7 out of 10 Businesses Moving More to the Cloud Despite Two Thirds of IT Leaders Fearing Security Risks

LONDON — November 28, 2018 — Equinix, Inc. (Nasdaq: EQIX), the global interconnection and data centre company, today announced the findings of an independent survey of over 1,200 senior IT professionals from across Europe, Middle East and Africa. Results show that more than seven in 10 (71%) organisations are likely to move more of their business functions to the cloud in the coming years. 60% of EMEA IT leaders cite proximity to cloud service providers (CSPs) as an integral factor when choosing a data centre in their local market.

Despite more business moving to the cloud, 70% of these same respondents still perceive there to be cybersecurity risks around cloud adoption. Large public data breaches have caused uncertainty among companies, leading to 45% of respondents focusing on improving their organisation’s cybersecurity as their biggest IT priority.

Cloud and cybersecurity considerations together are top of mind for IT executives across the region. For nearly half (48%) of those surveyed, the adoption of cloud-based services represented one of the top two factors that will impact their business in the future — second only to cybersecurity risks and breaches (53%). The results also showed that companies across EMEA are twice as likely to connect with CSPs than any other product or service provider.

Comparatively in the UK, over two thirds of businesses (67%) believe that cybersecurity risks and breaches will be the top factor impacting their business in the future, a higher rate than for organisations across EMEA. More respondents (75%) also believe their organisation will move more to the cloud. Nearly one third (31%) of IT professionals surveyed think cloud service providers are the type of business their organisation is most likely to connect with in the future. This figure is significantly greater than the next businesses organisations are most likely to connect with – network providers (9%) and financial institutions (9%). Despite Brexit, 64% of senior IT decision-makers in the UK also believe that due to the UK’s flourishing data centre industry, the UK is the best place in Europe to interconnect with partners, customers, supply chain and cloud service providers.

The study also finds that only 17% of organisations across EMEA are currently using multi-cloud architecture. This compares to 56% who currently use private cloud and 42% who use public cloud. Organisations should be looking to multiple cloud service providers when building out their digital infrastructure strategy to remain competitive and secure. Equinix last year launched Equinix Cloud Exchange™ Fabric (ECX Fabric) to support businesses that need access to multiple CSPs. The service offers customers private connections to global cloud service providers no matter their location. Earlier this year the company also launched the Equinix SmartKey™ service, a global key management and encryption Software as a Service (SaaS) offering that simplifies data protection across any cloud or destination.

Highlights / Key Facts

• The independent survey of 1,206 senior IT decision-makers across EMEA was commissioned by Equinix and conducted online between 20 August and 13 September 2018.
• The survey was conducted to further explore areas highlighted in the second volume of Equinix’s annual market study, the Global Interconnection Index (GXI), which analyses traffic exchange globally, Interconnection, or direct and private traffic exchange between key business partners, is becoming the defacto method for companies to operate in today's digital world.
• GXI analysed key macroeconomic, technology and regulatory trends that have driven Interconnection growth in the past year and will impact its future growth. The GXI found that cybersecurity risk was one of the key trends, as it expands Interconnection consumption as firms increasingly shift to private data traffic exchange to bypass the public internet and mitigate against digital threats as data is distributed across a growing number of vulnerability points. Large-scale cybersecurity breaches are one of the most serious risks facing the world today, and the scale of the threat is expanding drastically. By 2021, the global cost of cybersecurity breaches is projected to reach US$6 trillion¹.
• The need to deploy hybrid cloud architecture by connecting to public cloud service providers is becoming increasingly important for global enterprises as digital transformation fuels the need for virtualised, on-demand and elastic access to public and private cloud-based services. ECX Fabric directly, securely and dynamically connects distributed infrastructure and digital ecosystems on Platform Equinix® via global, software-defined interconnection. Through a single port, customers can connect to anyone at Equinix, taking advantage of scalability, agility and connectivity.

Quotes

• Gartner:

“IT spending in EMEA is projected to total $973 billion in 2019, an increase of 2 percent from the estimated spending of $954 billion in 2018, according to the latest forecast by Gartner, Inc.… In 2019, Gartner expects cloud, security and the move to digital business to bolster growth in EMEA. End-user spending on public cloud services in EMEA will grow 15 percent in 2019 to total $38.5 billion.” ²

• John Abel, VP, Cloud and Innovation for UK, Ireland and Israel at Oracle:

“The findings of this survey validate that direct interconnection to cloud service providers is one of the most secure ways to deploy integrated cloud-based applications and services. Our customers take security very seriously , which is why we work with organisations such as Equinix to help ensure we provide them with the most robust and secure cloud services available today.”

• Vincent Lavergne, RVP, Systems Engineering, F5 Networks:

“This insightful and timely study proves that, while challenges may vary by market, enterprises consistently rank cybersecurity among their top concerns. F5 is proud to work with Equinix to empower enterprises with the utmost confidence in deploying business-critical applications in multiple public cloud infrastructures. Together, we ensure greater business productivity while delivering industry-leading security, availability and performance that today’s businesses demand.”

• Eric Schwartz, President EMEA, Equinix:

“The results of this survey reveal the huge shift towards cloud as businesses across EMEA prepare to compete in the digital economy. Cybersecurity risks and breaches are of course a matter for close attention but must not prevent businesses from undergoing digital transformation. Hybrid and multi-cloud models are essential for today’s era of globalised coopetition. That’s why organisations come to Equinix – we can connect them directly to cloud service providers, allowing them to transmit data over dedicated, private networks instead of over the public Internet. This private exchange of data, or interconnection, reduces the risk of workloads being intercepted, monitored and modified, allaying security concerns. This is perhaps why over three quarters (77%) of the IT professionals across EMEA believe interconnection will help their business gain a competitive advantage in the market place of the future.”

• Russell Poole, Managing Director UK, Equinix:

“With so many UK businesses planning a move to the cloud in the near future, and at a faster rate than businesses across EMEA, it is clear that the UK is at the forefront of EMEA’s digital economy. That 64% of the UK’s IT leaders believe that the UK is still the best place in Europe to interconnect with partners, customers and CSPs due to the UK’s flourishing data centre industry, despite political uncertainty, is testament to the resilience of the UK’s digital infrastructure. Last week’s announcement of Equinix’s new £90M LD7 data centre at our London Slough campus, highlights our confidence that London will remain a leader in the global digital economy.”

Additional Resources

• Equinix provides direct access to F5 Networks DDoS protection solution via Equinix Cloud Exchange [press release]
• Equinix & F5: Taking Control of Your Hybrid Cloud Security [blog]
• Equinix Enhances Its Global Platform with New Cloud Security Service to Manage Encryption Keys [press release]

About The Global Interconnection Index
The Global Interconnection Index, published annually by Equinix, delivers insights that drive digital business advantage by tracking, measuring and forecasting growth in Interconnection Bandwidth—the total capacity provisioned to privately and directly exchange traffic with a diverse set of counterparties and providers at distributed IT exchange points. As crucial as Interconnection is to how digital business is conducted, it has never been quantified. The Global Interconnection Index changes this with industry-first projections of how Interconnection growth and access will unfold through 2021. The report serves as a market baseline that analyses the deployment profile of thousands of ecosystem participants using  carrier-neutral colocation data center providers globally. This data was combined with local and regional market data (including macroeconomic trends, market demographics and industry concentrations), and with key demand drivers of digital business, to form a weighted demand multiplier to assist in predicting growth to factor the impact of digital business transformation. A detailed methodology description is included in the Global Interconnection Index.

About the independent study
Equinix commissioned a separate independent study which surveyed 1,206 senior IT decision-makers across EMEA. Online fieldwork was undertaken by APCO Insight between 20 August and 13 September 2018. APCO Insight is the full-service global opinion research group at APCO Worldwide, working with the world’s leading companies, associations, nonprofits and public-sector enterprises to turn reliable research data into actionable recommendations. Respondents represented the following markets: Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, Turkey, UAE and the UK.

About Equinix
Equinix, Inc. (Nasdaq: EQIX) connects the world’s leading businesses to their customers, employees and partners inside the most-interconnected data centers. In 52 markets worldwide, Equinix is where companies come together to realise new opportunities and accelerate their business, IT and cloud strategies. http://www.equinix.com/

Forward Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ materially from expectations discussed in such forward-looking statements. Factors that might cause such differences include, but are not limited to the risks described from time to time in Equinix’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. In particular, see Equinix’s recent quarterly and annual reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, copies of which are available upon request from Equinix. Equinix does not assume any obligation to update the forward-looking information contained in this press release.

Equinix and IBX are registered trademarks of Equinix, Inc. 

International Business Exchange is a trademark of Equinix, Inc.

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Equinix Press Contact (EMEA)
Liam Rose
+44 (0) 207 618 9602
liam.rose@eu.equinix.com 

Investor Relations Contacts
Katrina Rymill 
+1 650-598-6583 
krymill@equinix.com

Chip Newcom
+1 650-598-6262
cnewcom@equinix.com