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State-Of-The-Art Infrastructures

In Luxembourg, companies are guaranteed access to high quality infrastructures, particularly in relation to connectivity such as datacenters, because these structures were created to meet the requirements of the financial sector which insisted upon an uninterruptible supply of the very highest standard.

In addition, Luxembourg possesses high quality liaisons, because of its law that companies laying fiber-optic cables must bury them at deep levels and install redundant cables (which is not current practice in other countries).

Luxembourg ensures excellent connectivity to the European backbone (T1) with redundant links to all the main European hubs.

Connectivity

Redundant links to all the main European POPs

Luxembourg is not only physically situated at the heart of Europe, but is also linked to all the major European hubs through a network of redundant fiber optics which guarantee a reliable connectivity at a very high speed with all major European centers.

Luxembourg is effectively connected to the backbone of Europe (T1 link) through several providers. This means that companies hoping to locate their international activities in Luxembourg are able to choose between several providers and many links.

Teralink

1. Teralink represents a range of products offered by the incumbent operator ("Entreprise des Postes et Télécommunications")

Its infrastructure of more than 4.000 km comprises 12 POPs linked to seven major European cities:

• In England : London (Internet exchange point : LINX. Level3)
• In France : Paris, Strasbourg (Internet exchange point : PaNAP)
• In Germany: Frankfurt (2 data centers), Kehl (Internet exchange point : DE-CIX)
• In the Netherlands: Amsterdam (Internet exchange point : AMS-IX)
• In Belgium : Brussels (2 data centers) (Internet exchange point : BNIX. Cogent)

Each POP is linked via T1 doubly secured fiber optic connections from different operators thus guaranteeing 100% redundancy and a 40 Gbit/s upstream IP capacity.

Teralink is based on the `state-of-the-art' DWDM (Dense Wave Division Multiplexing) technology and is able to supply a bandwidth capable of expanding up to 88 x 40Gbit/s (3,5 Terabit/s…this is a vast improvement on the 58 Gbps of 2006). Similarly Teralink is able to provide point to point connections (Wavelength package) which can be combined with the client’s own optical connections. TERALINK Global IP Transit is currently available with the following bandwidths: 100 Mbit/s – 1 Gbit/s (on Gigabit Ethernet interfaces) and 1 Gbit/s – 10 Gbit/s (on 10Gigabit Ethernet interfaces).

Teralink’s offer has acted as a catalyst for local providers (in particular data centers, see article on data centers), which have created an alliance with the EPT in order to create a T1 Internet hub and to negotiate agreements with international providers, such as Level3 (UK) and Inexio (Germany). As a result Level3 Communications has opened a POP on the eBRC (data center) site, which enables them to supply ultra-high speed bandwidth services to England (with a latency period of 14 milliseconds) as well as IP services associated with telecom operators, cable operators, Internet providers and e-commerce companies operating in Luxembourg (Skype, Amazon, etc.) or planning to locate in the Grand Duchy.

Indeed, many operators were demanding a suitable infrastructure for their ambitions.

LuxConnect

2. LuxConnect was created by the Luxembourg government to improve the diversity of international connectivity (Act of Parliament of December 22nd, 2006 on the construction of information highways).

As an alternative to existing networks, LuxConnect passes its fiber optic installations using available channels alongside the railway lines and roads. This fiber optic cable, comprising 96 pairs of glass fiber, offers a capacity of 40 Gbits and connections to all major international hubs: Amsterdam, Frankfurt and Paris.

LuxConnect unveiled its first data center in May 2009; It's a state-of-the-art building designed in compliance with Tier-4 specifications.

Artelis/Cegecom

3. Cegecom/Artelis also has its own fiber optic network with links to all major European hubs. Thanks to its partnership with the German RWE group, it has been able to set up a secured loop linking Luxembourg, Saarbrücken, Frankfurt, Brussels and Luxembourg again to set up a circular connection which guarantees permanent availability even if one section of the service is interrupted.

It is capable of transmitting data at a speed of 2.5 Gbit/s.

The diversity of the offer permits companies to benefit from redundant networks but it also contributes to falling prices.

Satellite connectivity

SES, the world leader in satellite services, is a network of satellite operators present on all the continents. The company’s headquarters are located in Luxembourg.  

With its fleet of 39 satellites, SES offers unequalled global connectivity, covering 99% of the world’s population.

Aside from its broadcasting activities, SES offers services such as high-speed data transmission, Internet backbone connection platforms, private networks, communication solutions and Internet access.