TOKYO, JAPAN – NTT Communications (NTT Com) announced today that it is steadily restoring communications services, although some still remain disrupted following the powerful earthquake that hit the Tohoku region of Japan on Friday, March 11.
Some 12,500 lines for IP-VPN and e-VLAN services have been recovered out of the 15,000 that were rendered temporally unavailable in Tohoku during peak disruption.
A major impact on international communication services was avoided by successfully using other routes to bypass damaged submarine cables connecting Japan with the rest of Asia and the United States. Ships are now at sea working on the damaged cables, which NTT Com plans to return to service sometime between April and early May.
Emergency power generators have been installed in communication facilities and data centers to prevent disruption of related communication services due to rolling blackouts that are being implemented by Tokyo Electric Power and Tohoku Electric Power.
Services are also being steadily restored by other members of the NTT Group operating in the Tohoku region, including NTT East’s fixed telephone and optical-fiber access services and NTT DOCOMO’s mobile services. The NTT Group has set up free public phones and mobile base-station vehicles at evacuation centers and other strategic locations, and is offering phone- and Internet-based systems to help people confirm the safety and whereabouts of others.
Akira Arima, NTT Com President and CEO, said “In this time of great suffering, the NTT Group is pursuing all available measures to restore disrupted communications services and facilities with the aiming of providing maximum support for disaster relief and recovery efforts.”
About NTT Communications Corporation
NTT Communications provides a broad range of global networks, management solutions and IT services to customers worldwide. The company is renowned for reliable, high-quality security, hosting, voice, data and IP services, as well as expertise in managed networks and leadership in IPv6 transit technology. NTT Communications’ extensive infrastructure includes Arcstar™ Global IP-VPN and Global e-VLAN, as well as a Tier-1 IP backbone reaching more than 150 countries in partnership with major Internet service providers, and secure data centers in Asia, North America and Europe. NTT Communications is the wholly-owned subsidiary of Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation, one of the world’s largest telecoms with listings on the Tokyo, London and New York stock exchanges. Please visit www.ntt.com/index-e.html.
(Ms.) Akiko Suzaki or (Ms.) Yasuko Oka
NTT Communications
Public Relations Office
Tel. +81 3 6700 4010
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