Equinix to Extend Access to Alibaba Cloud in 17 Markets

Equinix, Inc., will extend access to Alibaba Cloud, the digital technology and intelligence backbone of Alibaba Group, through Platform Equinix® for customers from 17 metros globally, including Dubai, Frankfurt, Hong Kong, Jakarta, London, Singapore, Sydney, Tokyo, as well as US metros such as Chicago, Dallas, Denver.

This expansion, along with its API integration with Equinix Cloud Exchange Fabric™ (ECX Fabric™), will help enterprises from these global markets easily and privately connect to Alibaba Cloud on Platform Equinix.

Alibaba Cloud is the third largest global provider of Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) and the largest in Asia-Pacific, according to Gartner.1 With the partnership, Alibaba Cloud can also enjoy secure, direct access to a robust, interconnected ecosystem of more than 9,700 customers, including 1,800 network providers and over 2,900 cloud and IT service providers globally to enhance performance, lower latency, and increase reliability for its customers.

As a key enabler of digital transformation, cloud has been heavily adopted by multinational enterprises as they seek to modernize and mobilize their IT systems. According to Gartner, IaaS is expected to reach $62 billion in 2021 globally, and is forecast to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 24% during the forecast period 2019-2024.2 To deliver on the expectations of transformation, it is critical for enterprises to ensure they can securely and seamlessly access multiple cloud service providers (CSPs), such as Alibaba Cloud.

In view of increasing market demand, Alibaba Cloud has also integrated its API with ECX Fabric™ to streamline the process for enterprises to facilitate private and direct connections to Alibaba Cloud. Through a single portal, customers can create and manage private connections to Alibaba Cloud on demand in any of the 45 ECX Fabric metros, in minutes.

Shunmin Zhu, Researcher of Network Products, Alibaba Cloud Intelligence, said, "Equinix's global platform and ever-expanding footprint has made it easy for Alibaba Cloud to grow into new markets and offer our customers access to a rich ecosystem of cloud service providers via Platform Equinix and Equinix Cloud Exchange Fabric. This valuable and growing collaboration enables us to deliver further flexibility and security, while also bringing our services closer to businesses, without having to compromise on speed or performance."

Royce Thomas, Senior Vice President, Global Account Management, Equinix, explained, "We are glad to deepen our collaboration with Alibaba Cloud in new metros around the world. In today's digital economy, delivering cloud computing has become a top priority for enterprises. As such, direct access to cloud service providers, like Alibaba Cloud, via high-speed, low-latency connections is helping enterprises gain a competitive advantage and fully realize the benefits of the cloud. We are happy that we share the common goal with Alibaba Could to help enterprises locate services, interconnect to them and build valuable relationships with their business partners. With this extended reach, we will continue to partner with Alibaba Cloud and support more enterprises to accelerate their digital journey across the globe."