Microsoft : Facebook and Telxius complete subsea cable

The superstorm sparked the realization that another major event could disrupt the vital connectivity lifeline across the Atlantic. As part of its ongoing efforts to drive innovation and expand capacity of its global network, Microsoft sought options for making transatlantic connections more resilient, and became aware that Facebook leaders shared a similar perspective.

'We kept running into each other at industry events and meetings,' Rey says. 'We collectively recognized that we were each trying to solve the same problem and could combine our technical and engineering expertise to reinforce the transatlantic network and design a better cable for global connectivity.'

Microsoft and Facebook agreed to partner on the development, design and implementation of a 4,000-mile-long subsea cable connecting Virginia Beach, Virginia, and Bilbao, Spain. Global telecommunication infrastructure company Telxius, a subsidiary of telecom provider Telefónica, joined as the third partner to manage the construction process and operate the cable.

Dubbed Marea, Spanish for 'tide,' it is the first subsea cable connecting Virginia and Spain. Situating the cable many miles south of the current connection points on both continents helps safeguard against natural disasters or other major events disrupting connectivity across the Atlantic.

Marea is also the highest-capacity subsea cable to cross the Atlantic, providing up to 160 terabits of data per second. That's more than 16 million times faster than the average home internet connection, with the capability to stream 71 million high-definition videos simultaneously. Additionally, Marea's landing point in Bilbao provides a convenient path to network hubs in Africa, the Middle East and Asia, and its enormous bandwidth will help meet the increasing demand for internet and cloud services.

'Marea comes at a critical time,' says Brad Smith, president of Microsoft. 'Submarine cables in the Atlantic already carry 55 percent more data than trans-Pacific routes and 40 percent more data than between the U.S. and Latin America. There is no question that the demand for data flows across the Atlantic will continue to increase and Marea will provide a critical connection for the United States, Spain, and beyond.'

The project highlights the increasing role of private companies in building the infrastructure of the future. Microsoft and Facebook designed the cable to be interoperable with a variety of networking equipment. Through a new 'open' design, the cable can evolve with technology, ensuring the highest performance for current and future users, even as the global population of internet users grows.

Najam Ahmad, vice president network engineering for Facebook, says Marea's flexible design will allow the company to adapt to future needs and better support its increasingly data-intensive services. The cable also serves Facebook's goal of enabling users to have 'deep connections and shared experiences' with people around the world, he says.

'Obviously, connectivity is one part of achieving that goal. Marea will help us connect people more quickly and efficiently,' Ahmad says. 'More broadly, robust connectivity can help a wide variety of people build relationships and collaborate between countries and across cultures.'

Rafael Arranz, chief operating officer for Telxius, says, 'All of these applications, especially everything that is driven by video, consume a huge amount of bandwidth. So everybody needs to be connected with a high-volume, high-bandwidth infrastructure. With its unique route, this cable is going to be able to absorb and deliver back-and-forth traffic to strengthen communications, not just across the Atlantic, but across the globe.'

Marea will serve what has become an increasingly important route for cross-border data flows between the United States and Europe. Transatlantic data flows are expected to continue growing as more consumers use mobile smart devices to access the internet. By 2018, 93 percent of U.S. mobile devices and 83 percent of Western Europe's mobile devices will be smart devices, according to a study by Brookings.