Could support 80 million simultaneous HD video calls between the cities

Will span nearly 8,000 miles of the Pacific,

An 8,000 mile undersea internet cable connecting Los Angeles to Hong Kong is set to be built across the Pacific Ocean by 2018.

Google is teaming up with Facebook, Pacific Light Data Communication, and TE SubCom to construct a system that’s twice as powerful as the record-holding Faster cable that went live in June, which was said to be 10 million times quicker than a modem.

According to the researchers, the new ultra high-capacity system would be able to support 80 million simultaneous HD video conference calls between Asia and North America, and will bring faster speeds and increased security.

An 8,000 mile undersea internet cable connecting Los Angeles to Hong Kong is set to be built across the Pacific Ocean by 2018. It will be twice as powerful as the record-holding Faster cable that went live in June, which was said to be 10 million times quicker than a modem

THE SUBSEA CABLE The PLCN will stretch nearly 8,000 miles, from Los Angeles to Hong Kong. It is an ultra high-capacity system, capable of 120-terabits-per-second. This is twice the capabilities of the Faster cable, which connects the US to Japan. Researchers say the new would be able to support 80 million simultaneous HD video conference calls between Asia and North America. Advertisement

Plans for the Pacific Light Cable Network (PLCN) were announced on the Google Cloud Platform Blog.

The cable will be the highest capacity trans-Pacific system, with a capacity of 120 terabits-per-second, and is the sixth undersea cable the Google has taken part in.

It’s hoped that the PLCN will be operational in 2018.

‘From the get-go, PLCN is designed to accommodate evolving infrastructure technology, allowing us to independently choose network equipment and refresh optical technology as it advances,’ the Google team wrote.

‘Most importantly, PLCN will bring lower latency, more security, and greater bandwidth to Google users in the APAC region.’

Along with this, the firm says it will expand Google’s reach in Asia for Google Cloud and G Suite users.

Just months ago, Google revealed the completion of its subsea cable system that stretches from the United States to Japan.

The new system will be twice as powerful as the record-holding Faster cable that went live in June, pictured, which was said to be 10 million times quicker than a modem

THE 5,600 MILE CABLE The Faster subsea cable system has 60TBps total capacity – 10 million times faster than a cable modem. It transmits multiple colours of light over various frequencies, using a repeater to reenergize the light roughly every 37 miles. It has landing points in Oregon, in the US, and Chiba and Mie, in Japan, but connectivity will extend along the West Coast of the US and to major cities in Japan and other Asian locations. Advertisement

The $300 million ‘Faster’ cable system is backed by six companies, including Google, and runs through the Pacific Ocean from Oregon to Chiba and Mie.

The system currently has a greater total capacity than any other undersea cable, Google SVP of Technical Infrastructure Urs Hölzle revealed in a blog post.

It can deliver 60 terabits per second of bandwidth 5,600 miles across the ocean, bringing high speed connection to users in the US and Japan.

‘Internet users and our customers in Japan today should notice things seem to be moving a bit…FASTER,’ Hölzle wrote.

‘Today, our FASTER subsea cable between Japan and the U.S. officially entered into service.’

It has landing points in Oregon, in the US, and Chiba and Mie, in Japan, but the benefits won’t be limited only to these areas.

The submarine cable system has extended connections along the West Coast, allowing it to cover Los Angeles, the San Francisco Bay Area, Portland, and Seattle.

And, this connectivity will reach many major cities in Japan and other Asian locations.

The subsea cable system can deliver 60 terabits per second of bandwidth 5,600 miles across the ocean, bringing high speed connection to users in the US and Japan. It has landing points in Oregon, in the US, and Chiba and Mie, in Japan, but the benefits won’t be limited only to these areas

The Faster Cable system was built through the collaboration of six international companies and NEC Corporation.

It transmits multiple colours of light over various frequencies, using a repeater to reenergize the light roughly every 37 miles.

Construction was first announced in August 2014.

‘From the very beginning of the project, we repeatedly said to each other, ‘faster, Faster and FASTER,’ and at one point it because the project name, and today it becomes a reality, said Hiromitsu Todokoro, Chairman of the FASTER Management Committee.

‘This is the outcome of six members’ collaborative contribution and expertise together with NEC’s support.

Along with this achievement, Google will open its Google Cloud Platform region in Tokyo later this year, for a faster and more secure public cloud, according to Hölzle.

Faster isn’t the only subsea cable system, the SVP explained, but it is the most powerful.