And Asia Global Crossing will get several of its cables up and running even before Tiger.

ECONOMIST: Fibre-optic cables in Asia

The deal involved Asia Global Crossing, a 1999 joint venture by Global Crossing, Softbank and Microsoft to build an Asian network.

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The biggest is Asia Global Crossing, a venture backed by Global Crossing, Microsoft and Goldman Sachs, as well as by Japan's Softbank.

ECONOMIST: Fibre-optic cables in Asia

And now Gary Winnick has a new deal for shareholders: He wants to merge Asia Global Crossing's publicly held 43% stake back into the parent.

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Others believe the dot.com era really ended when Asia Global Crossing became in September 2000 the last flotation in a series dating back to America Online in 1992.

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