Q&A with Data Center POST’s Contributing Editor, Kathy Xu
Data Center POST recently spoke with Stephen Scott, CEO of Deep Blue Cable Limited, about the company’s subsea fibre-optic system that will provide connectivity across the Caribbean islands and to the United States, and what it hopes to accomplish at ITW 2017, taking place May 14-17 in Chicago.
Data Center POST, Kathy Xu (DCP-KX) Question: Tell us about Deep Blue Cable and how the company is unique among subsea cable providers?
Deep Blue Cable, Steve Scott (DBC-SS) Answer: Based in St. Lucia, Deep Blue Cable is the developer of a state-of-the art, subsea fiber-optic system that will provide connectivity across the Caribbean islands and to the United States. Spanning approximately 14,000 kilometers, the Deep Blue cable will initially land in 19 markets throughout the Caribbean region. Significant Caribbean landing points will include Cayman Islands, Jamaica, Haiti, Trinidad, Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, Curacao, Panama and Colombia.
With more than 40 landings planned in the Caribbean, mainland U.S., and South America, the Deep Blue cable is designed to be fully looped with many cables at unique landing sites.
DCP-KX Q: What need is Deep Blue Cable solving with its state-of-the-art submarine telecom system?
DBC-SS A: Caribbean bandwidth demand is strong, and high growth is forecasted to continue due to investment in fixed and mobile broadband infrastructure.
The Deep Blue cable will offer choice and substantial new capacity to serve developing Caribbean countries that are experiencing a surge in demand for advanced telecommunications services, providing connectivity to international and regional telecom operators, regional network providers, Over-the-Top providers and large enterprises, including financial services and oil and gas companies.
By ensuring competitive pricing and resilience through alternative supply, the Deep Blue cable will release Caribbean-based companies that for decades have survived with desperate constraints in terms of operator choice. Existing Caribbean fiber-optic connectivity is technologically and economically disadvantaged and there has been no new pan-regional fiber-optic deployment in the last ten years with some of the region’s primary undersea cable links already exceeding their planned technical lifespan of 20 years.
Deep Blue’s advantages over these older systems include significantly higher design capacity, lower bandwidth unit costs, lower latency through direct connectivity, and the ability to leverage advancements in reliability, including improved route planning and installation techniques.
DCP-KX Q: What do you hope to accomplish at ITW 2017 this year?
DBC-SS A: Beyond its usefulness as a platform for Deep Blue to meet and engage with potential customers and partners, ITW is also an opportunity to discuss and learn about the challenges directly impacting the global wholesale telecom community, including stakeholders in both the subsea and terrestrial network ecospheres.
DCP-KX Q: If readers want more information about Deep Blue Cable, where should they go?
DBC-SS A: For more information, interested parties should visit www.deepbluecable.com, or contact us at info@deepbluecable.com.
DCP-KX: Thank you for your time and best of luck at ITW.