10G rates plummet, but still cost way more in Asia

As 10G becomes the primary unit of international bandwidth, its prices are falling at rates way ahead of traditional SDH/SONET circuits.

In its latest update, TeleGeography tells us the that the price of a 10Gbps wavelength on major routes fell 37% last year, compared with 12% for a 155Mbps STM-1/OC-3 link.

TeleGeography analyst Brianna Boudreau says 10Gbps wavelengths will remain the prime unit of the global wholesale market for some time to come, but adds:

“While 10Gbps price declines will outpace those of smaller SDH circuits for some time, 40Gbps and 100Gbps wavelengths are becoming more widely available. As these products mature and provide volume and cost efficiencies for network operators, savings will be passed on to bandwidth buyers in the form of steady price declines.”

One thing that hasn’t changed is that, despite all the Asian bandwidth buildouts of the past four years, intra-Asia and Asia are vastly more expensive than trans-Atlantic.

Hong Kong-Tokyo and Hong Kong-Los Angeles 10G prices fell at CAGR of 32% between Q4 2009 and Q4 2012 - to $23,250 and $43,800 respectively. But those rates are still way above the average London-New York tariff of $9,000.