Carrier1 and 360networks Forge $175-million Capacity Deal

360networks inc. (Vancouver) and Carrier1 International S.A. (Zurich, Switzerland) have forged a $175-million agreement to swap capacity and fiber network infrastructure on their European, transatlantic, and North American networks.

Carrier1 will provide 360networks with 3,000 km (1,900 miles) of diversely-routed dark fiber connecting 15 cities in Germany, including Munich, Berlin, Hamburg, Hanover, Frankfurt, and Dusseldorf. 360networks will also obtain dark fiber on Carrier1's city rings in Paris and Amsterdam.

360networks will provide Carrier1 dark fiber on its diversely-routed 1,150-km (715-mile) network between Liverpool and London, connecting Manchester, Sheffield, Birmingham, Bristol, Nottingham, and Cambridge.

Carrier1 will also purchase lit broadband capacity on 360networks' transatlantic and North American networks. In addition, 360networks will buy broadband capacity on Carrier1's 10,000-kilometer (6,200-mile) pan-European network that connects 40 cities in 13 countries, including France, Norway, Austria, and Italy.

"This latest agreement with Carrier1 enables us to begin selling broadband capacity immediately in key areas of Europe in advance of lighting our own pan-European network," says Greg Maffei, president and CEO of 360networks. "We are also very pleased to complete another major sale of bandwidth capacity on our transatlantic network, which enters commercial service early next year."

Edited by Erik Kreifeldt