Google Cloud Platform launches in Tokyo
Google has today launched its cloud platform in Tokyo, building on its existing Taiwan cloud region.
In an announcement made via the company blog, Google claims its customers in the region will experience 50 to 85 percent lower latency on average compared to its services delivered from Taiwan.
The search giant said customers in Tokyo would have access to its core services, including Compute Engine, Cloud Storage, App Engine Standard Environment, Container Engine, Cloud Datastore, Cloud Dataflow, Cloud Dataproc, Cloud DNS, Cloud VPN, Cloud Router, and Cloud IAM products.
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The Taiwan and Tokyo cloud regions use Google's networking backbone, which includes the FASTER and PLCN submarine cables.
The FASTER trans-pacific fiber optic cable system funded by Google and five other international companies was ready for service in July this year. The cable system landed in Oregon, US with two landing points in Japan, in the Chiba and Mie prefectures.
FASTER delivers 60 Tbps of bandwidth across the Pacific -- about 10 million times faster than the average cable modem.
Of the cable's total bandwidth, Google gets access to up to 10 Tbps, which it said it will use to support users including Google Apps and Cloud Platform customers.
In October, Google and Facebook announced they would be investing in a submarine cable system between Los Angeles and Hong Kong, called the Pacific Light Cable Network (PLCN), in partnership with undersea communications company TE Subcom and Hong Kong-based broadband provider Pacific Light Data Communication.
PLCN will have 12,800 kilometres of fiber and an estimated cable capacity of 120 Tbps. Once completed, PLCN will be the highest-capacity transpacific route.
Its commercial launch is scheduled for mid-2018.
Google also plans to launch its cloud platform in Brazil, Singapore, and Sydney in 2017.