SoftLayer Goes Global With its Network

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A map of the expanded SoftLayer network, with new locations in Europe and Asia (Click image for larger version).

Web hosting giant SoftLayer is expanding its infrastructure to Europe and Asia, with plans for network points of presence on both continents and a new data center in Singapore.  The new PoPs will be located in London, Paris, Frankfurt, Moscow, Tokyo and Hong Kong.

SoftLayer Chief Strategy Officer George Karidis said the network expansion reflects the global nature of the company's customer base. "Today more 40% of our customers reside outside the United States of America, and we reach those customers via more than 2,000 Gbps of network connectivity from transit and peering relationships with other networks around the world, and we’ve been successful," Karidis writes on the InnerLayer blog. "If the Internet is flattening the world, a USA-centric infrastructure may be limiting, though."

Expanding With Digital Realty

Last November, after completing its acquisition of The Planet, SoftLayer said it has leased two PODs in a Digital Realty Trust data center in Amsterdam, representing about 2.25 megawatts of power. The company also leased space in a Digital Realty Trust facility in Silicon Valley.

Karidis didn't identify where SoftLayer is setting up shop in Singapore, but a likely suspect is the new Digital Realty Trust facility in Singapore’s International Business Park. SoftLayer is owned by GI Partners, which is also an early investor in Digital Realty (DLR).

Fewer Hops Means Faster Connections

"Each of the points of presence we add in Asia and Europe effectively wrap our 40ms ring around millions of users that may have previously relied on several hops on several providers to get to the SoftLayer network, and as a result, we’re able to power a faster and more consistent network experience for those users," Karidis said. "As SoftLayer grows, our goal is to maintain the quality of service our customers expect while we extend the availability of that service quality to users around the globe."

The network growth continues an active expansion of infrastructure and services for SoftLayer, which added managed services offerings earlier this year. The company has more than 26,000 cutomers and had $78 million in revenue in the first quarter of 2011, its first full quarter of operations since merging with The Planet.