, StarHub’s global network platform is being rapidly extended to provide high-quality and cost-effective backhaul solutions to our customers, who will in turn enjoy more supply, better economics and better service," said Terry Clontz, President and Chief Executive Officer of StarHub.
"StarHub Crossing is poised to provide a strong alternative and deliver competitive advantage for international connectivity into Singapore. With our diverse state-of-the-art fiber backhaul infrastructure and world-class Telehouse facilities, we are confident that our presence and operations will help Singapore become even more competitive on all fronts," said Andrew Grenville, chief executive officer of StarHub Crossing.
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