AMSTERDAM -- Eurofiber, the specialised provider of managed dark fiber infrastructure, today announced the roll-out of a further 1,200 km of network to provide dark fiber connectivity to all the major cities in the Netherlands. This major expansion will increase the total length of the network from its current 1,900 to 3,100 km and raise the number of cities served from the present 18 to 42*. New, fully redundant network rings will be created in Groningen, Drenthe and Friesland; in Gelderland and Overijssel (including Twente); in Flevoland; and in Limburg. A new metropolitan area network will be built for the city of Eindhoven.

Once completed, the network will be the second largest fully-owned fiber network in the Netherlands, constructed from beginning to end in only a little over four years. Construction on the extension starts in December 2004 and is scheduled for full completion in July 2005.

Eurofiber customers T-Mobile and Vodafone will be the first users on the new network.

Eurofiber already carries over 50% of the mobile traffic in the Netherlands on its network, serving three of the five mobile operators in the country.

The availability of an independent specialised dark fiber provider creates choice for organisations that are looking for connectivity within their region as well as to the rest of the Netherlands. Lower cost, greater control and higher security are key requirements that make managed dark fiber ideal for organisations like these. Until now high bandwidth users such as banks, ISPs, ICT businesses, storage providers, and public sector organisations like schools, colleges, housing corporations and hospitals have had no option but to use more expensive leased line services from traditional telecom operators.

The Eurofiber customers who connect to the network will now have effectively unlimited bandwidth for customer traffic nationwide with the flexibility to set their own traffic protocols and technologies.

“This is a breakthrough for businesses, carriers and not-for-profit organisations in the Netherlands who want more cost-effective, scalable connectivity that they can control and manage themselves,” said Joost Goderie, Eurofiber CEO. “For a long time, businesses, local governments and telecoms watchdogs have complained that the market is not doing its job; now it will have to. We will be the first fully independent, neutral and open provider – and the first managed dark fiber provider – to offer our services on a nationwide basis. This means better prices, better service, faster connections and greater security and control for all organisations that want to build their own network.”

EuroFiber