Five US carrier have so far joined Japan Telecom Co in its plan to build an undersea fiber-optic cable between Japan and the US. WorldCom Inc, MCI Communications Corp, Cable & Wireless Plc, Bell Atlantic Corp and GTE Corp have all joined the project, and other carriers will be able to join as the project develops. The cable would be the highest-capacity link between the two countries and would meet increasing demand for internet bandwidth. The six companies expect to spend a total of 100 billion yen ($775m) on the project, which could start carrying data as early as 2000, according to Japan Telecom, the country’s third largest telecoms company. The link will be a key part of WorldCom’s plan to extend its network into the Pacific Rim. The company, which recently won a facilities license to operate in Japan, is hoping to also add to it a license for the Hong Kong market. In addition, WorldCom is also preparing to start offering services in Singapore by 2000, having just opened its operations center there earlier this week.
