The agreement covers the four core segments of any Hong Kong-mainland connection, namely, municipal access in Beijing, access to the mainland telecom grid, international transmission and local access in Hong Kong, according to Chen Minghui, Beijing Telecom's operational maintenance department manager.

　　This is the first time Beijing Telecom has worked with an international carrier to provide a service-level commitment for international services. " This will give customers even greater confidence in our products," Chen said.

　　PCCW and Beijing Telecom are creating an integrated service platform that allows customers to adjust their demands on bandwidth and data, she added.

　　Frederick Chui, director of international solution of PCCW, the Hong Kong-listed flagship of the Pacific Century Group and one of Asia's leading integrated communications company, said that he believes these connectivity solutions and service commitments are in growing demand by businesses that have mission-critical applications and devices.