Exclusive Interaction - Jeremy Deutsch, President, Equinix, Asia-Pacific

Equinix is expanding in India with its datacentre, Cloud  and data management technologies.  Jeremy Deutsch, President, Equinix, Asia-Pacific, talked to us about his organisation.

What has been the expansion graph of  Equinix  datacentres in India in 2020?

Equinix announced its intent to expand to India through the acquisition of the India operations of GPX Global Systems, Inc. in an all-cash transaction of US$161 million. The acquisition is expected to close in Q1 2021, subject to customary closing conditions including regulatory approval.

This acquisition, which is Equinix’s first step into the market, will add two new data centers in Mumbai to Platform Equinix. The two facilities will provide more than 1,350 cabinets, with the addition of more than 500 cabinets when the second Mumbai facility is fully built out.

The acquisition also includes GPX India’s current customer base of more than 200 customers. These include numerous international brands and key local companies as well as MNCs, major cloud service providers, social networks and OTT streaming platforms.

How the Datacentre technology is evolving  in 2020?

.Many organisations nowadays realised what they need is not merely a place to store their data, but a vendor-neutral platform that allows them to interconnect and succeed in the digital era. Behind even the simplest digital experiences - checking Facebook, sending emails, streaming movies on Netflix, online shopping, booking an Uber -­ there is a complex setting where several businesses are required to establish a secure direct connection with each other for a seamless experience. These direct and secure connections are what we call interconnection and it is essential to business success in this new era of the digital economy. Globally dispersed customers, employees and partners are processing more data on more devices than ever, and existing IT architectures can’t keep up. To succeed, companies must re-architect IT infrastructures out to the network edge. Leveraging Platform Equinix, which consists of 210+ International Business Exchange (IBX) data centers across 56 metros, enterprises are able to deploy their digital infrastructure in the locations they need to reach and support their mission-critical workloads.

Also, we are seeing organizations increasingly look to multiple cloud providers as certain workloads may run better on one cloud than another. Many organizations don’t have the processes and/or resources in place internally to manage hybrid cloud computing and look to interconnection and  multicloud access as a means to bring various silos of computing together to be more competitive.  According to IBM, 98% of businesses will move to multiple hybrid clouds by 2021.

To support our customers and partners navigate the above trends, our teams are already deeply engaged in advancing our abilities to help them interconnect on-demand and with cloud-like experiences. Our software-defined interconnection services, like Equinix Cloud Exchange Fabric  (ECX Fabric), enable virtual interconnection for customers located anywhere – accelerating opportunities for businesses looking to expand or enhance their footprints overseas without the need to invest in physical infrastructure. With access to a broad ecosystem of network service and cloud providers via Platform Equinix, enterprises can establish direct connections to multiple clouds from multiple locations simultaneously, making access to preferred providers possible.With the acquisition of GPX India, we will be in a solid position to respond to strong demand from existing network, content, cloud, and enterprise customers, looking to expand in this rapidly growing market.

What kind of opportunities is this providing to the Cloud Solution providers in India?

India is home to a thriving cloud market, with several major cloud service providers establishing a presence in the market in recent years.  Reduced costs, increased scalability, flexibility and security, as well as improved connectivity are driving up the demand for hybrid multicloud in India. IDC predicts that by 2021, 50% of enterprises in India will rely on a mix of on-premises/dedicated private clouds, several public clouds, and legacy platforms to meet their infrastructure needs. As such, this move will help Equinix continue to support major CSPs as they expand into India, in the same way we do in the markets in which we currently operate.

The acquisition of GPX India complements and extends our strategy to expand our global platform and enhance cloud and network density. Expanded interconnection connectivity from Equinix provides customers across India with access to Platform Equinix, delivering access to carriers and cloud service providers all over the world.

What are the challenges in expanding datacentre technology in India in 2020?

Entering a new market is always a complex endeavor, requiring us to closely examine every scenario under consideration. During the selection process, we took into account a broad list of criteria including our ability to acquire facilities built to the highest quality, that could offer network density and existing robust ecosystems, as well as a high level of interconnection. GPX India ticked all the boxes, providing the right location for our customers to deliver their platforms in India.

As the undisputed leader of peering and cloud ecosystems in Mumbai, GPX India is the ideal launch pad for Equinix’s pan-India aspirations. Our first step into the Indian market provides us with a footprint of two highly interconnected data centers, which have become the de facto interconnection sites in India for carriers, content delivery networks (CDNs), content providers, and network and cloud service providers. GPX India’s data centers - designed utilizing the Uptime Institute’s Tier IV Classification System for data center systems and operational sustainability - provide customers with secure and reliable services to co-locate their mission-critical business infrastructure.

GPX India has created a network dense and interconnection rich retail co-location business in Mumbai. Its data centers are home to their own cloud ecosystems, offering a cloud dense environment with on-ramps to major cloud services including Amazon Direct Connect, Google Cloud Dedicated Interconnect, and Oracle Cloud Infrastructure FastConnect. Its facilities also host key internet exchanges, namely Mumbai IX-DECIX, AMSIX India, Extreme IX and Bharat IX, allowing networks, content providers, and large enterprises to exchange internet traffic inside the two datacentres.

This move will support Equinix’s ongoing global expansion, strengthen our leadership position in the Asia-Pacific region, and present opportunities to expand into new metros and market segments in the Indian market.