Reliance Jio Infocomm, which is the subsidiary of Reliance Group has teamed up with the government of Maldives-owned Ocean Connect Maldives Private Limited (OCM), to install the next generation of India-Asia-Xpress (IAX) undersea cable system that would connect the Maldives directly with major internet hubs in India and Singapore.
Originating in Mumbai, the IAX system connects India, Singapore, Malaysia, and Thailand. Meanwhile, India-Europe-Xpress (IEX) system connects Mumbai to Milan, landing in Savona, Italy, and some areas of the Middle East, North Africa and the Mediterranean. Reliance Jio Infocomm is among India's major telecommunication operators, providing services such as 4G and mobile broadband digital services. Jio has also plans to roll out 5G and 6G technologies in the future.
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Speaking on the development, Uz Fayyaz Ismail, Maldives’ Minister of Economic Development said, “This is the first stride towards enhancing our connectivity infrastructure and opening vast opportunities for our people through providing secure, affordable and high-quality services. We also aim to diversify our economy and establish ourselves as a key communications hub in South Asia. Aside from economic development, this will accelerate social development through high-speed internet access throughout the Maldives allowing us to attain the equitable development we seek.”
Both IAX and IEX employs open system technology and the latest wavelength switched RoADM/branching units that ensures rapid upgrade deployment and the ultimate flexibility to add/drop waves across multiple locations. Notably, both systems will provide over 200Tb/sec of capacity at speeds of 100Gb/sec, over 16,000 kilometres.
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Mathew Oommen, President of Reliance Jio said, “IAX will not only connect the Maldives to the world’s content hubs, but it will also support the explosive growth in data demand expected from the new initiatives being launched by the government of Maldives.”
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