New Submarine Cable Licensing Rules Will Make Global Communications Networks More Resilient, Says ITIF

WASHINGTON— Following the Federal Communications Commission’s approval of changes to the rules regarding submarine cable landing licenses, the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) released the following statement from Ellis Scherer, policy analyst for broadband, spectrum, and space policy:

Submarine cables carry more than 99 percent of global Internet traffic but are vulnerable to physical damage that can cause long, devastating outages. The best way to prevent outages is to deploy enough cables so that Internet traffic can be rerouted if a cable is damaged.

These new rules will speed up licensing, expedite approvals, and allow cables to be deployed more quickly. This is critical to enhancing the security of global communications networks.

Contact: Austin Slater, [email protected]