NEC to Upgrade EAC Pacific Cable Network

Increasing demand in connectivity between Asia and North America accelerates plan to upgrade capacity across new Trans Pacific network infrastructure

TOKYO, Feb. 28, 2011 /PRNewswire-Asia/ --NEC Corporation (NEC; TSE: 6701) and Pacnet today announced the signing of a multi-million dollar contract to upgrade the 9,620km EAC Pacific Cable Network (“EAC Pacific”) which represents two of the five fiber pairs of the Unity Cable System, connecting Chikura, Chiba, off the coast of Japan near Tokyo, to Los Angeles, California.

EAC Pacific, with a capacity of 1.92 Terabit/s, was first installed in March 2010 and began operation the following month. In response to the rising transmission demands between regions, NEC is applying the latest technologies to support a dramatic 300 Gigabit/s upgrade. The upgrade is scheduled to be implemented in several phases, the last phase to be ready for service by June 2011.

“It’s evident that, in less than a year since EAC Pacific was ready for service, we have seen aggressive traffic growth, therefore, have accelerated our upgrade plans to deliver additional capacity to meet growing Trans Pacific requirements," said Wilfred Kwan, Chief Technology Officer of Pacnet. “The latest upgrade also enables us with the potential to double EAC Pacific’s design capacity through the use of latest 40G technologies.”

According to TeleGeography research director Alan Mauldin, “Our latest research indicates that Trans Pacific demand is expected to increase at a compound annual rate of 50 percent between 2010 and 2016. To meet this demand, we have forecast that an additional 64 Tbps of capacity will be required across the Pacific.”

"This upgrade is a significant step for NEC, as we demonstrate once again our capabilities to meet market expectations for high-quality products and services from a major client, and to deliver such a system in record breaking speed," said Osamu Harada, General Manager, Submarine Network Division, NEC.

Over the past 30 years, NEC has been one of the top vendors in the submarine cable field. The company has provided major submarine cable systems across the world, including the Asia-Pacific region. Furthermore, NEC has been awarded a number of new projects and system upgrades in the US and Caribbean.

About NEC Corporation

NEC Corporation is a leader in the integration of IT and network technologies that benefit businesses and people around the world. By providing a combination of products and solutions that cross utilize the company’s experience and global resources, NEC’s advanced technologies meet the complex and ever-changing needs of its customers. NEC brings more than 100 years of expertise in technological innovation to empower people, businesses and society.  For more information, visit NEC at http://www.nec.com.

NEC is registered trademark of NEC Corporation. All Rights Reserved. Other product or service marks mentioned herein are the trademarks of their respective owners. ©2011 NEC Corporation.

About Pacnet

Named “Company of the Year for Excellence in Growth” by Frost & Sullivan in 2009 and “Best Wholesale Carrier” at the Telecom Asia Awards 2009, Pacnet is Asia’s leading independent telecommunications service provider, formed from the operational merger of Asia Netcom and Pacific Internet. Pacnet owns and operates EAC-C2C, Asia’s largest privately-owned submarine cable network at 36,800 km, with a design capacity of 17.92 Tbps to 30.72 Tbps to and from each of the landing countries, as well as EAC Pacific, which spans 9,620 km across the Pacific Ocean and delivers up to 1.92 Tbps of capacity between Asia and North America. The company offers a comprehensive portfolio of industry leading IP-based solutions for carriers, large enterprises and SMEs. Pacnet is headquartered in Hong Kong and Singapore, with offices in all key markets in Asia and North America. For more information, please visit:  www.pacnet.com.