iiNet signs up for Hawaiki cable capacity
iiNet announced today that it has signed a letter of intent to purchase to up 3Tbps of capacity on the Hawaiki subsea cable that will connect Australia and New Zealand to the United States.
The new 14,000-kilometre, 20Tbps cable will connect Sydney, Australia, to Whangeri, New Zealand, then proceed to Hawaii and the west coast of the US. It is currently due to be completed in late 2015.
"As a leading carrier, the quality of iiNet's network infrastructure is paramount to maintaining the level of service our customers expect," iiNet CEO Michael Malone said in a statement.
"Spectrum ownership on submarine cables presents a unique opportunity to bring even more diversity to our international network, reduce ongoing costs per gigabyte and enhance our customers' experience."
It is expected that Hawaiki and iiNet will finalise their multi-million dollar argeement in the next few weeks.
iiNet is not the first Australian telco to seek capacity on the cable. Fellow Australian ISP, TPG, signed up for 3Tbps of capacity on the cable in August.
The deal between TPG and Hawaiki is set to cost the Australian telco between AU$10 million and AU$14 million in capital expenditure over three years from 2014.
Yesterday, it was announded that Hawaiki and New Zealand ISP, Voyager, had inked another multi-million dollar capacity deal.
"A single sub-sea cable system to the outside world has isolated New Zealand businesses from internet-based revenue opportunities," Voyager CEO Seeby Woodhouse said. "A carrier-neutral cable, like Hawaiki, is a step closer to lower wholesale data rates and faster and cheaper internet for consumers."
The total cost of the Hawaiki cable is expected to cost AU$350 million.