The investment made by Meta, a giant technology company from the US, has boosted economic growth in various continents. Like Europe and the Asia Pacific. The impact of the Meta investment is also rapidly being felt by Indonesia.
Based on the results of two studies conducted by Analysys Mason and RTI International on the impact of the submarine cables that Meta has invested in two regions, namely Europe and the Asia Pacific, there is a potential of US$600 billion or equivalent to Rp. 8.6 quadrillion that could be generated against GDP in Europe and the Asia Pacific by 2025.
“Specifically in Indonesia, Meta estimates that the underwater network will be able to contribute to increasing Indonesia’s National GDP up to US$59 billion or Rp. press, Wednesday (2/3/2022).
It is known, Meta has continued to develop the expansion of underwater network infrastructure development in the last 10 years. For the Asia Pacific region alone, Meta noted that in the five years starting from 2021 there will be an increase in revenue of US$422 billion or equivalent to Rp. 6,052 trillion with a prediction of 3.7 million new jobs being accommodated.
Furthermore, Meta said that in the Asia Pacific, they have now invested in two systems, namely the Asia-Pacific Gateway and Jupiter. The two systems explore various regions from Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, Vietnam, and the United States.
The focus for employment includes the construction, telecommunications, and service-based industries such as finance, health, technology, information, and education in 2025.
Most recently, Meta is preparing two submarine cables named Echo and Bitfrost which are expected to be available between 2022-2025 and begin operating through the Luzon Strait and become the first cable to connect Jakarta, Indonesia directly with the United States.
Another submarine cable, known as Apricot will also be present connecting Singapore, Japan, Taiwan, Guam, Indonesia, and the Philippines. Apricot will be the first undersea cable crossing Asia to avoid the most congested passage in the South China Sea.
Meanwhile in Europe, through the trans-oceanic cable system called Marea, Meta claims to have contributed around 18 billion US dollars equivalent to Rp. 258 trillion to European GDP every year since 2019 and is valued equivalent to 6 percent of the average annual economic growth in Europe.
By demonstrating its commitment to providing underwater network infrastructure, Meta believes that this method can encourage more optimal global connectivity. This method is also considered as a form of collaboration between industry and the World Government to provide equal access.
This infrastructure development is the first step for Meta’s business to create a metaverse in the future. Metaverse is expected to realize Mixed Reality to the fullest.
