GTS Announces Expansion of Fiber Optic Network to Provide More Than 70 Terabits of Capacity in its Core - Company Business and Marketing

Cambridge Telcom Report, Jan 31, 2000

Global TeleSystems (GTS), the leading European e-Business and borderless broadband services company, Tuesday announced that it plans to dramatically broaden and deepen the capacity of its trans-European network. As part of an overall US$500 million capital-investment plan for backbone network enhancements in 2000, this new initiative calls for the development of a multi-fiber cable duct providing additional redundant connectivity to London, Paris, Brussels, Amsterdam, Frankfurt and Dusseldorf. The new cable duct will accommodate up to 144 fibers, allowing GTS to stay well ahead of exploding demand for bandwidth and maintain its market-leading position.

Other major elements of the overall network capital-spending plan include completing the network's reach to at least 50 European cities; installing additional dense wavelength division multiplexing equipment throughout the company's trans-European network; and "lighting" a second, currently installed fiber pair on a number of existing routes.

GTS expects to sign commercial, long-term contracts for fiber and ducts, supplementing those purchases by building new fiber and connecting ductwork where necessary. The new capacity will be integrated with the company's industry-leading network, which currently exceeds 16,000 kilometers, delivering broadband services to 28 cities in 11 European countries. GTS plans to expand the network to more than 25,000 kilometers by the end of 2000.

As previously announced, the company has formed FLAG Atlantic-1 (FA-1), a joint venture with FLAG Telecom, to build a 2.4-terabit-per-second fiber ring connecting Europe with the United States. When FA-1 is operational in 2001, GTS will be ready to satisfy the resulting increased demand for capacity on its trans-European network.

H. Brian Thompson, GTS's chairman and chief executive officer, said: "We plan to light the second of our existing fiber pairs, giving us in excess of a terabit of capacity on the busiest routes of our network. On the strength of our meshed network architecture, we will, for example, soon have as much as four terabits of capacity serving Paris. If the market grows as some analysts project, we will be prepared to light a third pair, as necessary, in 18 to 24 months, or sooner.

"We believe the addition of this new initiative in the high-demand northwestern European countries is a prudent, efficient means to ensure we have ample capacity far into the future," Thompson continued. "Under even the most aggressive market forecasts, this new multi-fiber cable duct will give GTS the ability to carry all of the Internet and telecom traffic in Europe for decades to come. With this expansion, we can continue to innovate and lead the industry by offering flexible, highly scalable pan-European broadband solutions. Our existing 2.5 Gbps IP service is just the tip of the iceberg of what we plan to offer going forward."

Global TeleSystems is the leading provider of e-Business and borderless broadband services across Europe, serving businesses and carriers in 20 European countries with a range of broadband, Internet/IP and voice services. As an industry leader in Europe, the company has the largest cross-border fiber-optic network; the largest Tier-1 IP backbone; the most widely deployed pan-European e-Business sales and service staff; and the largest pan-European customer base. GTS's first and most extensive trans-European broadband fiber network includes points of presence in over 50 European cities and stretches across more than 16,000 route kilometers. Through the use of state-of-the-art dense wavelength division multiplexing (DWDM) technology, GTS operates over 132,000 active "wavelength" kilometers, making GTS a global pioneer in the use of this technology. In addition, GTS has announced plans to build FLAG Atlantic-1, an advanced trans-Atlantic undersea dual-cable system, in a joint venture with FLAG Telecom. GTS is extending its core network deeper into key European cities through the development of City Enterprise Networks (CENs). Also, GTS is the majority owner of Golden Telecom, which offers a variety of fixed-line and mobile telecommunications services in Russia, Ukraine and other former Soviet nations.

GTS is the winner of the prestigious World Communications Award for Best Wholesale Carrier in October 1999 and the ECTA award for Best New Carrier in November 1999. Headquartered in the metropolitan Washington, D.C. area and with European headquarters in London, GTS has offices in over 80 European cities. Additional information about GTS is available on GTS's website at www.gtsgroup.com.