Digital Realty Launches "Direct Link Colo" Solution Enabling Customers to Directly Connect to IBM Cloud

SAN FRANCISCO, Dec. 3, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Digital Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE: DLR), a leading global provider of data center solutions,  introduced today Direct Link Colo, a solution that connects customers in Digital Realty data centers directly to IBM Cloud via SoftLayer's global cloud infrastructure platform. With Direct Link Colo, customers in Digital Realty data centers gain access to incredible network performance, including latency as low as 1.5 milliseconds—one of the lowest latencies for a hybrid cloud solution in the industry.

IBM Cloud data centers are colocated at Digital Realty's hub locations in the Asia Pacific region, Europe and the U.S., with direct dark fiber connections between them. According to Chris Sharp, Digital Realty's Chief Technology Officer, "By eliminating the role of the public Internet or the need for costly private networks, Direct Link Colo enables customers and partners to have greater control over access to their infrastructure and services, the speed of their connection to IBM Cloud, and how the data is routed."

With Direct Link Colo, there are no third-party carriers involved, additional intermediary electronics or steps are minimized, and links are available at 1 GigE or 10 GigE speeds. By directly linking Digital Realty—a data center provider with a global footprint, unrivaled ability to scale with clients of every size, and an eight-year record of 99.999 percent ("five 9s") of uptime—to SoftLayer's modular global cloud infrastructure platform, Direct Link Colo delivers:

• Latency as low as 1.5 milliseconds to facilitate scaling and near real-time synchronicity between hybrid cloud and colocation solutions
• Fast deployment and extension of customer solutions
• Dramatically reduced power costs due to less physical equipment
• Room to grow on a global scale with a trusted partner

"Our primary goal in working with Digital Realty on Direct Link Colo is to deliver world class hybrid computing solutions without compromising on performance and security," said Jack Beech, Vice President of Business Development for SoftLayer, an IBM company. "We have a longstanding relationship with Digital Realty and know the team operates to the highest standards. This, combined with our close proximity to many of its colocation facilities, is crucial to delivering the latency we are aiming to achieve."

Direct Link Colo is currently available in eight markets: Santa Clara, CA; Dallas, TX; Ashburn, VA; London, England; Amsterdam, Holland; Tokyo, Japan; Singapore and Melbourne, Australia; with more locations to be added in the future. For more information on IBM Direct Link services powered by SoftLayer visit http://www.softlayer.com/direct-link.

About Digital Realty
Digital Realty Trust, Inc. supports the data center and colocation strategies of more than 1,000 firms across its secure, network-rich portfolio of data centers located throughout North America, Europe, Asia and Australia. Digital Realty's clients include companies of all sizes, ranging from financial services, cloud and information technology services, to manufacturing, energy, gaming, life sciences and consumer products. https://www.digitalrealty.com/

For Additional Information:
Clive Over
Product Marketing Director
Global Marketing
Digital Realty Trust, Inc.
415-848-9456
[email protected]

Safe Harbor Statement
This press release contains forward-looking statements which are based on current expectations, forecasts and assumptions that involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual outcomes and results to differ materially, including statements related to the Direct Link Colo solution, Digital Realty's collaboration with IBM and SoftLayer, and Digital Realty's operations in the U.S., Europe and Asia Pacific regions.  These risks and uncertainties include, among others, the following: the impact of current global economic, credit and market conditions; current local economic conditions in our geographic markets; decreases in information technology spending, including as a result of economic slowdowns or recession; adverse economic or real estate developments in our industry or the industry sectors that we sell to (including risks relating to decreasing real estate valuations and impairment charges); our dependence upon significant tenants; bankruptcy or insolvency of a major tenant or a significant number of smaller tenants; defaults on or non-renewal of leases by tenants; our failure to obtain necessary debt and equity financing; risks associated with using debt to fund our business activities, including re-financing and interest rate risks, our failure to repay debt when due, adverse changes in our credit ratings or our breach of covenants or other terms contained in our loan facilities and agreements; financial market fluctuations; changes in foreign currency exchange rates; our inability to manage our growth effectively; difficulty acquiring or operating properties in foreign jurisdictions; our failure to successfully integrate and operate acquired or developed properties or businesses; the suitability of our properties and data center infrastructure, delays or disruptions in connectivity, failure of our physical infrastructure or services or availability of power; risks related to joint venture investments, including as a result of our lack of control of such investments; delays or unexpected costs in development of properties; decreased rental rates, increased operating costs or increased vacancy rates; increased competition or available supply of data center space; our inability to successfully develop and lease new properties and development space; difficulties in identifying properties to acquire and completing acquisitions; our inability to acquire off-market properties; our inability to comply with the rules and regulations applicable to reporting companies; our failure to maintain our status as a REIT; possible adverse changes to tax laws; restrictions on our ability to engage in certain business activities; environmental uncertainties and risks related to natural disasters; losses in excess of our insurance coverage; changes in foreign laws and regulations, including those related to taxation and real estate ownership and operation; and changes in local, state and federal regulatory requirements, including changes in real estate and zoning laws and increases in real property tax rates. For a further list and description of such risks and uncertainties, see the reports and other filings by the Company with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, including the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2014 and Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q for the quarters ended March 31, 2015 and June 30, 2015.  The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.  

SOURCE Digital Realty Trust, Inc.

Related Links

https://www.digitalrealty.com