Sparkle, Italy's first international service provider and a global operator, announced on Thursday the activation of commercial service in the first section of the BlueMed submarine cable system. This cable connects Palermo with Genoa and further extends to Milan, providing a range of benefits for operators, internet service providers (ISPs), enterprises, and institutions.
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Increased Capacity
BlueMed cable users will have access to high-capacity connections, with options at multiples of 100 or 400 gigabits per second (Gbps). This represents a significant increase in data transfer capabilities.
Reduced Latency
Sparkle highlighted that, compared to existing terrestrial cables connecting Sicily with Milan, the BlueMed submarine cable offers a 50 percent reduction in latency. This means faster data transfer and reduced delays in communication.
Extensive Coverage
Sparkle's new cable, BlueMed, will connect Italy with France, Greece, and several countries bordering the Mediterranean Sea, all the way to Aqaba in Jordan. The cable is a part of the Blue and Raman Submarine Cable Systems, which is built in partnership with Google and other operators and will ultimately extend to Mumbai, India.
Sparkle said BlueMed enhances network resilience by providing a secure and diverse route between Sicily and Milan. This complements existing terrestrial backbones and offers a more robust network infrastructure.
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High Throughput
Each fibre pair in the BlueMed cable is equipped with a transmission platform capable of a throughput of 30 Terabits per second (Tbps). Sparkle highlighted that this capacity is currently the highest submarine backbone capacity per fibre pair in service in the Mediterranean region.
Network Integration
Sparkle said it has also fully integrated BlueMed with its existing network, making it a seamless part of its infrastructure. This integration ensures reliable connectivity and performance.
Sicily Hub
The Sicily Hub neutral data centre in Palermo, which is already connected to eighteen international cables, now benefits from this new route to continental Europe. This is advantageous for service providers in Africa and the Middle East, as well as content providers exchanging traffic and digital applications on the island.
Genoa Digital Hub
The Genoa Digital Hub in Lagaccio serves as an open and neutral colocation facility and an interconnection point for terrestrial networks and international submarine cables, including BlueMed.
The first traffic flows have been activated on the Genoa Digital Hub, and the cable will continue to be activated to other locations in the Mediterranean region in the coming months. The fibre optic system ends its journey at the Milan hub.
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Future Expansion
Sparkle plans to activate additional sections of the BlueMed cable system, including routes to Pomezia (Rome), Golfo Aranci (Sardinia), Bastia (Corsica), and Marseille by the end of 2023. In 2024, Sparkle aims to expand further into the Central and Eastern Mediterranean.
Sparkle's BlueMed submarine cable system represents a significant advancement in the connectivity infrastructure of the Mediterranean region, offering high-speed, resilient, and diverse connectivity options for a wide range of users and organizations.
