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State of AI in Telecommunications: 2023 Trends Survey Report

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State of AI in Telecommunications: 2023 Trends Survey Report

Taking a Closer Look at AI in the Telecommunications Industry

Edge AI New Jersey Data Center NJFX

From service vehicle routing and data science to voice assistants and network planning, artificial intelligence is becoming a staple in the telecoms industry. Recently, NVIDIA surveyed 400+ telecom industry professionals around the world on their views about the opportunities and challenges of implementing AI-driven practices across their company and in the industry. This report summarizes the key survey insights, as well as the investment decisions and
implementation approaches that define the state of AI in telecoms in 2023. While the responses show that there’s significant interest in AI, it’s also clear that the industry is in the early stages of its AI adoption journey and needs support to clearly define ROI.

The Key Trends for Telecommunications in 2023


The telecoms industry delivers critical infrastructure and services across enterprise and consumer industries, providing efficient connectivity for communication and online services around the world. Telcos (whether fixed, mobile, or cable providers) are the key players in this industry.

Together with other industry stakeholders, they spend billions of dollars annually to drive technological innovation, create new products and services, modernize their infrastructure, improve operational excellence, and deliver profitability to their shareholders. AI is increasingly an integral part of the investment roadmap, as telcos look to achieve their goals in an energy-efficient and environmentally friendly way.

In the 5G era particularly, AI will support telcos as they seek ways to deliver on expectations that 5G will bring revolutionary change across industries, while gaining a return on the significant investments they’ve made in capital, spectrum, deployment, and maintenance.

The telecoms industry is broadly positive on the need for AI in telecoms. The International Telecommunications Union (ITU)—the UN’s specialized information and communication technology (ICT) agency—promotes the AI for Good initiative. Likewise, the AI for Impact initiative by GSMA brings together a task force of 24 mobile telcos and an advisory panel of 12 UN agencies and partners to promote use of AI to achieve the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

 
Perspectives From the Field

Beyond the grand industry visions and activities, this report focuses on the views of telecom industry professionals who are tasked with implementing and delivering AI in the field. It sets out to explore how committed the telecoms industry is to driving adoption of AI and how much impact AI is already having on those who have deployed it.
 
The report captures key insights from the survey, conducted November 2022– January 2023, which asked 400+ respondents to quantify the opportunities and challenges of adopting AI across their business. It includes insights on how the industry is approaching AI and the role of partners in implementing AI solutions in the telecoms industry.

Survey respondents represented a mix of telcos (including mobile, fixed, and cable companies) and their hardware and software suppliers. The respondents were a good mix of different groups, like customer service, marketing, and business development, and the results include feedback from manager-level industry professionals, including senior executives.
 

There’s Clear Interest in and Expectations of Success From AI
In line with the industry-level expectation on the importance of AI in telecoms, the survey

shows that there’s a clear interest in AI among industry stakeholders. Of overall respondents, 95 percent said they were engaged with AI, with the figure rising to 100 percent among decision-making management respondents.

Telcos have announced they’ve tested AI-enabled solutions for network operations, base station site planning, truck-routing optimization, and machine learning data analytics. To improve the customer experience, some are adopting recommendation engines, virtual assistants, and digital avatars. For many respondents in the survey, however, the engagement was described as at an early stage.

Only 34 percent of respondents reported using AI for over six months, while 23 percent of respondents said they’re still learning about the different options for AI. Eighteen percent reported being in a trial or pilot phase of an AI project.

This level of engagement feeds into the expectation that AI will deliver competitive advantage and success. In the survey, based on a 7-point scale, 59 percent of respondents agreed with the statement “AI will be a source of competitive advantage for my company,” while 65 percent of respondents agreed that AI is important to their company’s success. But not everyone agrees with the industry-level view on the importance of AI in telecoms. On the same 7-point-scale question, about 12 percent of respondents disagreed that AI has a role in their company’s success.

 
Operational Optimization Is the Biggest Opportunity
Managing operations in the telecoms industry is a very complex task.
This is understandable, as the industry is responsible for critical national infrastructure in every country, supports over 5 billion customer end points, and is expected to constantly deliver above 99 percent reliability. Each network interface or customer touch point is potentially a drag on efficiency, creating a constant need for industry stakeholders to invest in solutions that improve operational efficiency.
 
For an industry whose top priority is to build and operate the best network, AI-enabled practices and services, perhaps not surprisingly, were seen as the low-hanging fruit. Some 60 percent of respondents said AI automation that replaces or augments human effort will drive gains in efficiency. The next two expectations are also related to efficiency: 44 percent of respondents expect AI to reduce cost of operations, and 35 percent expect AI to enhance customer engagement.
 
Early Results Show Positive Impact of AI on Revenue and Cost
For respondents at the trial or implementation stage, a clear majority acknowledged that there had been a positive impact on both revenue and cost. About 73 percent of respondents reported that implementation of AI had led to increased revenue in the last year, with 17 percent of respondents noting revenue gains of more than 10 percent in specific parts of their businesses.
Likewise, 80 percent of respondents reported that their implementation of AI led to reduced annual costs in the last year, with 15 percent of respondents noting that this cost reduction is above 10 percent—again, in specific parts of their business.
 
Inability to Quantify ROI Is the Biggest Challenge
There are a myriad of challenges facing the adoption of AI in the telecoms industry. Despite reports of the positive impact of AI on revenue and cost, many respondents still struggle to quantify the ROI of their AI investments. Some 44 percent of respondents cited an inability to adequately quantify ROI, which illustrates a mismatch between aspirations and the reality in
introducing AI-driven solutions.

Technical challenges—whether from lack of enough skilled personnel or poor infrastructure—are also obstructing AI adoption. Of respondents, 34 percent cited an insufficient number of data scientists as the second-biggest challenge. Given that data scientists are sought after across industries, the response suggests that the telecoms industry needs to push harder to woo them.

With 33 percent of respondents also citing a lack of budget for AI projects, the results suggest that AI advocates need to work harder with decision-makers to develop a convincing case for AI adoption. Likewise, for a technology solution that relies on data, concerns about the availability, handling of, privacy, and security of data were all critical issues to be addressed, especially in the light of data privacy and data residency laws around the globe (e.g. GDPR).
 
Investment Levels in AI Are Still Low Compared to Industry Capex

In an industry with a multi-billion capex spend per annum, the level of investment in AI appears to be low. Typically, mid- to large-size telcos will spend at least a billion dollars annually on capex. Yet, 60 percent of respondents (for 2021) and 50 percent of respondents (for 2022) spent less
than $1 million on AI. On the top end, 2 percent of respondents spent over $50 million in 2021, rising to 3 percent in 2022.

While the responses can partly be attributed to where the respondents are in AI
adoption, it suggests that the industry’s level of investment in AI is not matching
its level of enthusiasm and engagement. Indeed, 33 percent of respondents noted
a lack of budget, and only 42 percent of respondents agreed that their current
investment is at the right level. Going forward into 2023, 47 percent of respondents reported plans to increase their AI investment, while 45 percent said they’ll be keeping it broadly the same.
Only 8 percent of respondents said they’ll be decreasing their AI spend.
 
Scaling Beyond Proof of Concept and Pilots Is a Major Driver for AI Investments
Among all the factors driving investments in AI, moving from proof of concept and pilot stage to implementation was the most notable response. This isn’t always an easy step to make; only 30 percent of respondents agreed that their companies have the capability and knowledge to move an AI project from research to production.

While a total of 49 percent of respondents said they were still in the learning, assessment, or trial/pilot phase of their AI investments, 47 percent of respondents said implementation plans will drive their investment decisions. Economic uncertainty and the need to prioritize spending elsewhere also drove decision-making. Some 46 percent of respondents cited concerns about
the economy; similarly, 46 percent of respondents said AI investments will be balanced against spending on scheduled infrastructure upgrades. And 34 percent of respondents noted that their market differentiation strategies are a major factor in their AI investment decisions.
 
Improving Network Operations and Optimizing Customer Experiences Attract the Most AI Investment
Consistent with the expectations to use AI to optimize operations, respondents noted that their companies are prioritizing AI investments in network operations, customer experience optimization, and network planning today. AI algorithms are leveraging terabytes of network data from telcos to detect anomalies, predict failures, streamline operations, and enhance security and fraud detection in the network. For customers, as the responses show, telcos are using AI to improve engagement through solutions like virtual assistants, enrich the retail experience,
provide recommendations, and manage churn. In the next 6–12 months, respondents plan to increase investment in predictive maintenance as telcos seek to leverage AI to proactively identify and fix problems in their hardware and software infrastructure. This includes 
customer on-premises equipment such as mobile devices and set-top boxes. 
 
Of respondents, 61 percent named machine learning and 54 percent named its accompanying high-performance computing platform as their AI tools of choice, which reflects the maturity of those technologies for use across industries. However, the quest to unearth insights from telco data is also driving investment in deep learning, according to 42 percent of respondents. Similarly, 27 percent indicated an interest in digital twins and simulation, where they can test things like infrastructure upgrades in the virtual world before rolling them out in the real world.
 
AI Is Deployed Mostly in Hybrid (Cloud and On-Premises) Environments
When it comes to infrastructure, 54 percent of telecom companies are deploying AI solutions in hybrid environments, as they seek to enjoy the efficiencies of the cloud while holding on to the enhanced isolation and control of the on-premises environment. For those who are either using hybrid or cloud environments, 58 percent of respondents are happy with their choice, while 55 percent of those using hybrid or on-premises environments are happy. But a move toward an all-cloud environment is evident. Fifty percent of respondents plan to go or stay hybrid in the next year, and 31 percent want to focus exclusively on the cloud. Only 15 percent plan to stay solely on premises.
 
Choice of Environment Is a Trade-Off Between Security and Performance
The biggest areas of concern regarding the deployment environment weren’t surprising:, 35 percent cited information security, 32 percent cited network stability and consistency, and 32 percent cited model inference performance. These correlate to responses about the choice of cloud, on-premises, or hybrid deployment. Those who are worried about information security were more likely to choose an on-premises environment. Conversely, those who seek to
benefit from the wide variety, availability, and performance of cloud solutions
were more likely to choose a cloud environment. The lower priority of cost in this decision is insightful, as it suggests more respondents consider a more strategic approach to AI rather than a tactical, cost-driven quest for the cheapest solution in the market.
 
Partnerships Are Critical for AI Solutions in the Industry
Telcos rely on their partners for supplies, support, and expertise to build infrastructure, run operations, or develop services for customers. This also applies to AI, especially given that 29 percent of respondents view their companies as AI laggards and only 18 percent are confident that they’re industry leading. It’s therefore not surprising that the need to engage partners featured regularly in the responses to the survey. Forty-seven percent of respondents reported
that their AI solutions are co-developed with partners, and 61 percent said their top priority when spending on AI was to “engage third-party partners to accelerate AI adoption.” Often, this need for partners is non-negotiable. A massive 83 percent of respondents said they would sometimes or always engage third-party consultants or software vendors to complete an AI project.
Partnerships also create opportunities for telcos to create new services for customers at lower investment and with the ability to scale fast. Fifty-one percent of respondents said they develop AI solutions for both internal and external users.
 
 
Looking Forward
The role of AI in telecoms is only just starting. AI will permeate all segments of the value chain, helping to drive transformation in network planning and deployment, network operations, customer engagement, and creation of new products and services. In doing so, AI will unlock opportunities and address challenges that can impact both the bottom line (through TCO improvement by optimizing capex and opex) and the top line (by generating new revenue).
Telecom leaders are already investing significantly in AI. However, the industry as a whole lags in AI investment compared to their overall capex spend. The encouraging news is that the majority of survey respondents signaled a desire to increase their AI investments and to push for better clarity on ROI in the next year. Ultimately, it’s expected that telcos and other industry stakeholders will embrace AI to improve operational efficiency and deliver better customer experiences. In the near term, the focus appears to be on building more effective telecom infrastructure and unlocking new revenue-generating opportunities, especially together with partners.

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Colt Announces Strategic Expansion to US Infrastructure

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Colt Announces Strategic Expansion to US Infrastructure

NJFX data centre and new subsea Cable Landing Station expand Colt’s transatlantic capabilities and offer businesses greater choice and flexibility

 

London, UK – Colt Technology Services (Colt), the digital infrastructure company, today announced the expansion of its US capabilities with the connection of a new data centre and subsea Cable Landing Station (CLS), NJFX, in New Jersey, US to its Colt IQ Network. This latest extension is part of Colt’s continued investment into its North American infrastructure. The new transatlantic route – now fully open – gives businesses greater choice, security and flexibility as they seamlessly connect economic and commercial hubs in Europe and the US across Colt’s award-winning digital infrastructure.

The expansion complements Colt’s existing US network capabilities, particularly extending its New York data centre metro ring to NJFX, offering new Atlantic subsea route options. Colt can deliver on-net services to tenants at NJFX with immediate effect. A new high-capacity, resilient backbone over Aquacomm’s Havfrue / AEC-2 cable from NJFX to Stellium Datacentres in Newcastle is a critical part of the expansion. Exiting in New Jersey rather than New York provides Colt’s customers with a greatly diversified route, crossing the Atlantic to access thousands of connected end points in Europe over Colt’s IQ Network.  Colt will also have ability to manage 100Gb services to Havfrue / AEC-2 landings in Ireland and Denmark as well as the UK, and access further subsea systems exiting NJFX to Europe and Brazil.

Colt’s deployment  makes it one of just a few non-US carriers with a direct presence in NJFX, and with key New York-located data centres on-net with access over the Colt IQ Network to NJFX.  The strategic move offers organisations such as capital markets firms and enterprises access to Colt’s wider portfolio of digital services and solutions, supporting their global digital transformation  journeys and helping them accelerate plans for growth.

Gil Santaliz, CEO & Founder of NJFX said, “With Colt’s robust infrastructure and extensive reach, our customers can unlock unprecedented opportunities to expand their digital footprint and achieve diverse objectives. Together, NJFX and Colt are revolutionising the way organisations connect and thrive in the digital age, empowering them to stay ahead of the curve and embrace the limitless potential of the global marketplace.”

Keri Gilder, CEO, Colt Technology Services said, “On both sides of the Atlantic and across the world, businesses must balance constant threats to security with the need to accelerate digital transformation at pace. It’s why there’s never been greater demand for secure, resilient, powerful digital infrastructure connecting the US and Europe. This latest expansion demonstrates our firm commitment to be the digital infrastructure company that the world’s leading businesses choose to connect with, and we’re super excited about the opportunities it opens up for our customers.”

About Colt Technology Services

Colt Technology Services (Colt) is a global digital infrastructure company which creates extraordinary connections to help businesses succeed. Powered by amazing people and like-minded partners, Colt is driven by its purpose: to put the power of the digital universe in the hands of its customers, wherever, whenever and however they choose.

Since 1992, Colt has set itself apart through its deep commitment to its customers, growing from its heritage in the City of London to more than 60 offices around the world. The powerful Colt IQ Network connects 222 cities and 32 countries with more than 1000 data centres, 51 Metropolitan Area Networks and over 31,000 buildings across Europe, Asia and North America’s largest business hubs. Privately owned, Colt is one of the most financially sound companies in the sector.

Obsessed with delivering industry-leading customer experience, Colt is guided by its dedication to customer innovation, by its values and its responsibility to its customers, partners, people and planet.

For more information, please visit www.colt.net

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Felix Seda Named Capacity’s Power 100

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Felix Seda Named Capacity's Power 100

Felix Seda, NJFX’s General Manager joins Saf Malik to discuss his many roles within the company, collaboration agreements and his work spearheading youth initiatives across telecoms


The NJFX Evolution Continues At Pace

 

Felix Seda, general manager at New Jersey Fiber Exchange (NJFX) has worn many hats during his tenure at the firm. 

Once dubbed the ‘Marseille of the US’, the company is an interconnection hub and subsea cable landing station operator based in Wall Township, New Jersey, founded by telecoms executive Gil Santaliz. Seda has been a mainstay at the firm, having joined in 2015 and remaining there ever since.

Originally, NJFX was established as a colocation hub leveraging the infrastructure of an existing cable landing station in Wall Township that was owned and operated by Tata Communications, but the business has since evolved into something greater.

In September 2015, NJFX announced it would construct a 64,000 square foot Tier III colocation facility next to Tata’s landing station, providing direct access to Tata’s European and South American subsea cables: TGN Atlantic and Seabras-1. Exactly one year later, NJFX launched the carrier-neutral colocation facility.

When Seda started in his role, he primarily worked on getting vendors contracted. “This included every vendor and carrier that we dealt with to get the Tier III facility up and running,” he says.

But as the business continued to develop his role started to change, and Seda and the team began having conversations with prospective customers.

During his tenure at the firm, Seda “naturally” moved into a chief revenue officer role, overlooking the entirety of NJFX’s revenue growth.

“I oversee pretty much all of our partner relationships with both existing and prospective customers to uncover and develop unique connectivity solutions,” he says.

This includes recent collaborations with the likes of Colt and Orchest.

Colt added a new point of presence (PoP) at the NJFX campus, allowing it to access the AEC-2 subsea cable and provide front-to-end solutions across the Atlantic, utilizing its own fiber assets on the European side. Orchest, meanwhile will give its customers on-demand last mile access throughout  Latin America via its automated connectivity platform.

Essential Connectivity

Seda says the Covid-19 pandemic accentuated the need for better connectivity. It also resulted in increasing traffic, and the best place to pick up that traffic is though a cable landing station.

“Not only is it going to be the best place to interconnect from an architectural standpoint mitigating additional points of failure, but it’s also the most cost-effective way because you’re eliminating the increased cost of backhaul,” Seda says.

Moving forward, the company is looking for investment opportunities.

“One of those opportunities is the Confluence-1 project, a new subsea system that’s going up and down the [US] East Coast,” he says. “It’s going to provide a diverse path from what is historically been along the I-95 (Interstate 95) corridor.”

This project and other of similar ilk, Seda adds, continue to highlight the growing importance of cable landing stations to the evolving landscape of connectivity. 

Youth Opportunity

Seda was named in Capacity’s Power 100 in 2022 and kept his place in the prestigious list this year. As a prominent voice in telecoms, Seda uses his platform to bring young talent into the industry, which he believes is the utmost importance. He has already played his part by spearheading several millennial-focused initiatives to encourage the education and engagement of young professionals in the industry.

In 2020, he created the Millennials in Telecom Reception at Pacific Telecommunications Council (PTC), which aimed to bring young telecom employees together to network and engage with select industry veterans. Since then, this initiative has grown. As a member of the PTC Advisory Council, Felix was a founding member of the inaugural 2023 PTC Beyond initiative and helped establish a ‘buy one get one free’ program allowing nominated individuals under the age of 35 from member organizations to attend the conference for free. The initiative was a great success at PTC 23, which close to 50 nominees attending and becoming active participants.

Seda “absolutely” sees the telecoms industry as attractive youngsters. He leans on his own experience as evidence of this. 

“My CEO game me the opportunity to just learn everything, it was either sink or swim,” he says.

Seda says that since entering the telecoms industry, he has been able to build close relationships with people and companies that are doing fascinating things around the world. And he believed that is essential to bring in new blood and start getting them acclimated to the key conversations happening in the world on telecom.

“The veterans of the industry have done a fantastic job getting us to where we are now,” says Seda, “but at a certain point, just like any other industry, people get older and move on.”

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Gold Data Announces New PoP at NJFX Strengthening Connectivity and Diversity

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Gold Data Announces New PoP at NJFX Strengthening Connectivity and Diversity

Pay-As-You-Go Model Paves the Way for LATAM Interconnectivity

Sunrise, Florida and Wall Township, NJ – Gold Data, a leading Latin America network provider, is proud to announce opening a strategic point of presence (PoP) at NJFX, the carrier-neutral Cable Landing Station (CLS) colocation campus in Wall, New Jersey. NJFX offers customers on-demand access to redundant subsea cable infrastructure across the Atlantic to both Europe and Latin America. The partnership allows Gold Data to provide customers with a fully diverse global solution through NJFX’s ecosystem of network operators and subsea cable systems.

Gold Data relies on more than 156. strategic points of presence, diverse submarine capacity over 15 systems, technology development and our own award-winning network to offer complete end-to-end solutions to and from Latin America and the Caribbean, with dedicated service for multinational companies, global carriers, OTTs, and Hyperscalers.

In addition, Gold Data has announced Gold Data 1 Submarine Cable; the first cable to land in Mexico in 22 years. This new US-Mexico digital highway will offer the bandwidth capacity and the quality of services required by the market and will play a key part in empowering the fast-growing Data demand in Mexico City and Queretaro. Customers will soon have a new US-Mexico digital freeway that offers advanced services on the next-generation subsea infrastructure with the best latency. Our new PoP at NJFX gratifies customer solutions seeking diversity from overly dense infrastructure across the East Coast.

“We are looking forward to this new connection to the ecosystem of NJFX, to offer a better connection to the Latin American market,” Renato Tradardi, CEO at Gold Data Group.

Gold Data’s new presence at NJFX will provide NJFX’s customers with direct access to the new submarine network consisting of 10-fiber pair cable system that offers more than 250 TBPS of capacity with Geomesh Technology offering 100% underground terrestrial paths up to Queretaro, the main market of data of Mexico, also the connections with our backbone to all Latin American and the Caribbean. By joining the NJFX interconnection community, Gold Data and its customers gain direct, on-demand interconnection with Havfrue/AEC-2, Seabras-1, TGN1, and TGN2 and are able to leverage direct, low latency routes to major US business hubs avoiding legacy chokepoints.

“We are excited to have Gold Data’s award-winning network available at NJFX with its full array of services providing end-to-end solutions throughout Latin America and the Caribbean,” Felix Seda, General Manager at NJFX.

NJFX enables enterprise, content, media, government, and communications providers can take advantage of redundancy, decreased latency, and high-quality connectivity with fewer global points of failure thanks to NJFX. Through a physical presence and access to the Meet-Me-Room (MMR) within its Tier-3 CLS campus, NJFX ensures that each carrier network interconnection is designed and maintained with reliable architectural diversity. NJFX is home to some of the biggest and most cutting-edge companies in global networking.

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About Gold Data

Gold Data is a multinational information technology company which focuses on telecommunications infrastructure, we provide direct connectivity through the Americas and the Caribbean, interconnecting more than 156 PoPs, 76 data centers with a presence in 35 countries of Latin America.  www.golddata.net

About NJFX:

NJFX is a Tier 3 Carrier Neutral Cable Landing Station campus. Our colocation ecosystem has expanded to over 35 network operators offering flexibility, reliability, and security. Our Wall, NJ location provides direct access to multiple subsea cable systems giving our carriers diverse connectivity solutions and offers direct interconnection without recurring cross-connect fees. For NJFX media inquiries, please contact: [email protected]

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Orchest Selects NJFX Connectivity Hub for Unique Offerings

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Orchest Selects NJFX Connectivity Hub for Unique Offerings

Pay-As-You-Go Model Paves the Way for LATAM Interconnectivity

Weston, Florida – Orchest Technologies, a leading provider of wholesale connectivity solutions and pioneer of network automation in Latin America, is now offering pay-as-you-go services out of NJFX’s carrier-neutral CLS campus in Wall Township, New Jersey. This move provides businesses with the flexibility to connect to the right network operator while avoiding legacy congestion points, such as Miami and New York.

Orchest’s pay-as-you-go model allows customers to pay only for the services they use with a minimum consumption commitment, providing a cost-effective solution for businesses of all sizes. Orchest customers will have free out-of-band signaling services, along with half rack specials to enable cost-effective points of presence (POPs) for LATAM networks with no recurring cross connect fees. Networks can scale their connectivity needs according to their budget, without having to worry about overpaying for unused resources.

“On-Demand connectivity opens incredible possibilities for different verticals or even carriers looking to expand into Latam while minimizing risk and cost of entry. With this unique offering we are introducing a new way to improve the traditional model, providing the right flexibility and dynamicity to scale resources as needed” said Jeremy Villalobos, COO at Orchest.

NJFX’s carrier neutral CLS campus offers a unique advantage for networks to interconnect while having direct access to multiple subsea cable systems, connecting North America to Europe, South America, and beyond. This direct access to global connectivity provides businesses with the ability to expand their reach and enhance their presence.

“Utilizing the Seabras-1 cable at NJFX, plus access to the other LATAM Subsea cables, via our 35 network operators creates diverse network connectivity and diversity from Miami,” said Gil Santaliz, CEO at NJFX.

Orchest’s pay-as-you-go services, coupled with NJFX’s direct connectivity options, makes for a powerful combination that can help businesses stay competitive in today’s fast-paced digital landscape.

For more information on this exciting new offering, please visit NJFX.net and Orchest.net

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Creating True Diversity to LATAM

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Creating True Diversity to LATAM

A Strategic Collaboration between DE-CIX and PIT Chile from NJFX

PIT Chile is interconnecting with DE-CIX directly at NJFX to enable and access the DE-CIX New York fabric.

DE-CIX’s strategic presence at NJFX allows for fewer hops and improved latency in the exchange of traffic between Europe, North America, and LATAM. This results in improved performance and reliability for customers on the DE-CIX platform looking to gain direct connectivity to major business hubs both terrestrially and subsea.

DE-CIX provides premium services through its interconnection platform in multiple carriers and data center-neutral exchanges across the globe. PIT Chile selected  DE-CIX New York and their East Coast connectivity hub at NJFX  in order to avoid legacy chokepoints.

“For global enterprises, ISPs, CDNs, and network operators, having access to diverse terrestrial and subsea options for connectivity is the coin of the realm, the foundation of their ability to reach new customers and penetrate new markets,” said Felix Seda, General Manager of NJFX

Created in 2016, PIT Chile is the first point of exchange operating in Chile, bringing together Internet providers (ISP) with content providers (CDN), allowing bilateral peering among all its members. PIT Chile is a neutral, public, open, and transparent Internet Exchange Point (IXP) that operates from North to South across multiple cities in Chile. In Santiago, the capital city, PIT Chile has 14 points of presence in the main data centers.

PIT Chile interconnecting with DE-CIX is a perfect example of the peering capabilities also being explored at NJFX for better distribution of eyeball networks in the most efficient and secure manner possible. At NJFX, customers are now able to leverage direct, low-latency routes to major business hubs avoiding legacy East Coast chokepoints such as New York City and Florida. The LATAM market is becoming a focused region for networks to connect from NJFX to DE-CIX New York.

“We are committed to providing the best connectivity for Chile and Latin America. To fulfill that promise, we need to work with the best technology and allies, such as DE-CIX and NJFX. Chile has been recognized for its quality and speed in internet connections, and we think that our role in providing peering capabilities is crucial to these results,” explained Ivan Žilić, CTO of PIT Chile

For LATAM-based network operators, PIT Chile can be used as a blueprint for other providers looking to better exchange traffic with North American and European ISPs at a carrier-neutral connectivity hub.

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About DE-CIX

DE-CIX is the world’s leading Internet Exchange operator and serves over 2,500 network operators, Internet service providers (ISPs), and content providers from more than 100 countries with peering and interconnection services at its more than 40 locations in Europe, the Middle East, Asia, and North America. Further information at de-cix.net/north-america

About PIT-Chile

PIT Chile is the first point of exchange operating in Chile, bringing together Internet providers (ISP) with content providers (CDN). This allows bilateral peering among all its members. PIT Chile’s IXP (Internet eXchange Point) offers neutral, public, open, and transparent operating in different Chile cities, from north to south. In Santiago, the capital city, customers can connect to fourteen (14) points of presence in the main data centers. For more information, please visit https://www.pitchile.cl/wp/

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Pit Chile: A Switch Away to Connecting at NJFX

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Access Pit Chile at NJFX - Just One Switch Away to Connecting the World

As Our Team Prepares For Capacity LATAM 2023 in Sao Paulo, We Celebrate Pit Chile’s Presence at NJFX!

Founded in 2016, PIT Chile is the first point of exchange operating in Chile, bringing together Internet providers (ISP) with content providers (CDN). This allows bilateral peering among all its members. PIT Chile’s IXP (Internet eXchange Point) offers neutral, public, open, and transparent operating in different Chile cities, from north to south. In Santiago, the capital city, customers can connect to fourteen (14) points of presence in the main data centers. 
 

The main objective of PIT Chile is to put just “one switch away” between consumers and internet providers. In this way, the Chilean IXP search for continuous growth, incorporating the most significant number of members, whether PITs, ISPs, CDNs, or other institutions such as universities, state bodies, and financial institutions that meet the technical requirements of interconnection. Some of the members of PIT Chile are Microsoft, Google, SpaceX, and the leading ISP providers of Chile, such as Telefónica, VTR, Claro, Entel, WOM, Mundo, and Claro, in addition to some international ISP providers, such as T-Mobile and AT&T.

PIT Chile has one of the highest traffic volumes in the region, ranked the 4th IXP largest in the world in traffic and the second in Latin America, just after Brazil. According to LACNIC measurements, it is also the second-best in the region on response times.

As a sponsor or speaker, the company is always present in regional meetings about technology and connectivity, such as LACNIC events, Global Peering Forum, and International Telecoms Weeks, tracking relevant trends and developments in the industry. PIT Chile also hosts their events: the next one will occur on March 23rd, 2023, in Santiago, Chile.

“For years, connectivity between LATAM and the U.S. has resided through Florida. We are seeing a shift in mentality as more networks look to circumvent potential points of failure. Having one of the largest LATAM-based Internet Exchange presents at NJFX is a perfect example of this,” said Felix Seda, General Manager at NJFX. “Their neutral IX boasts an impressive list of members incorporating PIT’s, ISP’s, CDN’s and other institutions such as universities, state agencies, and financials. We are excited that our ecosystem of networks can now interconnect with PIT Chile at NJFX and become exposed to the entirety of the Chilean market.”

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First 400GB Crossing the Atlantic Access from NJFX Campus

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New Connectivity Services from AquaComms

Learn More About The Unique Solutions AquaComms Is Providing Out Of NJFX

February

AquaComms Ireland branch is Ready for Service and is delivering reliability/resiliency at high capacity with a new 400 Gb connectivity service between NJFX and Europe – the first of its kind!

“NJFX is proud to be the landing station for this Subsea infrastructure, the first to offer 400G across the Atlantic. Today having Norway, Denmark, and now Ireland RFS is a great milestone for NJFX and New Jersey which has been supporting transatlantic systems for over 100 years,” said Gil Santaliz, CEO, NJFX.

New Connectivity Service from Aqua Comms 

  • New 400 Gb wavelengths launched on AEC-2, 
  • In addition to the existing 10Gb and 100Gb available options
  • Follows successful upgrade to Ciena’s GeoMesh Extreme submarine network solution, which leverages WaveLogic 5 Extreme coherent optical technology.

400Gb Wavelengths options

  • Available on AEC-2 Trans-Atlantic cable
  • Across all key Aqua Comms POPs in the US and Europe
  • Options for both OTU-4 and Ethernet interfaces
  • Lease terms from 12 months to 5 years or more
  • IRUs for 10, 15, or 20 years

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About NJFX:
NJFX is a Tier 3 Carrier Neutral Cable Landing Station campus. Our colocation ecosystem has expanded to over 35 network operators offering flexibility, reliability, and security. Our Wall, NJ location provides direct access to multiple subsea cable systems giving our carriers diverse connectivity solutions and offers direct interconnection without recurring cross-connect fees.”

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Evolving Operating Models and Technologies In Subsea Cable Deployment

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Evolving Operating Models & Technologies in Subsea Deployment

Working with today’s technology has created huge evolvement in learning trends and techniques to run a successful infrastructure

Gil Santaliz

CEO

October

London, UK – NJFX CEO Gil Santaliz moderated a panel of telecom leaders at Capacity Europe covering some of the most significant issues facing the industry…

    • Global conflicts and physical risks to undersea fiber
    • Exploring mentorship initiatives along with diversity and inclusion
    • The challenges — especially environmental and regulatory — in upgrading existing cable routes
    • Operating model dynamics – the influence that is exerted by the OTTs and the nuances in the execution of a consortium-led model
    • How the technological and economic models are changing in the deployment of subsea cables, in particular changes in materials in the use of aluminum, and the increasing quality of fiber copper connectivity

The Panelists:

Gil Santaliz, CEO, NJFX  (Moderator)

Panagiota Bosdogianni, CTO, OTEGLOBE

Gavin Rea, CTO, Gulf Bridge International (GBI)

Alice Shelton, Senior Consultant, Global Submarine Sales, Ciena

Carlos Dasi, CTO, Telxius

Subsea Infrastructure Targeted
In recent months, there has been a threat to the security of the critical subsea infrastructure. Recent events affecting subsea cables are leading to reevaluations of security precautions to prevent vandalism. In mid-October, a fishing trawler accidentally severed subsea cables to the Shetland Islands in Scotland. A case of vandalism disrupted telecom service in Marseilles, France.

Telxius subsea systems are unique by diverting from the other cables and landing in southern Europe. NJFX CEO Gil Santaliz asked the panelists what can there be done to protect the subsea cable systems from these threats?

“It’s a hard question. Diversity is important.” Telxius CTO Carlos Dasi said.

Santaliz added, “There are fourteen cables that are connecting the Atlantic including five brand new systems and nine legacy cables. Diversity is the most important part of having the most capacity possible. Companies like, Ciena, need to be prepared to support a hurricane in Florida that continues to Myrtle Beach. Do you have the equipment available for the other cable to pick up the capacity?”

“If you have damage, you can always move the equipment,” said Alice Shelton, Senior Consultant Global Submarine Sales at Ciena. “A lot of those cables you mentioned including TGN, FA-1, AC-1, and Yellow are all coming to the end of life. There are new systems coming across carrying increased capacity. You mention five new cables, which is not a lot of diversity, however, with all fourteen cables that give higher chance. I think there is going to be more transatlantic systems coming as those nine cables retire.”

“The economics do not allow the older cables to compete with the new cables,” Santaliz added. “How is the Mediterranean dealing with the refresh of cables?”

Gavin Rea, CTO at Gulf Ridge International, replied, “The next two or three years there will be new cables being installed that will increase diversity in the Red Sea. If anything would happen in Egypt we diversify and explore routes through Iraq and Iran to get extra diversity. We need to look at it as an industry and see how many cables are going into Marseille, luckily, we have others that give you an assortment of routes. We just announced Greece data center to Egypt, big development.”

“Is Greece going to be a big hub for cables?” Santaliz asked.

“Greece would be providing diversity when the market fails,” Panagiota Bosdogianni, CTO, of OTEGLOBE adds. “We are seeing a lot of announcements of cables entering Greece and for us being a Greek company it will attract more interest to our market. We are looking into the capabilities and the revolution of subsea cables and data centers in Crete and Athens. Greece will be the bridge point in the coming years.”

Conflicts around the world pose considerable challenges to network security, however.

“The Middle East is very challenging. You see how quickly things are moving in these countries until you find a balance. We will have to see how these political relationships will work out.  Ukraine’s situation is extremely impacting communication and has caused fiber infrastructure damage,” Rae said.

Embracing Next Gen
Capacity is striving to encourage young talent interested in the industry at round table discussions with executive leaders in telecom. Mentoring the next generation of industry professionals is extremely important to shape a brighter and more sustainable future.

During a panel at Capacity Europe, NJFX CEO Gil Santaliz posed a question about mentorship about the most important leadership characteristics and educating professionals about them.

“At Telxius, we have a mentoring program that brings out the confidence we need in people, has them think outside the box, and wants to add exciting initiatives within the business. The industry is very traditional in ways and bringing new talent can bring a fresh perspective,” Telxius CTO Carlos Dasi responded.

Siena’s  Shelton added how an initiative at  SubOptic, a non-profit for the industry, has become extremely active. “The Diversity and Inclusion Group had 15 mentees and 16 mentors that participated through the program last year,” she said. “They brought the Group back and have expanded to 25 mentors and 25 mentees this year!”

“It is a fantastic program that SupOptic has created,” Gil Santaliz added. “Our General Manager, Felix Seda, is part of that initiative alongside the PTC Advisory on working to have younger generations participate in the conference and getting a seat at the table.”

”There is a lot of history that has been forgotten, as well as a lot of experience that has been lost as people leave the industry,” says Gulf Ridge’s Rae. “The ability to question those changes, to think outside the box, and recognize that certain things must be done in a specific way is important.”

The subject drew questions and raised eyebrows regarding how to mentor the following generation and prepare for the change in the evolution of these subsea cables.

New World Cables & Challenges at Sea
Technology companies are guiding subsea cable systems toward greater market participation, with Facebook, Google, Amazon, and Microsoft serving as the main movers to connect social media networks, cloud computing, and other bandwidth-intensive tasks.

Telxius has been doing groundbreaking work and leading to the landing of a cable in Virginia Beach with high-count cables.

“You had to overcome many things to make a successful cable landing station,” said Santaliz. “What challenges did you have to overcome in developing the CLS with 3 subsea cables, that I consider new world cables today, Marea, Brusa, and Dunant?”

“The main talent is to have the capacity to get everything ready and hope the customers have the best services,” Dasi replied. “It is not just infrastructure, but there are a lot of providers that are providing the same services as capacity and colocation, etc. We have great growth in the data center market.”

The Value: Copper VS Aluminum 
Is there any innovation in subsea cables using aluminum instead of copper, besides cost?

“Aluminum is slightly cheaper, but the key point is a more stable supply source. The other point is you can use different amounts of aluminum to affect the cable. Have high resilience cable to save on the material or go a lot on the material and have low resilience but you will go a further distance. It is possible, but it needs to be proven environmentally and economically before starting a project,” Shelton added.

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About NJFX:
NJFX is a Tier 3 Carrier Neutral Cable Landing Station campus. Our colocation ecosystem has expanded to over 35 network operators offering flexibility, reliability, and security. Our Wall, NJ location provides direct access to multiple subsea cable systems giving our carriers diverse connectivity solutions and offers direct interconnection without recurring cross-connect fees

 

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Experts in Infrastructure from the Data Center to the Desktop Interviews CEO Gil Santaliz

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Experts in Infrastructure from the Data Center to the Desktop Interviews CEO Gil Santaliz

Strongbow Group, Managing Director of Engagement Strategy, Barry Platzman, recently sat down with the Founder & CEO of New Jersey Fiber Exchange (NJFX), Gil Santaliz to discuss his unique perspective on global connectivity and the nuances of designing network solutions for optimal performance.

Gil Santaliz

CEO

Strongbow Group Newsletter – Summer 2022

Published on June 28, 2022

Wall Township –

BP: So Gil, can you start by giving us a primer on NJFX?

GS: NJFX is a subsea cable landing station for the North American market, located here in NJ. Unlike traditional landing stations, owned and operated by established carriers like AT&T and Verizon, NJFX is a completely neutral environment. This neutrality creates an open environment that gives our customers confidence and ensures there is no conflict of interest between operator and landlord. Over time, we have expanded our operation to include 30+ operators in a diverse hub that offers “middle mile infrastructure”.

BP: When enterprise customers buy global connectivity, do you think they understand what they are buying?

GS: Good question, I would have to say that often they do not. They certainly know the beginning point “A” and an endpoint “Z”, but they don’t understand the underlying infrastructure between those points, and over time, obfuscation only increases. At NJFX, we work with our clients in great detail to make sure they understand everything that is happening from our location to their endpoint, including cable capacity, bandwidth, others using the same path, and unique geographical vulnerabilities. In the past, an enterprise might know the specific cable they’re riding, but the underlying paths and subtending carriers are frequent blind spots for many customers.

BP: How do customers address this “blind spot”, do they see it as an issue or something they need to address?

GS: As soon as there is an outage and they realize their planned diversity is ineffective, yes there is an issue to address. Unfortunately, network operators are reluctant to share route details, due to regulatory constraints and security concerns, where operators could become vulnerable to nefarious interference with their services if they reveal too much. Only the largest enterprises who put pressure on the system are able to get access to this information under NDA, and even then, it could take 3-6 months to get the information the enterprise needs. Circuit design teams should push for a complete walk-through of the backhaul systems, hubs used and the fiber optics connecting various subsea stations.

BP: How does NJFX help its customers with this problem?

GS: At NJFX we take the time to ‘peel back the onion’ for our customers, explaining what their traditional carrier is actually buying from someone else and what they are directly providing. We then facilitate introductions to the subsea and backhaul operators, allowing our clients to reverse engineer current routes and more diverse alternatives. In some cases, we orchestrate deals front-to-back; for example, a large financial firm may take the time to understand the market and then go back to their carrier with a set of requirements and specific cables to include in their design. This is especially important for global organizations, who may require certain cable paths that avoid metropolitan hubs like London or Paris since they already have circuits in those cities. You want to limit your vulnerability and we have the insight and best practices to work with these operators when they are designing the network.

BP: Pivoting to the old adage of “Self-Healing”, is this still a term that we can or should use?

GS: I would say that term does go back 20-25 years, back to the days when carriers owned their own network infrastructure. To level set on terminology – if you owned the network, you could provide two paths: a primary and one to take over in case the first should fail… a “self-healing ring”. This has changed over the years, as carriers have become reliant on other partners, and now lack insight into underlying paths. The term self-healing is often used without understanding what it really means. More discerning buyers will purchase diverse paths from different carriers all operating in parallel, enabling them to sustain 2-3 hits on their service without being affected.

BP: Are fiber cuts trending up or down in your view?

GS: Yes, as a result of 5G deployments, carriers are opening more splice boxes on long haul and metropolitan fiber. Over the years, characteristics of the fiber in the US have changed; whereas before long haul fiber was untouchable, it isn’t anymore. And with the recent need to capitalize on existing assets, long-haul routes might experience interruptions because of 5G deployments, which are now more and more common.

BP: What about outside of the United States, are we seeing the same trends with sub-sea?

GS: Subsea is a very different animal – there are fewer outages, but when there is one, it’s bad. That is not to say that there is never an issue; despite routes being clearly marked on maritime charts, a cargo ship might hit the cable with an anchor. Nowadays, however, subsea operators have visibility into “shunt faults” – a break in the insulation of the cable – and can be proactive about repairing them before the exposed cable is hit again. But should the worst happen, you are looking at 3-6 weeks of outage depending on how prepared the operator is for repair. This is why multiple, diverse paths are critical to a resilient enterprise network. A bit of trivia for your readers here: there is an Atlantic underwater canyon called Porcupine Sea Bight with 95% convergence of transatlantic systems; an incident on that island would essentially be catastrophic, cutting off EMEA from North America. Only one system does not traverse that route – a bypass solution offered via NJFX.

BP: Any pearls of wisdom that you can offer to enterprise customers when designing global networks?

GS: Commit the resources required to understand what you are buying. We live in a world that is reticent to change, but given the time-sensitivity of applications nowadays, a 4–5-hour outage is catastrophic. Enterprises should make path supervision a part of their circuit lifecycle management process to ensure their network paths haven’t changed since they first purchased those circuits. I would also recommend adding contractual assurances to require notice of any changes to fiber in advance of the work.

Thanks very much Gil, we enjoyed hearing about NJFX and receiving the benefit of your thoughts on the evolving infrastructure – Barry Platzman

Click here to read the full Strongbow Group Newsletter

About NJFX:

NJFX is a Tier 3 Carrier Neutral Cable Landing Station campus. Our colocation ecosystem has expanded to over 35 network operators offering flexibility, reliability, and security. Our Wall, NJ location provides direct access to multiple subsea cable systems giving our carriers diverse connectivity solutions and offers direct interconnection without recurring cross-connect fees.

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