[Photo: File]Rising fibre-optic cable costs are putting network expansion and connectivity growth across the Asia-Pacific region under pressure. Fibre Network Council APAC Board Director Andrew Bond-Webster says growing demand from artificial intelligence and large-scale data centres is contributing to a global cableshortage. He highlights that geopolitical issues and increased demand have pushed up fibre prices, affecting the availability and cost of network infrastructure. He says the rising cost of fibre has reached a point where the rollout of fibre networks has become difficult to justify in some markets. He says collaboration between Telecom Fiji’s fibre infrastructure and Vodafone Fiji’s mobile infrastructure is helping bring services together at lower costs.