China and South Korea desire telecommunications routes that bypass Japan, so they are working up a plan to lay submarine optical cable that would tie the Asian mainland directly to North America. According to Dow Jones News, the two are negotiating with international companies to build the network, which could cost $500m to $1bn depending on where it calls, say people close to the talks. Firm involved include government-controlled China Telecom, AT&T Corp, SBC Communications Corp, Pacific Telesis Group Inc, Teleglobe Canada Inc and Cable & Wireless Plc.