Facebook and Google are planning to build two massive undersea cables, aiming to provide faster internet between North America and Southeast Asia. These cables would connect North America with Singapore and Indonesia, Southeast Asia's largest economy, which is home to a growing number of smartphone users.
Kevin Salvadori, Facebook's vice president of network investments, told Reuters : " The cables, codenamed 'Echo' and 'Bifrost', will be the first two cables to run through a new route, which will cross the Java Sea, and will increase data capacity between regions by 70% and improve Internet reliability.
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While Facebook is investing in both cables, Google is only investing in Echo. The cost of the projects, which are still subject to regulatory approvals, has not been disclosed. However, the social media said it is “a very good investment for the company in Southeast Asia.
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These cables, he said, will be the first to directly connect North America to some of the main parts of Indonesia, and will increase connectivity for the central and eastern provinces of the world's fourth most populous country.
Additionally, Salvadori and Nico Roehrich, Facebook's director of Network Investments, said in a joint blog post:
“We are committed to bringing more people online and delivering faster internet. As part of this effort, we are proud to announce that we have partnered with leading regional and global partners to build two new undersea cables – Echo and Bifrost – that will provide vital new connections between the Asia-Pacific region and North America.”
Echo is being built in collaboration with Google and Indonesian telecommunications company “XL Axiata” and will be completed by 2023.Similarly, Bifrost, which is being built in collaboration with “Telin” – a subsidiary of Indonesian Telkom – and the Keppel, is expected to be completed by 2024.
The two cables, which will need to be licensed by authorities, follow previous investments by Facebook to boost connectivity in Indonesia - one of the world's top five markets.
Although 73% of Indonesia's 270 million people are connected to the Internet, most access via mobile data, and less than 10% use broadband connections, according to a 2020 survey by the Indonesian Internet Providers Association. Large parts of the country remain without Internet access.
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Last May, Facebook announced plans to build a 37,000-kilometer (22,991-mile) undersea cable around Africato provide better internet.
Google is also working on an undersea cable called Equiano, which aims to connect Africa to Europe. The tech giant has another unit, Loon, which builds high-altitude balloons that provide 4G internet to rural communities. It recently announced the expansion of that project to Mozambique.
Facebook previously had plans to bring internet to remote areas using solar-powered drones .
According to the BBC, Facebook has withdrawn three projects to connect the US to Hong Kong via similar cables, due to concerns about espionage.
