Understanding Submarine Cable Map and Dark Fiber Infrastructure for Global Connectivity
The internet around the world runs through physical cables placed under the ocean. These submarine cables carry more than 95% of global data between countries. According to Grand View Research, the submarine cable market reached USD 31.70 billion in 2024. This market keeps growing because more people need fast and stable internet. A submarine cable map shows where these cables connect countries and continents. Dark fiber works together with submarine cables to support strong network systems. Dark fiber means unused fiber optic cables that companies can rent or own for their own networks. Many businesses use a submarine cable map to see where cables land and plan their connections. Because of this, understanding how submarine cables and dark fiber work together helps companies choose the right internet setup. How deep are submarine cables buried? Submarine cables are buried at different depths based on where they are located. A submarine cable map typically shows the routes of these cables across the ocean floor. In shallow waters near the coast, crews bury cables 1 meter deep into the ocean floor. This protects them from ship anchors and fishing nets. According to KIS-ORCA, special underwater plows dig narrow trenches to bury the cables. However, deep ocean areas do not need cable burial. Instead, cables in deep water just sit on the ocean floor. This is because fewer ships and fishing boats go to those deep areas. Looking at any submarine cable map, you can see that cables crossing deep ocean trenches sit at depths over 8,000 feet below sea level. Meanwhile, companies use water jets and underwater robots to bury cables in areas up to 2,000 meters deep. What happens when undersea internet cables are cut? Damaged submarine cables quickly stop internet services. Countries lose their internet connection until workers fix the cables. A submarine cable map helps network operators see which cables are affected and plan alternate routes during outages. For example, Internet Society reported that in March 2024, four cables were damaged off the coast of West Africa. This affected many countries at the same time. Fixing broken cables needs special ships and trained workers. First, workers pull the broken cable from the ocean floor onto the repair ship. Then, they connect new cable pieces to fix the break. Most simple repairs take 5 to 15 days. However, harder repairs in dangerous areas can take many months. For instance, Recorded Future found that cable breaks in the Red Sea in February 2024 took almost five months to fix. This was because of permit delays and safety concerns in that region. Why do we need undersea cables with satellites available? There are many reasons why submarine cables are still very important today: Satellites are still useful in places where cables cannot reach. Remote islands and far areas often use satellites because it is hard to install cables there. But according to TeleGeography, satellites carry less than 0.37% of the world’s data. Most busy coastal areas use submarine cables instead. MarketsandMarkets also says the submarine cable market reached USD 18.2 billion in 2024. It is expected to grow to USD 29.7 billion by 2029. Big companies like Google and Meta continue to build new submarine cables. Today, there are 559 active submarine cable systems around the world. Building reliable network infrastructure Submarine cables are the main foundation of global internet connectivity. Businesses need reliable fiber infrastructure to send and receive their data. Dark fiber solutions give dedicated bandwidth without sharing with other users. This means companies can grow their network speed as they need more data capacity. Companies can check the submarine cable map to see how their location connects to global networks. ARNet provides dark fiber solutions that connect businesses to important network infrastructure. Our dark fiber services let companies control their own network capacity and speed. ARNet’s infrastructure links to major submarine cable landing stations and data centers across the region. We help businesses understand the submarine cable map and connect to the right landing points for their needs. If your business needs connections between countries in Southeast Asia using sea cables, ARNet can help. We help businesses understand the submarine cable map and connect to the right landing points for their needs. Choose ARNet because we offer dedicated fiber solutions with guaranteed bandwidth and low delay times. Our network infrastructure helps businesses that need secure and reliable internet for their work. ARNet’s dark fiber services remove the speed limits that shared networks create. This gives your company the performance needed for applications that use lots of data. About the Author Nabila Choirunnisa, Digital Marketing Executive at ARNet
6 Dark Fiber Internet Challenges (and How to Solve Each One)
As digital work grows, businesses need an internet that can handle a lot of data without becoming slow. Many companies still use the shared internet. This means many users are on the same connection, so speed becomes slower during busy times. Because of this, more businesses choose dark fiber internet for a stable and safe connection. With dark fiber internet, your business uses its own fiber cable that is not shared with others. This gives you full control of your network. You can easily manage speed, keep data more secure, and add more capacity as your business grows. What is the speed of dark fiber internet? Dark fiber internet speed depends on the equipment you connect to the fiber, not the fiber cable itself. This means businesses can upgrade speed whenever their data needs increase. A September 2025 report shows more companies choose dark fiber because it offers near unlimited capacity and better control over performance. Real world tests also show how powerful fiber technology is. For example, dark fiber cables can support speeds much faster than normal home internet. In 2024, researchers at Aston University sent 402 terabits per second through a standard fiber cable, showing how much potential existing fiber still has. Soon after, another record was set. In November 2025, scientists in Japan reached 430 terabits per second using fiber optic technology. Together, these results show that dark fiber internet can handle extremely large amounts of data when paired with the right equipment. What are the challenges of using dark fiber and how can you solve them? Dark fiber internet has several challenges, including cost, technical expertise, limited geographic, regulatory complexity, maintenance, and contract commitments. Each one can be managed with the right approach. Below is the detailed explanation of each of them. 1. High upfront costs Dark fiber can cost around $50,000 per mile for leasing and over $100,000 for equipment. To manage this, start small and only activate what you need first. You can also use equipment financing or share costs with other businesses in the same building. 2. Technical expertise requirements Running dark fiber requires skilled network professionals. One solution is to work with a managed dark fiber provider who can support your team. Another option is to train your current IT staff and hire one experienced specialist to guide them. 3. Limited geographic availability Dark fiber is often not available in rural areas or small cities. Check multiple providers to compare coverage. You can also ask providers about building new fiber to your location or choose offices with existing fiber connections. 4. Regulatory complexity and permit delays Permits can take six to twelve months in many cities. Working with providers who already have permits and local experience can speed things up. Starting the process early also helps avoid delays. 5. Operational burden and maintenance With dark fiber internet, you are responsible for monitoring and repairs. To reduce risk, choose service packages that include monitoring and maintenance support. It is also smart to build backup routes in case one fiber line fails. 6. Long term contract commitments Dark fiber contracts often last ten to twenty years. Try to negotiate shorter contracts with renewal options. Make sure contracts allow changes in capacity and routes as your business grows. Need help evaluating dark fiber for your business? ARNet helps businesses evaluate dark fiber needs across Southeast Asia. We operate a 10,000 km network that connects 60 data centers across Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, and Indonesia. We control all required licenses ourselves, allowing faster deployment and clear timelines. Our team monitors networks in real time and uses equipment we own and manage in house. This gives you reliable and scalable dark fiber internet built around your business needs. If you want to talk about your connectivity plans, contact our team for a simple, no pressure discussion about what solution fits your business best. About the Author Nabila Choirunnisa, Digital Marketing Executive at ARNet
An Introduction to Dark Fiber: How It Works and Why It Matters
Every second, billions of bits of information move around the world through tiny fiber optic cables that we can’t see. But most businesses don’t think about what powers their internet until something breaks. If you run a data center, manage cloud systems, or work with large amounts of data, you’ve probably faced slow speeds or limits. Many times, your internet provider just can’t give the speed and stability you need. That’s where dark fiber helps. It’s not a new tool, but it’s becoming the main way big companies move their most important data. This way, it gives them their own line, more control, and the freedom to grow without sharing with others. To understand this better, learning about dark fiber is important. What is the dark fiber? Dark fiber is unused optical fiber cable that’s already laid in the ground or installed in infrastructure. It remains unlit because no transmission equipment has been connected to activate it. Because of this, it has no active electronics or signals running through it. As a result, organizations can lease or own these fiber strands and run their own equipment, bandwidth, and network design on top of them. What makes this different is the control it gives you. You install your own equipment at both ends, set your own rules, and decide exactly how to use the capacity. In other words, there’s no middleman throttling your speeds or charging you for extra bandwidth next month. Moreover, you’re not competing with other users for resources. If you need more capacity, you simply upgrade your equipment, not your service plan. For companies dealing with sensitive data or needing guaranteed performance, this level of independence is invaluable. Market growth and statistics The demand for dark fiber is rising fast as companies grow their networks. This rise is mainly because of machine learning, cloud growth, and big data centers. As businesses build systems that handle heavy computer work and real-time data, they need more network capacity. Because of this, private, high-capacity networks are now very important. A report fromData Center Knowledge shows that bandwidth for data center links grew by almost 330% from 2020 to 2024. The growth of AI systems plays a big role in this because training and running models need very large data links.Grand View Research also says the global dark fiber market may reach about 13.45 billion dollars by 2030 as large tech companies and enterprises move from renting bandwidth to owning their own networks to save money and improve performance. Future Market Insights gives similar numbers, estimating the market at 7.0 billion dollars in 2025 and expecting a yearly growth rate of 9.4% through 2035. All of this shows a clear trend: companies are not only buying internet service anymore, they are investing in the physical network paths that keep the digital world running. Why enterprises are making the switch The move to dark fiber isn’t just about getting faster speeds, but it’s also about having more control. Many companies choose this litr fiber because it gives them several clear benefits: Powering southeast asia with ARNet As Southeast Asia’s digital world grows, choosing a dark fiber provider with stable and strong infrastructure is very important. This is whereARNet stands out. ARNet owns and runs an AI-ready, all-fiber network that stretches over 10,000 kilometers across Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, and Indonesia. ARNet stands out as the only single-entity provider in the region that controls all key licenses and builds its own land and subsea network. Because ARNet plans, builds, and operates everything in-house, it delivers consistent performance, better route options, and full control over network quality. With fast and predictable deployment, clear milestones, and a committed SLA backed by real-time monitoring, ARNet gives businesses a reliable, high-speed foundation built for today’s heavy data and AI workloads. To learn more about ARNet’s network and infrastructure approach, you can visit the ARNet website. About the Author Nabila Choirunnisa, Digital Marketing Executive at ARNet