The recent reports of damage to a submarine telecommunications cable linking Finland and Estonia have focussed attention on the vulnerability of under-sea cables to damage both accidental and deliberate.

Over 400 optical fibre cables span the globe carrying over 99% of international telecommunications.

The effect of damage to these cables was demonstrated in 2008 when two cables (FLAG and SEA-ME-WE-4) were severed off the Egyptian coast. This resulted in severe disruption of data connectivity between Europe, the Middle East, and the Indian sub-continent. The severity of this event was exacerbated by the break in two cables so removing an alternative route. It has been reported that the damage was caused by the dragging of a ship’s anchor.

This was not an isolated incident: 100-150 submarine cables are severed each year, the majority due to fishing gear, or dragging anchors. Because of the frequency of cable disruption, a fleet of cable ships is kept on standby around the world to carry out repairs.

The possibility of the sabotage of maritime infrastructure has come to the fore due to recent events such as the damage to the gas pipeline between Russia and Germany with the finger of blame pointed at Russia. It has been reported that both Chinese and Russia ships were in the area when the damage to the Estonia-Finland cable occurred.

The incidents of damage to a nation’s submarine cable by another nation are not new. In fact, Britain pioneered cable cutting at the outbreak of World War 1 when the British ship Alert deliberately severed German submarine telegraph cables cutting off almost all of Germany’s communications with the outside world. This led to the Germans having to use Britain’s extensive global network which of course was monitored by the nefarious British.

More recent suspicions of sabotage have led to countries considering how to combat such activities. There are two main ways of achieving resilience: Providing more diverse routes with more cables and monitoring activities around existing cables.

The European Union executive has recommended that its members devise a “Secured Subsea Infrastructure for Europe” strategy. This could include a “EuroRing” of cables as a backbone for Europe’s own internet traffic.

The United Kingdom has commissioned two Multi-Role Ocean Surveillance (MROS) ships which will have the role of safeguarding critical undersea infrastructure. The first, RFA Proteus, entered into service this year.

PTT’s online “Telecommunications networks” course includes information about submarine cable systems. PTT’s “Telecommunications system security” course discusses the types of threat to telecoms networks and the measures that should be taken to protect them.

5G not only promises faster access to the Internet for mobile users but also other benefits for businesses. For example, factory automation, robotic delivery systems, and communications with agricultural devices such as smart tractors could use private 5G wireless networks.
Achieving the highest possible speeds requires the wide bandwidths available at extremely high frequencies (EHF). The range of these millimetre wavelength (mmWave) signals is limited. But mmWave operation is ideal for mobile services in areas with high populations densities and for localised private networks in, for example, factories.

Ofcom, the telecoms regulator in the UK, has recently announced their plans for the allocation of bandwidth at 26 GHz and 40 GHz for 5G provision in both high density and low density areas.
Licence provision is complicated by the need to avoid interference with existing applications using EHF including microwave point to point connections. However, licences in the UK for 26 GHz fixed link services in and around high-density areas will be withdrawn in the next five years.

Two types of 5G licence will be available: 15 year term licences for city and town wide provision of 5G mobile services will be auctioned while licences for more localised services in both high and low density areas will be offered on a first come, first served basis at a fixed fee. There is a limit on the number of transmitters and power constraints for localised services especially in or near high density areas.
Regulators in the UK, Germany, Sweden, the Netherlands, and Switzerland are also issuing or planning to issue licences for localised, private services at lower frequency bands such as 3.7 GHz.

You can learn more about 5G services and operation by studying PTT online courses such as Introduction to mobile systems, 4G and 5G radio access networks, and Advanced mobile systems.
Or, for a complete picture, why not take advantage of our special offer to celebrate PTT’s 30 years of learning provision and study all of the PTT courses covering mobile communications.

Deploying full fibre connections to customer premises has long been a challenge for service providers.
These challenges can include infrastructure costs. Building a fibre optic network is expensive, with providers needing to lay many miles of cable, often causing unwanted disruption to the local population with the necessary construction work. The initial capital expenditure can be significant and take years to recoup.

Another challenge is increased competition in the market, with new entrants especially facing intense competition. Established providers might lower prices or offer incentives to retain customers, making it challenging for newcomers to gain market share. With pressures on the cost of living, customers are attracted by cheaper offers and the same time as expecting increasingly fast and reliable connections.

Yet another issue facing service providers is technological obsolescence. Even though full-fibre connections are relatively future-proof, providers must continually upgrade and maintain their networks to keep pace with changing customer expectations, traffic growth, security concerns, and emerging technologies in the ever-evolving telecommunications industry.

5G networks or even satellite internet are also seen as viable alternatives to fibre to the premises. Many service providers in the future will provide customers with these alternative connections with 5G fixed wireless access offering almost fibre-like speeds without the need to put cables to customer properties.

PTT has a wide range of courses covering fixed and wireless networks. Organisations can be assured that PTT courses can provide their staff with up-to-date content on modern communications networks, enabling them keep on top of ever evolving technologies and customer expectations.