Digitally Mature Businesses Expanding Digital Infrastructure 4x Faster Than Pre-Pandemic Levels

REDWOOD CITY, Calif., Oct. 20, 2021 – The latest Global Interconnection Index (GXI Vol. 5), an annual market study published by Equinix, reveals that the pandemic has forced economies into digital overdrive, with digital leaders, businesses who were already implementing a digital-first strategy, moving four times faster than pre-pandemic levels. These businesses have compacted the time to deploy their digital infrastructure to multiple regions, expand to multiple edge locations and integrate multiple clouds—what might have taken two years is now achievable within six months.

This accelerated pace of digital transformation is predicted to continue to fuel the rapid growth in interconnection bandwidth. According to the GXI Vol. 5, overall interconnection bandwidth, the measure of private connectivity for the transfer of data between organizations, is forecast to reach 21,485+ terabits per second (Tbps) globally, and 5,327+ Tbps in EMEA per year by 2024, representing a five-year compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 46% in EMEA, and 44% globally. This growth is aligned with the increasing demand for the digital infrastructure needed to bring more businesses online, facilitate electronic integration with partners and supply chains, and reach more people in distributed hybrid work environments.

Additional Insights From GXI Vol. 5

• Close to 30% of enterprise infrastructure deployed in carrier-neutral facilities has moved to the edge, in proximity to points of data consumption. Service Providers are also expanding at the edge, growing their edge infrastructure 2x faster than their core infrastructure, enabling them to support increasing demand from enterprises.
   
• Digital leaders are interconnecting with 10 times as many partners, enabling them to ride the wave of digital transformation and enjoy best-of-breed services from a vast pool of Service Providers and partners. The trend has been tracked across 12 industries and three regions for traditional companies, born in the cloud, Service Providers and even hyperscale providers. 
   
• Among industries, the Financial Services sector is expected to deploy more than 50% of Enterprise interconnection bandwidth, with Manufacturing as the second-largest industry.
   
• The Public Sector, Healthcare & Life Sciences, Industrial Services and Transportation industries are expected to experience the fastest digital infrastructure growth, which is forecast to drive a 48% or more CAGR in interconnection bandwidth from 2020 to 2024 globally. These industries that were previously lagging in interconnection adoption are now leading in interconnection growth rate as a result of the pandemic.

Sami Holopainen, Managing Director, Finland, Equinix:
“Moving towards the edge, software-defined networking (SDN) and other advanced technologies have become almost the new-normal compared to pre-pandemic times for digitally-savvy companies in Finland. Similarly to the global trend, we are also seeing a clear upward trend in interconnection bandwidth, as the number of new private connections continue to climb.”   

Claire Macland, Senior Vice President of Marketing, Equinix:
“While COVID has forced businesses to innovate in many ways, by both expanding existing and introducing new digital services, the infrastructure underpinning these services must keep pace,” said. “As a result, savvy businesses are now moving four times faster than pre-pandemic levels in deploying this necessary digital infrastructure.”

Courtney Munroe, Research Vice President, Worldwide Telecommunications Research, IDC
“Companies that have adopted a comprehensive digital strategy as a core business pillar—connecting with and leveraging digital platforms with partners, ecosystems, and customers, consistently emerge as disruptive market leaders. Adopting digital platforms and services is essential to achieve the level of agility and resiliency that is required to outpace and out-innovate the competition.”

Additional Resources

• Global Interconnection Index Volume 5 [report]
• GXI Vol. 5 Blog Global [blog]
• GXI Vol. 5 Blog EMEA [blog]
• IDC - A Blueprint for DX Success—Start with Hybrid Infrastructure and Connected Ecosystems [report] 
• The Future of Digital Leadership [report]

About Equinix
Equinix (Nasdaq: EQIX) is the world’s digital infrastructure company^TM, enabling digital leaders to harness a trusted platform to bring together and interconnect the foundational infrastructure that powers their success. Equinix enables today’s businesses to access all the right places, partners and possibilities they need to accelerate advantage. Equinix can scale with agility, speed the launch of digital services, deliver world-class experiences, and multiply their value.

Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties, including statements about the speed of digital infrastructure expansion and the growth rate of interconnection bandwidth. Actual results may differ materially from expectations discussed in such forward-looking statements and the predictions made in the Global Interconnection Index. Factors that might cause such differences include risks described from time to time in Equinix filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. In particular, see recent Equinix 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.

Media contacts

Equinix Media Contact (EMEA)
Jess Sullivan
+44 7876 712861
Jess.Sullivan@eu.equinix.com

Tom Farthing
+44 77650 26720
Thomas.Farthing@eu.equinix.com

Media contact in Finland:
Juhani Lassila, Johnny L. / Lataamo
+358 40 541 2365
juhani@johnnyl.fi