Google 'cloud' grows with new undersea data cables

Google on Tuesday said it is adding three new undersea data cables as it continues to bulk up its ability to power cloud services around the world.

The US internet behemoth has spent $30 billion improving its infrastructure during the past three years and "we're not done yet," according to cloud platform vice president Ben Treynor Sloss.

Fast, reliable internet connections have become imperative as games, social networks, television, financial transactions, documents and more are accessed as services hosted online at data centers.

"Simply put, our cable systems provide the speed, capacity and reliability Google is known for worldwide," Sloss said in a blog post.

"While we haven't hastened the speed of light, we have built a superior cloud network as a result of the well-provisioned direct paths between our cloud and end-users."

Google competes with Amazon Web Services as a platform that companies can contract to handle cloud offerings.

Google is adding network capabilities in Netherlands, Montreal, Finland, Hong Kong and Los Angeles this year, according to Sloss.

Next year, Google will commission three subsea cables.

A 'Curie' cable connecting Chile and Los Angeles will be the first intercontinental connection of its kind not owned by a telecom company, Sloss said.

Google will work with leading social network Facebook and other companies on a "Havfrue" cable linking the US with Denmark and Ireland.

A Hong Kong-Guam cable system in the Pacific Ocean will improve capacity between Australian and locations in Asia, according to Google.

"Together, these investments further improve our network - the world's largest - which by some accounts delivers 25 percent of worldwide internet traffic," Sloss said.