ITC (International Terrestrial Cable)
Summary
A glossary entry for ITC (International Terrestrial Cable) in Bangladesh, explaining its role as an alternative to submarine cables.
ITC (International Terrestrial Cable)
Definition
An ITC (International Terrestrial Cable) is a fiber-optic cable connection that runs over land across national borders to provide international internet bandwidth. In Bangladesh, ITCs connect our national network to the global internet backbone through India.
Role in Bangladesh
Before ITCs were introduced, Bangladesh was entirely dependent on the BSCCL (now BSCPLC) submarine cables (SMW-4 and SMW-5). If those cables were cut or went under maintenance, the entire country would lose connectivity.
ITCs were licensed by the BTRC to private companies to provide:
- Redundancy: An alternative path if the submarine cable fails.
- Competition: Reducing the price of bandwidth by breaking the submarine cable monopoly.
- Lower Latency: For certain destinations in India or the West, land routes can sometimes be faster than undersea routes.
Major ITC Providers in BD
- Fiber@Home
- Summit Communications
- NovoCom
- One Sky Communications
- BD Link Communication