Equinix Introduces Performance Hub Solution

REDWOOD CITY, Calif., March 5, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Equinix, Inc. (Nasdaq: EQIX), the global interconnection and data center company, today announced the Equinix Performance Hub™  ̶  a new solution that uniquely combines elements of data centers, networking infrastructure and connectivity, and cloud computing access to improve application performance and deliver a globally consistent quality of experience to end users. The Performance Hub serves as an extension of the private enterprise network into an Equinix International Business Exchange^™ (IBX^®) data center, enabling enterprises to securely and reliably connect to network and cloud service providers using their own infrastructure or off-the-shelf equipment supplied as part of a bundled offer. Global enterprises such as Chevron, eBay, and Nvidia have already elected to deploy Performance Hub architectures in Equinix data centers around the world.

Highlights / Key Facts

• Global cloud traffic is forecast to grow 4.5x between now and 2017, to 7.7 zettabytes a year, according to Cisco[1]. The combined forces of globalization and the reliance on collaborative, business-critical applications are causing significant demand on enterprise networks and IT architectures. As a result, these businesses need a robust, secure and distributed network to meet the performance needs of a dispersed user base.
• Equinix developed the Performance Hub to address the needs of enterprises struggling to maintain the highest level of network performance and quality of service for global users. Performance Hub deployments include:
  • Equinix IBX data center hosting  ̶  Cabinets, power, and cross connects
  • Network connectivity  ̶  Metro-Ethernet, long-haul (MPLS-VPN), ISP
  • Network equipment   ̶  Routing, switching, firewalls, SSL-VPN, load-balancers, WAN-acceleration
  • Cloud connectivity  ̶  Private, high-bandwidth connectivity to leading public clouds such as Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Windows Azure and many others
• According to Gartner[2], "Given the network density/choice that exists in many of these locations, enterprises can improve overall networking performance by extending a WAN into a carrier-neutral location, which can enable network aggregation, cost take-out and ability to connect to other cloud providers for hybrid IT/cloud."
• Performance Hub solution benchmarking has shown significant improvement in performance across metro (coast-to-coast) scenarios including:
  • 50 percent improvement in http-load tests for web-based applications
  • Greater than 40 percent improvement on file transfers for Microsoft Sharepoint®
  • 40 percent improvement on Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) launch times
  • Reduced jitter and latency for video streaming applications
• For applications hosted on public cloud infrastructure, benchmarking showed:
  • 30 percent improvement in page-load tests for web-based applications, if consumed via Equinix Performance Hub with direct connectivity to public cloud infrastructure vs. Internet connectivity
  • 100x improvement in data transfers for data-replication applications such as Oracle® Data Guard
• Ideal users of the Equinix Performance Hub are large, distributed companies who want to:
  • Transform their WAN to improve performance while reducing costs and benefit from the wide choice of available carriers
  • Improve performance of collaborative, real-time business applications such as VDI, Microsoft SharePoint®, and WebEx®, where information is being shared across a distributed employee or end-user population
  • Explore options to simplify their network and obtain private and secure connectivity between the public cloud and owned infrastructure, including enabling hybrid cloud deployments
  • Renegotiate their WAN service provider agreements to leverage network choice
• Only Equinix can put enterprises closer to their end users in 32 strategic markets and connect them to more than 975 networks and 1,200+ cloud and IT service providers to better serve their distributed workforce.

Availability

• The Equinix Performance Hub is immediately available in Equinix's North American data centers and will be available globally later this year. Demo environments are available for proof-of-concept testing in Ashburn, Virginia, and Silicon Valley via Equinix's Solution Validation Center™.
• Customers can take advantage of Equinix Validated Designs (EVD) that include reference architectures and validated performance benchmarks of commonly used on-premise and cloud applications.
• Equinix also offers solutions to address customer fulfillment needs as they adopt the Equinix Performance Hub. This includes Equinix Consulting Services (ECS), which can deliver detailed technical architecture designs and business case development tailored specifically for the customer's business.
• For more information on the Equinix Performance Hub or EVD/ECS, visit: http://www.equinix.com/platform-equinix/performance-architecture/performance-hub/

Quotes

• Sara Baack, chief marketing officer, Equinix:
  "We are increasingly hearing from enterprises that they are struggling to deal with the strain on application and network performance and how to provide a consistent quality of experience to their distributed workforce. The Equinix Performance Hub combines the strength of the networks and the cloud to address these issues. By redefining their data center strategy to include Performance Hubs located closer to end users, enterprises can strategically leverage their data center to maximize network performance."

Additional Resources

• Equinix Performance Hub Brings the Cloud in Reach for the Enterprise [blog post]
• Equinix Performance Hub solution brief

About Equinix
Equinix, Inc. (Nasdaq: EQIX), connects more than 4,500 companies directly to their customers and partners inside the world's most networked data centers. Today, businesses leverage the Equinix interconnection platform in 32 strategic markets across the Americas, EMEA and Asia-Pacific. www.equinix.com.

Forward Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ materially from expectations discussed in such forward-looking statements. Factors that might cause such differences include, but are not limited to, the challenges of acquiring, operating and constructing IBX centers and developing, deploying and delivering Equinix services; unanticipated costs or difficulties relating to the integration of companies we have acquired or will acquire into Equinix; a failure to receive significant revenue from customers in recently built out or acquired data centers; failure to complete any financing arrangements contemplated from time to time; competition from existing and new competitors; the ability to generate sufficient cash flow or otherwise obtain funds to repay new or outstanding indebtedness; the loss or decline in business from our key customers; and other risks described from time to time in Equinix's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. In particular, see Equinix's recent quarterly and annual reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, copies of which are available upon request from Equinix. Equinix does not assume any obligation to update the forward-looking information contained in this press release.

Equinix and IBX are registered trademarks of Equinix, Inc.
International Business Exchange is a trademark of Equinix, Inc.

[1] Cisco Global Cloud Index (2012-2017)
[2] Gartner, Segment the North American Colocation Market Using This Five-Part Model, Bob Gill, November 1, 2013.

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SOURCE Equinix, Inc.