--- title: "Happy Anniversary to the AC-1: A Twenty Year Retrospective at Subsea EMEA" description: Tim Stronge hit the stage at Subsea EMEA to talk about what has happened since AC-1 came online, including changes in the way we measure capacity (Trans-Atlantic capacity didn't hit the terabit level until 2006!), capacity usage across the globe, and price fluctuations. image: https://resources.telegeography.com/hubfs/2018/blog-assets/Tim-Subsea-EMEA.jpeg --- [![TG\_LOGO](https://resources.telegeography.com/hubfs/TeleGeography%20Hub%20Theme%20Nov%202025/images/TG_LOGO.svg)](https://www2.telegeography.com/) - [About](https://www2.telegeography.com/about-us) - [Research](https://www2.telegeography.com/our-research) - [Products](https://www2.telegeography.com/products) - [Solutions](https://www2.telegeography.com/solutions) - [Resources](https://resources.telegeography.com) [Log In](https://www.telegeography.com/login/login?service=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.telegeography.com%2Faccount%2Fhome%2Findex) [Contact](https://www2.telegeography.com/contact-us) ###### Data and Analysis Tools - [Cloud and WAN Research Service](https://www2.telegeography.com/cloud-and-wan-infrastructure) - [Data Center Research Service](https://www2.telegeography.com/data-center-research-service) - [GlobalComms Database](https://www2.telegeography.com/globalcomms-database-service) - [International Voice Report](https://www2.telegeography.com/telegeography-report-and-database) - [IP Networks Research Service](https://www2.telegeography.com/ip-networks-research-service) - [ISP Navigator](https://www2.telegeography.com/isp-navigatorisp-navigator) - [Transport Networks Research Service](https://www2.telegeography.com/transport-networks) - [Network Pricing Database](https://www2.telegeography.com/telegeography-pricing-database) - [WAN Cost Benchmark](https://www2.telegeography.com/wan-cost-benchmark) - [Product Passes](https://www2.telegeography.com/product-passes) ###### Consulting - [All Consulting Services](https://www2.telegeography.com/consulting) - [Submarine Cable Consulting](https://www2.telegeography.com/submarine-cable-consulting) ###### Maps - [All Map Services](https://www2.telegeography.com/map-services) - [Sponsor a Map](https://www2.telegeography.com/sponsor-a-map) - [License Map Data](https://www2.telegeography.com/license-geocoded-map-data) - [Cite a Map](https://www2.telegeography.com/cite-telegeography-map) - [Buy a Map](https://shop.telegeography.com/collections/telecom-maps/) ###### Industry - [Education](https://www2.telegeography.com/telegeography-for-education) - [Enterprise](https://www2.telegeography.com/enterprise) - [Tech](https://www2.telegeography.com/tech) - [Telecom](https://www2.telegeography.com/telecom) ###### Case Studies - [AI + Retail Telecom Data](https://www2.telegeography.com/where-to-get-global-telecom-data) - [EXA Infrastructure](https://www2.telegeography.com/exa-infrastructure-case-study) - [Orange Wholesale](https://www2.telegeography.com/orange-wholesale-case-study) - [The European Commission](https://www2.telegeography.com/the-european-commissions-data-backed-approach-to-international-policy) [Back to Resources](https://resources.telegeography.com) # Happy Anniversary to the AC-1: A Twenty Year Retrospective at Subsea EMEA ##### By [Jayne Miller,](https://resources.telegeography.com/author/jayne-miller) Jul 30, 2018 [Networks](https://resources.telegeography.com/tag/networks) [Submarine Cables](https://resources.telegeography.com/tag/submarine-cables) [Events](https://resources.telegeography.com/tag/events) Way back in 1998, a press release went out from Global Crossing about the first segment of their transatlantic fiber-optic cable. "Global Crossing announced today that it has begun transmitting voice and data communication through Atlantic Crossing ([AC-1](https://www.submarinecablemap.com/#/submarine-cable/atlantic-crossing-1-ac-1))," read the release, touting the cable's state-of-the-art system. *This segment will double the total capacity in service across the Atlantic Ocean! Full city-to-city connectivity! A link between Europe and the U.S.!*  Did you catch what's so interesting about that language? ![AC-1-Press-Release](https://resources.telegeography.com/hs-fs/hubfs/2018/blog-assets/AC-1-Press-Release.png?width=1200&name=AC-1-Press-Release.png) In 1998 it made sense to list *voice* communication before data. How times have changed. Earlier this month TeleGeography's Tim Stronge hit the stage at Subsea EMEA to talk about what has happened since AC-1 came online, including changes in the way we measure capacity (Trans-Atlantic capacity didn't hit the terabit level until 2006!), capacity usage across the globe, and price fluctuations. As you can see from the Global Crossing press release, much has changed in the last two decades. But some things have remained consistent. As Tim points out, capacity usage shows us that Africa and the Middle East are as dependent as ever on Europe, a trend that has stood the test of time. ![Petabit-Era](https://resources.telegeography.com/hs-fs/hubfs/2018/blog-assets/Petabit-Era.png?width=1921&name=Petabit-Era.png) To fully relive 1998, spend a few minutes enjoying [this Wikipedia page](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1998_in_the_United_States). ![Jayne Miller](https://resources.telegeography.com/hubfs/tg-staff/Jayne-Miller-TeleGeography.png) #### Jayne Miller Jayne Miller is TeleGeography's Director of Operations. She has over a decade of experience as a writer, editor, and creative strategist. [View Jayne Miller Work](https://resources.telegeography.com/author/jayne-miller) ## Explore Related Content ![Ethernet in the WAN](https://resources.telegeography.com/hubfs/2024/Blog%20Assets/AdobeStock_352772447-1.jpeg) ###### Blog Oct 10, 2024 #### [Ethernet in the WAN](https://resources.telegeography.com/ethernet-in-the-wan) Carrier-grade Ethernet is a critical piece of today’s enterprise WAN, and carriers continue to expand... [View More by Stacey Parker](https://resources.telegeography.com/author/stacey-parker) [Read Full Article](https://resources.telegeography.com/ethernet-in-the-wan) ![European Bandwidth Market: Current Snapshot](https://resources.telegeography.com/hubfs/unnamed%20(1).png) ###### Blog Dec 5, 2025 #### [European Bandwidth Market: Current Snapshot](https://resources.telegeography.com/european-bandwidth-market-current-snapshot) Europe is experiencing a surge in capacity demand with a critical need to connect numerous data centers.... [View More by Stacey Parker](https://resources.telegeography.com/author/stacey-parker) [Read Full Article](https://resources.telegeography.com/european-bandwidth-market-current-snapshot) ![400G: The Building Blocks for AI Long-Haul Networks](https://resources.telegeography.com/hubfs/Content/Content-Graphics/2026/Social%20Media/400G%20AI.png) ###### Blog Jun 10, 2026 #### [400G: The Building Blocks for AI Long-Haul Networks](https://resources.telegeography.com/400g-building-blocks-for-ai-long-haul-networks) Artificial intelligence is reshaping the economics and architecture of global network infrastructure—... [View More by Rob Schult](https://resources.telegeography.com/author/rob-schult) [Read Full Article](https://resources.telegeography.com/400g-building-blocks-for-ai-long-haul-networks) [![TG\_LOGO\_color\_horizontal\_SIMPLIFIED 1](https://resources.telegeography.com/hubfs/TeleGeography%20Hub%20Theme%20Nov%202025/images/TG_LOGO_color_horizontal_SIMPLIFIED%201.svg)](https://www2.telegeography.com/) [Login](https://www.telegeography.com/login/login?service=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.telegeography.com%2Faccount%2Fhome%2Findex) [Contact Us](https://www2.telegeography.com/contact-us) ###### [About](https://www2.telegeography.com/about-us) - [Research](https://www2.telegeography.com/our-research) - [Products](https://www2.telegeography.com/products) - [Solutions](https://www2.telegeography.com/solutions) - [Demo](https://www2.telegeography.com/demo) ###### [Press](https://www2.telegeography.com/telegeography-press) - [Events](https://www2.telegeography.com/telecom-events) - [Careers](https://www2.telegeography.com/careers) ###### [Resources](https://resources.telegeography.com/) - [Podcast](https://www2.telegeography.com/telegeography-explains-the-internet-podcast) - [Newsletter](https://www2.telegeography.com/subscribe-to-telegeography-emails) - - All Rights Reserved 2026 - [Privacy Policy](https://www2.telegeography.com/privacy-policy) ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org", "@type" : "BlogPosting", "author" : { "@type" : "Person", "name" : "Jayne Miller", "url" : "https://resources.telegeography.com/author/jayne-miller" }, "dateModified" : "2026-01-30T11:53:08.311Z", "datePublished" : "2018-07-30T12:13:00.000Z", "headline" : "Happy Anniversary to the AC-1: A Twenty Year Retrospective at Subsea EMEA", "image" : [ "https://resources.telegeography.com/hubfs/2018/blog-assets/Tim-Subsea-EMEA.jpeg" ], "mainEntityOfPage" : { "@id" : "https://resources.telegeography.com/ac-1-cable-twenty-year-retrospective-at-subsea-emea", "@type" : "WebPage" }, "publisher" : { "@type" : "Organization", "logo" : { "@type" : "ImageObject", "url" : "https://resources.telegeography.com/hubfs/assets/telegeography/telegeography-logo-blog.png" }, "name" : "TeleGeography" } } ``` ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org/", "@type" : "WebSite", "image" : "https://www2.telegeography.com/hubfs/Website/assets/logo/telegeography-logo.svg", "name" : "Happy Anniversary to the AC-1: A Twenty Year Retrospective at Subsea EMEA", "potentialAction" : { "@type" : "SearchAction", "query-input" : "required name=search_term_string", "target" : "{search_term_string}" }, "url" : "https://resources.telegeography.com/ac-1-cable-twenty-year-retrospective-at-subsea-emea" } ```