New China, US underwater cable link planned

A new, faster underwater optical cable may soon link the US and China to meet growing demand for high-speed internet access, Reuters reported. US company Verizon Communications and five Asian partners plan to build the link almost halfway around the world at a cost of more than US$500 million. The cable would have 60 times the capacity of existing links, enough for 62 million simultaneous phone calls. Verizon, China Telecom, China Netcom, China Unicom, Korea Telecom and Chunghwa Telecom will start building the 18,000-kilometer link early in 2007. Verizon is involved in more than 65 undersea cable networks around the world.