Asia-America Gateway launched

HIS Royal Highness Prince Hj Al-Muhtadee Billah, the Crown Prince and Senior Minister at the Prime Minister's Office, yesterday inaugurated the Asia-America Gateway (AAG) in Brunei, which paves the way for improved telecommunications infrastructure and increased communications links to the rest of the world.

Speaking at the ceremony at The Empire Hotel & Country Club, Communications Minister Pehin Orang Kaya Seri Kerna Dato Seri Setia Hj Abu Bakar Hj Apong said that the 20,000-km submarine cable system spanning the Pacific Ocean, provides Brunei with 1.92 terabits of data bandwith per second.

The existing Southeast Asia-Middle East-Western Europe cable system provides the Sultanate with access to a maximum of 655 megabytes per second, an officer from the Authority of Info-communications Technology Industry of Brunei Darussalam (Aiti) informed The Brunei Times.

"It will help meet the (local) demand for Internet, video and also multimedia services, which is currently on the rise," the minister said.

In addition to the significant hike in capacity, the AAG has the potential to do much more, Pehin Dato Hj Abu Bakar said, as it will also help ensure the continuity of all commercial activities.

The increased bandwith and communications will also help develop the local ICT industry and increase confidence among foreign investors, he added.

The first of its kind to connect Southeast Asia directly to the US, the AAG links eight countries at 11 landing stations.

The Brunei government previously held the rights, obligations, interests and title in the AAG to Brunei. A signing ceremony yesterday saw this transferred to newly-formed, public-private joint venture Brunei International Gateway Sdn Bhd (BIG).

The Communications Minister signed on behalf of the government, while the ministry's Permanent Secretary Hj Alaihuddin POKDSLDSU Hj Awg Mohd Taha as chairman of BIG signed the deal.

His Royal Highness launched BIG's website, www.big.com.bn, yesterday and viewed a poster exhibition on the joint venture company.

Pehin Dato Hj Abu Bakar said that BIG will be responsible for managing the cable's services, as well as the tendering and sale of the bandwith capacity to local and international telecommunications operators.

Apart from bandwith trading, BIG will also be involved in investing in strategic telecommunications infrastructure for the country such as fibre-to-the-home and satellite communications, supporting efforts to ensure a continuous and efficient communications system for Brunei.

"Aside from this positive development, there are still many more challenges we need to address, not only to meet the increasing demand and hopes of the public as well as the industry, but also the importance of strategically positioning Brunei as a means to grab new opportunities in this digital era, which encompasses development and improvement of telecommunications infrastructure," the minister said.

Brunei has pledged US$40 million ($55 million) to the BIG project, with the government contributing US$30 million through its investment vehicle Brooketon Sdn Bhd, while the Sultanate's two Internet service providers DST and TelBru are investing US$5 million each.

The AAG links Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, Brunei, Hong Kong and the Philippines direct to the US where the cable system lands in Guam, Hawaii and California, a statement from the Ministry of Communications said.

With the AAG now in place, Internet traffic congestion can now be reduced from the Southeast Asia-Middle East-Western Europe cable system and re-routed to the AAG, providing a more stable connection and another source of communications as back-up, AiTi officials said.

BIG now holds the rights, obligations, interests and title in the AAG to Brunei, following the signing ceremony.

The Brunei Times