Equinix to Launch Internet Exchange in Finland

Equinix is preparing to extend its global internet exchange into the Nordics, promising greater international connectivity options to companies in the region.

The company expects to launch the exchange in Helsinki in the first quarter of next year, it announced Thursday. It will add a 23^rd exchange-point location and 20^th market to the Redwood City, California-based data center services giant’s global exchange fabric.

The volume of global internet traffic is growing extremely fast, and peering with more partners in more IX locations is one way network operators have been addressing this growth, according to Equinix. By striking mutually beneficial peering agreements, operators reduce cost of data transit.

Internet traffic has been growing at a compound annual rate of more than 33 percent over the last four years, Equinix said, citing market research by PriMetrica. Cisco analysts expect global IP traffic to grow almost three-fold between 2015 and 2020.

The launch of Equinix’s IX in Finland will help Finland increase its internet connectivity. Namely, it will facilitate exchange of traffic along the new submarine cable system called C-Lion1. Connecting Finland and Germany, the system is a “bridge” between Russia, Baltic countries, and Central Europe, according to the data center provider.

Equinix is a dominant player in the global IX market, operating the world’s third-largest internet exchange by the number of members, after Brazil Internet Exchange (IX.br) and Amsterdam Internet Exchange (AMS-IX). The Equinix Exchange currently lives in Paris and Zurich in Europe; New York, Ashburn, Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles, and San Jose in the US; Tokyo, Hong Kong, Singapore, and Sydney in Asia Pacific; and Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo in Brazil.

Once the IX is launched in Finland, customers in all six Equinix data centers in the Helsinki area will have access to it, since all facilities are interconnected by the company’s campus and metro networks.