CenturyLink to Begin Making Major Investments in Edge Compute Services

MONROE, La., Aug. 12, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Forward-looking companies seeking the advantages of next-gen IOT, AI, and Machine Learning applications increasingly need distributed solutions – from the local edge to the public cloud core – that combine compute, storage, and networking in an integrated package.

To meet these needs, CenturyLink, Inc. (NYSE: CTL) is announcing the rollout of its edge-focused strategy, beginning with a several hundred-million-dollar investment to build out and support edge compute services. This effort – which includes creating more than 100 initial edge compute locations across the U.S., and providing a range of hybrid cloud solutions and managed services – enables customers to advance their next-gen digital initiatives with technology that integrates high performance, low-latency networking with leading cloud service provider platforms in customized configurations.

"Customers are increasingly coming to us for help with applications where latency, bandwidth and geography are critical considerations," said Paul Savill, senior vice president, product management, CenturyLink. "This investment creates the platform for CenturyLink to enable enterprises, hyperscalers, wireless carriers, and system integrators with the technology elements to drive years of innovation where workloads get placed closer to customers' digital interactions."

This expansion allows businesses and government agencies to leverage a highly diverse, global fiber network with edge facilities designed to serve their local locations within 5 milliseconds of latency. With this infrastructure, companies will be able to complete the linkage from office location to market edge compute aggregation to public cloud and data centers with redundant and dynamically consumable network.

"Digital transformation is gaining momentum as enterprises across all verticals look to technology to improve operational efficiency and enhance the customer experience," said Melanie Posey, Research Vice President and General Manager at 451 Research. "As business processes become increasingly distributed, data-intensive, and transaction-based, the IT systems they depend on must be equally distributed to provide the necessary compute, storage and network resources to far-flung business value chains."  

CenturyLink's thousands of secure technical facilities combined with its network of 450,000-global route miles of fiber, expertise in high-performance cloud networking, and extensive cloud management expertise make this investment in the rapidly emerging edge compute market a natural evolution for the company.

Key Facts

• CenturyLink today connects to over 2,200 public and private datacenters and over 150,000 on-net, fiber-fed enterprise buildings.
• CenturyLink's robust fiber network is one of the most deeply peered and well-connected in the world, with over 450,000 route-miles of coverage.
• CenturyLink is expanding access to its services by expanding network colocation services in many key markets to enable customers and partners to run distributed IT workloads close to the edge of the network.

About CenturyLink
CenturyLink (NYSE: CTL) is a technology leader delivering hybrid networking, cloud connectivity, and security solutions to customers located in more than 60 countries. Through its extensive global fiber network, CenturyLink provides secure and reliable services to meet the growing digital demands of businesses and consumers. CenturyLink strives to be the trusted connection to the networked world and is focused on delivering technology that enhances the customer experience. Learn more at http://news.centurylink.com/.

SOURCE CenturyLink, Inc.