MURRAY HILL, N.J., Feb. 13 -- Lucent Technologies announced a letter of intent with Verizon Communications that named Lucent as the supplier of optical systems, data products, software and services for Verizon's global telecommunications network linking the US with major cities in Europe, Asia and Latin America.
    The first phase of this high-speed, broadband network, which will link New York to London, Paris, Amsterdam, Brussels, Frankfurt and Milan, is scheduled to begin operating by the second quarter of this year. Links between New York and Toronto and between Hawaii, Hong Kong, Tokyo and Sydney are already operating and will be part of the new network. Lucent's systems, software and services will provide Verizon with a wide range of voice services, as well as the latest broadband packet services via a network that incorporates advanced data networking and high-speed optical technology. Initially, the per-fiber capacity of the network will be 400 Gb/s. By the end of the year, portions of the network will be upgradeable to 1.6 Tb/s on individual fibers. That is enough bandwidth to transmit up to 80 million one-page emails across a single fiber each second.
    "This significant international buildout signals the emergence of Verizon as a leading presence in the global arena," said Thomas A. Bartlett, president of Verizon's Global Solutions company. "Our new network will be a flexible solution of systems, software and services that will enable us to quickly establish a global footprint with the quality, reliability and capacity to meet the demands of our customers around the world."
    "Today's announcement reinforces our worldwide service capability," said Doris Jean Head, vice president for Lucent Technologies. "The fact that Verizon has named Lucent the supplier for these critical network products and services underscores our ability to bring to the market a full global network solution."
    Lucent will provide optical networking systems, as well as ATM-based wide area networking and access concentrators. In addition, Lucent will provide operations support systems, including provisioning and capacity management.