LONDON, March 20, 2013 /PRNewswire/ — Digital Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:DLR, news, filings) today announced the release of a white paper titled “Enabling the Cloud: Digital Realty and the Next Generation of Data Centre Connectivity in Europe.” The paper discusses in detail how Digital Realty is addressing the connectivity-specific needs of UK-based enterprise customers that are either providing or using cloud and/or virtualization services.
“More and more enterprise customers are viewing the cloud as a key strategic business tool, and, as such, are increasingly moving toward a cloud-based service delivery platform,” said Robert Bath, vice president of Engineering, Digital Realty, Europe, and author of the paper. “With the adoption of this new strategy come certain challenges for customers, which are primarily related to issues around fibre optics and network connectivity.”
The white paper focuses on how Digital Realty is uniquely positioned to help its enterprise customers overcome these challenges through its deployment of a high-capacity, high-availability network in the greater London area combined with a host of complementary connectivity solutions that are provided by a variety of carriers with whom the Company has longstanding relationships.
Key Customer Requirements
In the paper, Digital Realty identifies the following key concerns among its enterprise customers’ critical connectivity-related requirements for operating within a cloud or virtualization environment:
- Security and/or protection of data and its associated transmission
- Flexibility (the ability to rapidly scale bandwidth, augment protocols, etc.)
- Network reliability/availability
- On-demand (or just-in-time) deployment
- Managed platforms, service bundling and network convergence
- Bespoke network and bandwidth services (i.e. dedicated networks, fully bespoke design, build-and-operate models)
“Mindful of the potential performance impact both cloud- and virtualization-based services could have on their operations, enterprise companies are placing increased reliance on outsourced management of their networks to carriers offering high levels of service availability and network flexibility,” said Mr. Bath.
Long-Term Solution
To address these concerns, Digital Realty has launched an initiative to provide enterprise customers with a long-term solution for connectivity in and around London, and ultimately across Europe.
The first phase of the effort, completed in November 2012, focused on providing a single network that interconnects Digital Realty’s data centres in the greater London area. The second phase focuses on establishing diverse, high fibre connectivity for the same network between Digital Realty data centres and key metro and access networks. The third phase focuses on interconnecting the Company’s data centres throughout Europe. The expected completion date of the entire initiative is the first quarter of 2014.
“Three of our local data centres today are linked via a highly advanced connectivity network,” Mr. Bath said, citing facilities in Chessington, Redhill and Woking. “The pan-European connection that we are striving for will link our London-area sites to those in Dublin, Amsterdam, Paris and future Digital Realty markets.”
“With one of the largest global portfolios of network centric data centre facilities, our unique operating platform and scale enable us to develop and deploy industry-leading solutions such as this one to meet our customers’ ongoing requirements,” added Michael F. Foust, CEO of Digital Realty. “The completion of the first phase of this important initiative represents an important milestone in our continued efforts to enhance our portfolio and global data centre offering.”
The white paper is available in the Thought Leadership section of the Company’s website, at www.digitalrealty.com.
About Digital Realty
Digital Realty Trust, Inc. focuses on delivering customer driven data center solutions by providing secure, reliable and cost effective facilities that meet each customer’s unique data center needs. Digital Realty’s customers include domestic and international companies across multiple industry verticals ranging from information technology and Internet enterprises, to manufacturing and financial services. Digital Realty’s 117 properties, excluding three properties held as investments in unconsolidated joint ventures, comprise approximately 21.9 million square feet as of February 15, 2013, including 2.4 million square feet of space held for development. Digital Realty’s portfolio is located in 32 markets throughout Europe, North America, Asia and Australia. Additional information about Digital Realty is included in the Company Overview, which is available on the Investors page of Digital Realty’s website at http://www.digitalrealty.com.
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 our initiative to expand connectivity at Digital Realty’s data centres in Europe and the timing to complete such initiative, the increasing demand for cloud-based services, and enterprise customers’ increasing reliance on outsourced management of their networks. These risks and uncertainties include, among others, the following: the impact of the recent deterioration in global economic, credit and market conditions, including the downgrade of the U.S. government’s credit rating; 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; increased interest rates and operating costs; 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 redeveloped properties or businesses; the suitability of our properties and data centre 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 or redevelopment of properties; decreased rental rates or increased vacancy rates; increased competition or available supply of data centre space; our inability to successfully develop and lease new properties and space held for redevelopment; 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, 2012. 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.
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SOURCE Digital Realty Trust, Inc.
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