A fiber optic cable is provided that includes a plurality of lengthwise extending,
non-jacketed bundles of optical fibers and a cable jacket surrounding the bundles
of optical fibers. Each bundle of optical fibers may include a binder, such as
a binder thread, for maintaining the integrity of the bundle. The binder may include,
for example, a binder thread formed of an air entangled, textured, continuous multi-filament
thread. The fiber optic cable may also include a separation element for preventing
adhesion between the bundles of optical fibers and the cable jacket without having
to separately jacket each bundle of optical fibers.