The TEIN2 Project
TEIN2 has three main objectives:
- Increase direct Internet connectivity for research and education between Europe and Asia
- Improve intra-regional connectivity within Asia
- Act as a catalyst for the development of national research networking in the developing countries in the Asia-Pacific region.
To achieve these objectives, TEIN2 has built two key elements in networking between Europe and Asia:
- Asian regional infrastructure connecting TEIN2’s Asian partners
- Connectivity between the TEIN2 regional backbone and GÉANT2.
As well as encouraging increased research collaboration between Asian NRENs, and between Europe and Asia, TEIN2 is providing the increased capacities required to accommodate that anticipated expansion. The project is divided into two phases.
Phase 1 began in May 2004. It comprised a feasibility study to explore user needs and the connectivity market, and to plan further stages of the project. Phase 1 was successfully completed and the feasibility study accepted by the European Commission in November 2004.
During Phase 2, the network has been built and is now being operated for the benefit of the TEIN2 partners. After planning studies and a major procurement programme, the first links came into service in December 2005. The network was fully deployed during the first half of 2006. This phase of the project is scheduled to run until the end of 2007.
The Future
Thanks to the successful deployment and positive support of partners, planning is underway for a long-term extension of the programme, to be known as TEIN3. It is intended that this will expand the network to meet the increasing demands of users across the region, and to achieve a sustainable operating model.
