AT&T launches $1bn network push

New AT&T projects include a series of undersea fibre-optic lines

AT&T has launched a major campaign to beef up its network infrastructure.

The company said on Wednesday that it would commit $1bn to a series of global projects to boost its ability to provide internet services around the world.

"Companies worldwide are responding to the exploding need to deliver voice, data and video in real time to end users, no matter where they are and no matter what the device," said Ron Spears, group president of AT&T Global Business Services.

"It is vital that we continue to invest in those geographies and services to meet this demand so that customers can connect their operations, partners and suppliers."

Projects include a series of undersea fibre-optic lines, including links between China and Japan, Australia and Southeast Asia, and a series of lines in The Caribbean. The goal is to fully link AT&T's fibre-optic cable system between Europe and Asia.

The company also plans to add network-to-network connections in eastern Europe, Asia and South America, and to upgrade its Multiprotocol Label Switching routers in Europe, the US, Central America and the Middle East.

The upgraded infrastructure is intended to support a number of new and updated services from AT&T.

The company plans to improve its unified communications offerings and IP-based audio conferencing systems.

AT&T will also upgrade its BusinessDirect offering, which allows administrators to monitor and manage network performance online.

The latest campaign follows what some pundits see as a dramatic increase in the need for fibre-optic networks and systems.

Analysts predict that telephone companies will increasingly invest in the new lines in order to better compete with cable providers.

AT&T is not completely giving up on its DSL service, however. Part of the $1bn funding will expand the DSL range into 21 countries, adding China, Finland, Norway and Saudi Arabia.