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Samih Kawar, CTO, Gulf Bridge International

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DQI Bureau
New Update

Samih Kawar, a 30-year-old veteran of the telecom industry, in his current role as the chief technical officer of Gulf Bridge International is responsible for the design, implementation, and operation of the GBI cable system. In his previous stints, Kawar has held senior positions in a number of leading telcos including Verizon and Flag. Throughout his career, Kawar has been responsible for a broad spectrum of diversified business activities including project management, system implementations, operational responsibilities, and mergers and acquisitions. In his discussions with Dataquest, Kawar talks about GBI's claim to fame as the first cable to land in Sify cable station in Mumbai and GBI's plans for the future. Excerpts

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How would you describe GBI's efforts in carving a niche for itself?

GBI is a pioneering telecom company from the Gulf and for the Gulf region. We are setting new industry standards and breaking the mould by creating a carrier-neutral business model, which will serve all customers equally. Our next-generation communications network will truly connect the world to the Gulf.

The network is designed to connect all the Gulf countries-Bahrain, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE. The network topology, of core ring configuration, means that GBI is the first cable system to connect all Gulf countries providing each with a dedicated and secure route.

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Through our landing partners and other operators we offer the most comprehensive coverage across the Gulf region. In countries beyond the Gulf region, the cable connects eastwards to Mumbai (India) and will provide the lowest latency between India and each of the Gulf countries. Westwards the cable crosses the Red Sea and Mediterranean to Sicily (Italy) with diverse routing to Milan and then onwards to London, Frankfurt, Amsterdam, Paris, and Marseille. The global network of GBI now covers over 30,000 km including the subsea network of 13,000 km of deployed cable. As part of our commitment to ensure operational excellence, we have conducted an extensive and rigorous training with all our landing partners.

GBI became the first operator to offer 100G connectivity on parts of its undersea cable network? How would you describe the achievement?

We are investing in and deploying the latest fiber-optic technology. GBI is offering an activated 100G line interface on parts of its subsea cable network as well as 100G long haul line interface on our terrestrial network. GBI is the first operator in the region to offer an activated 40G line interface on our subsea cable network. With a capacity of at least 5.18 terabits, the GBI cable system will enable real-time communications for telecommunication operators and other major industries, while encouraging a greater sophistication of service offerings. It's the first system of its kind to be installed in the region in more than a decade.

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What are the biggest issues that you face as a CTO of a cable network company?

As the CTO of a cable network company, there are several ongoing challenges that I face. The first is being able to respond to rapid changes in traffic patterns and configuring capacity on the network accordingly. The second issue pertains to resilience and security, as we operate in very congested waters and there is always the risk of a cable being damaged. To address both of these challenges, we have designed the network topology and deployed the most advanced equipment to minimize the risk.

Do you expect the European crisis to bring in any specific challenges for the IT department?

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I do not foresee any specific challenges. Clearly, there is great uncertainty in the market as to how the economic crisis in Europe will unfold. However we believe that our business model is robust enough to cope with any downturn in business from Europe. At a time of economic turbulence, international bandwidth requirements can increase as companies and individuals reduce their international travel and instead use voice and data services.

GBI became the first cable to land in Sify cable station in Mumbai (India). What are your company's plans for the future?

We have ambitious plans to ensure that GBI evolves from being a mere Gulf based company into a globally-focused organization. We are assessing opportunities to expand the reach of our network in Europe, Africa, and Asia. In Europe we will seek to offer greater diversity and coverage, and in Africa and Asia we intend to extend our connectivity. And, we see GBI as being strategically poised to be a communications hub between these 2 continents.

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In addition, we are exploring options to expand our business vertically into areas such as data centers, etc. Currently, 7% of the world's population speaks Arabic, but less than 3% of all content is in Arabic, which will change rapidly in the coming years and will require regional data centers to store content.

How would you describe 2011 in terms of IT implementation and what would you describe as your priorities for 2012?

From a business perspective, one needs to strike a perfect balance between delivering an excellent operational service on a day-to-day basis, while at the same time invest in and encourage innovation. The skill set of an IT staff needs to mirror this requirement. IT technology, from both systems and applications perspective, is constantly evolving requiring organizations to upgrade and invest in their staff's skills.

As a new company, our focus has been on sourcing and implementing our IT systems. We have selected our key suppliers for network management and fault reporting, customer care and billing, etc. These systems are being installed and handed over to us and the final training and testing was also done in preparation of the launch. In brief, 2012 will be very much about bedding these IT systems down, assessing how well they are meeting our needs, and making any changes that are required.

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