Microsoft may have developed a successful “To The Cloud!” campaign but how many people actually know how the cloud works? Some may see cloud computing as the prime future of the internet but few understand the complex connectivity that servers and SAN storage require in order to maintain such a profound form of communications. As companies continue to spend hundreds of millions of dollars in order to “plug into the cloud”, it would seem important for investors to know exactly where their money is going.

Clouds are expected to meet strict demands and unfortunately consumers don’t realize that their storage within a single data center proposes a major flaw if that data center were to fail. In order to counter this problem, next-generation communications experts like Allied Fiber look toward dark fiber. Dark fiber has proven to be useful in linking multiple data centers and providing a medium for direct intra-site IP connectivity. Instead of relying on a single point of storage, clients may replicate their data within several locations and decrease the odds of catastrophe.

Allied Fiber understands the problem the United States faces as data center access has a large concentration in major cities but lacks availability in smaller cities. If consumers wish to access secure next-generation communication methods like cloud computing, the USA needs a new, national, carrier-neutral dark fiber and colocation system and it is imperative to our economy as mobile and broadband demands continue to increase.

For more information on cloud computing and dark fiber, please visit: http://technology.ezinemark.com/to-the-cloud-7d3407dff43c.html

For more information about Allied Fiber, please visit www.alliedfiber.com

David Howson, President of Zayo Bandwidth, will present at the Ethernet Technology Summit 2012. The Summit is taking place on February 21-23, 2012 at the Doubletree by Hilton in San Jose, California.

David will participate in the “Ethernet and Cloud Computing” panel on February 23, 2012 from 8:30-10:00 a.m. The presentation will examine how cloud and Ethernet work together to provide business solutions that move data more effectively and cost-efficiently. Additionally, David will discuss ways to implement cloud over Ethernet and the benefits these solutions supply businesses.

To learn more about Zayo, visit www.zayo.com.

TELEHOUSE and parent company KDDI recently launched a new Cloud portfolio, Telecloud, leveraging their state-of-the-art data centers and industry expertise. This private cloud solution offers enterprises a dedicated infrastructure platform to reliably host mission-critical applications.  Leveraging TELEHOUSE’s secure colocation and access to low latency, resilient networks, Telecloud can be deployed quickly and is an efficient approach to on-demand IT delivery.

Mr Tokuji Mitsui, Managing Director of KDDI and Telehouse Europe, stated: “Telecloud is a joint venture between two industry leaders. It marks the next stage in the evolution of Europe’s first purpose-built data centre provider and a step forward for the cloud industry. The data centre is at the heart of a cloud solution making the physical infrastructure the integral role in maintaining the reliability and accessibility of a company’s application. That is why the partnership of Telehouse and KDDI brings a new unique perspective to the cloud market.”

With cloud utilization on the rise, this joint venture is perfectly timed to meet the growing demand as companies look for increased IT flexibility and cost-savings.

Behind every cloud is a critical infrastructure – it takes secure colocation, resilient networking options, 24×7 support, and robust virtual security measures.  Telecloud offers a winning cloud combination.

For more information, please read the full announcement here: http://www.realwire.com/releases/KDDI-and-Telehouse-launch-Telecloud

Sidera Networks announces the appointment of Clint Heiden as President. Heiden is responsible for all aspects of Sidera’s revenue generation, including sales, marketing, product management and sales engineering. His entrepreneurial approach to business and twenty plus years of telecom and Internet experience make him the perfect addition to Sidera Networks.

Prior to joining Sidera, Heiden served as President at PAETEC, where he led efforts related to the company’s fiber operations and the strategy for retaining and growing its largest accounts. He has also held executive positions at Intellifiber (Cavalier), Cable & Wireless America, Qwest, UUNET and InterCon Systems.

The full press release can be read at http://www.sidera.net/news/press-releases/sidera-networks-names-clint-heiden-as-president

This Friday, TELEHOUSE and HK Colo will join together in Hong Kong to sponsor the Data Centre Strategics Event. The event focuses on the latest best practice processes, trends and developments in data centers and IT. The November 18^th conference is the final event in Data Centre Strategics 2011 series, which included previous trade shows in Singapore and Shanghai also sponsored by TELEHOUSE. Key topics include:

• Recent Trends in Building A Modernized Data Centre
• Econometrics for Achieving an Optimized Power and Cooling Scenario
• Data Centre Maturity Model
• Optimizing Your IT Infrastructure
• Change Management: Converging New Applications with Legacy Platforms
• IT Solutions for Green Data Centers

In June 2011, Telehouse and HK Colo partnered to build a brand new data center; TELEHOUSE Hong Kong Cloud Computing Complex (CCC). Located in the Tseung Kwan O district, TELEHOUSE Hong Kong CCC offers customers regional access across all Asian territories and India.

‘We are excited to expand our presence with the new premium data center facility in Hong Kong offering international and local customers the strengths and benefits of two, major local corporations; TELEHOUSE and HKCOLO.net,” states Fred Cannone, Sales and Marketing Director for TELEHOUSE America. “Our presence at Data Centre Strategics will continue to promote this partnership and our strength across Asia.”

Opening in December 2011, TELEHOUSE Hong Kong CCC, is also a neighbor to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange Data Center, and will be offering high connectivity capacity from local cable landing stations.

To meet with the TELEHOUSE team at Data Center Strategics, please email Fred Cannone, Sales and Marketing Director of TELEHOUSE America at cannone@telehouse.com.

To learn more about TELEHOUSE’s 42 carrier neutral data centers, peering exchanges, and world-class offerings, please contact sales@TELEHOUSE.com or call 718-355-2500.

To learn more about Data Centre Strategics Hong Kong 2011, please visit the website.

New Service Will Utilize Cisco’s Hosted Collaboration Solution Platform  To Offer VARs and Integrators Turn-Key, Hosted UC Solutions

Deployment Options with Cisco HCS

Big news for Neutral Tandem, Inc. today – the leading provider of global interconnection services announced its plans to introduce the first cloud-based collaboration service in the United States specifically developed to be resold by Cisco’s Value-Added Reseller (VAR) community and System Integrators (SIs).  Neutral Tandem has entered into HCS Trial agreements with select Cisco authorized VARs and is trialing the service with them. The service, based on Cisco’s Hosted Collaboration Solution (HCS), will enable VARs/SIs to
deliver a full suite of unified communication and collaboration applications, including Single Number Reach, Integrated Messaging and Presence, Video Calling and WebEx integration.

Leveraging Neutral Tandem’s extensive expertise in operating and managing IP networks, HCS is based on Cisco’s next-generation Unified Communications infrastructure. It provides support for single site, multi-site and hybrid premise-based implementations that allow significant flexibility to business customers.  This solution will enable VARs/SIs to sell a monthly subscription based solution under their own brand.  Additionally, VARs/SIs can provide customized solutions to their client base by overlaying HCS with their
own managed services.  This will offer VARs/SIs the unique opportunity to differentiate themselves while growing their revenue predictably and without heavy front-end CAPEX costs for themselves or their customers.

Cisco’s research shows that the market for hosted unified communications and collaboration solutions is growing significantly.  By 2013, hosted collaboration is projected to grow to $8 billion, comprising 31 percent of the Unified Communications market. Reselling Neutral Tandem’s wholesale HCS offering will allow VARs/SIs to meet the growing demand for cloud solutions.

“We are excited to develop this new hosted offer together with Cisco and expand our product portfolio to include cloud-based services that will help companies cost effectively meet the unified communication needs of the market,” added Surendra Saboo, President and COO of Neutral Tandem.  “This will be an ideal way for VARs and system integrators to be able to offer a Hosted Collaboration Solution to their enterprise customers while benefiting from a new stream of recurring revenue.”

“Cisco has a range of go-to-market strategies to meet the growing demand for cloud collaboration services and Neutral Tandem’s white label offering of HCS is one model that presents a significant business opportunity for channel partners,” said Richard McLeod, senior director for Cisco’s Worldwide Partner Collaboration Sales and Practice
Management.  “As the first US-based partner to bring a white-label HCS offering to market, Neutral Tandem will help VARs and integrators drive growth and profitability
while providing end customers with a proven collaboration solution.”

To find out how to utilize Neutral Tandem’s Hosted Collaboration Solution to increase revenue opportunities and to provide collaborative solutions to the enterprise market, contact HCS@NeutralTandem.com or visit www.neutraltandem.com.

View full press release here.

Zayo is a finalist in the Colorado Biz Top Company of the Year 2011. As part of being selected as a finalist, Colorado Biz Magazine interviewed Zayo CEO, Dan Caruso. In the video interview, Dan speaks about the rapid growth and increasing need for bandwidth caused by devices such as tablet computers and the move of businesses to cloud computing. Zayo is the behind-the-scenes infrastructure that supports this bandwidth. Dan also discusses Zayo’s involvement with high schools and universities throughout Colorado and the programs Zayo implemented to introduce students to the telecom industry.

Zayo provides bandwidth infrastructure solutions and network-neutral colocation services to carrier, enterprise, school, hospital and government customers. Headquarted in Louisville, Colorado, Zayo provides its services over a fiber network that spans multiple markets and states plus the District of Columbia.

For the complete video, click here. For more information on Zayo, visit www.zayo.com.

FiberMedia Group LLC  has been named a finalist  for the 2011 NJBIZ Business of the Year awards in the Emerging Business of the Year category. The awards, produced by NJBIZ, New Jersey’s premiere business news publication, are presented by EisnerAmper, LLP and sponsored by Sun National Bank, K&L Gates and CIGNA.

NJBIZ’s Business of the Year awards program celebrates New Jersey’s most dynamic businesses and business leaders who share a commitment to professional excellence, business growth and the community. Finalists were selected in six categories:  Business of the Year (1-50 Employees), Business of the Year (51-100 Employees), Business of the Year (100+ Employees), Corporate Citizen of the Year, Executive of the Year and Emerging Business of the Year.

FiberMedia’s enterprise-class resources on demand provide leading managed data center-as-a-service solutions that include colocation (space and power), managed services, cloud networking and virtualization solutions, business continuity and disaster recovery services.  Combined, these services provide the market holistic infrastructure service solutions.

The Business of the Year winners in each category will be announced during a formal awards dinner on December 5, 2011 at the Palace at Somerset Park in Somerset, NJ. For more information on FiberMedia, visit www.fibermedia.net.

Sidera Networks, the premier provider of fiber optic-based network solutions, will be participating in the Wall Street Technology Association’s (WSTA) seminar, “Cloud Computing in Financial Services.”  The seminar takes place in Boston, Massachusetts this Thursday, October 27^th and will focus on the financial services industry’s rapid adoption of cloud-based solutions.

Mary Stanhope, Sidera’s Senior Director of Product and Marketing, is presenting on the session titled, “Financial Services Have Reached the Cloud Tipping Point.” The session will present the findings of the Sidera Networks’ IT Decision Makers Survey, which was conducted to develop a better understanding of the growth, drivers and adoption of IT and cloud services in the financial industry. Additionally, the presentation will explore how financial companies plan on connecting and using cloud services.

The WSTA is a not-for-profit educational organization that focuses on technologies, operational approaches, and business issues for the global financial community. The WSTA offers a platform to meet the unique informational needs of IT and networking professionals in the financial community through seminars, roundtables, panel discussions, showcases, social events, and a quarterly educational Ticker Magazine.

For more information about Sidera and its leading network solutions, visit www.sidera.net or follow Sidera on twitter @sidera_networks.

Neutral Tandem’s EtherCloud service is transforming and simplifying the delivery of Ethernet service.  Neutral tandem will highlight this industry leading service as a sponsor at Light Reading’s Ethernet Expo on November 8^th and 9^th.   Surendra Saboo, President and Chief Operating Officer of Neutral Tandem, recently sat down with Light Reading to discuss Neutral Tandem’s groundbreaking EtherCloud service.  Watch the video here.  

EtherCloud is a new product from Neutral Tandem that delivers end-to-end global Ethernet solutions. EtherCloud is a Layer 2 platform connecting diverse partner networks into a seamless Ethernet cloud.  EtherCloud offers access to multiple new routes and simplifies the delivery of Ethernet and VPLS services on a global basis by removing the hurdles required to interconnect networks across a global footprint.   It is currently available at 120 Points of Presence (PoPs) in four continents, to interconnect partners’ networks through standardized E-NNIs.

Neutral Tandem sat down with Light Reading in preparation for Light Reading’s Ethernet Expo on November 8^th and 9^th at the Hilton New York.  Neutral Tandem is honored to be a Gold Sponsor of the event and will be presenting EtherCloud along with their HD Voice Interconnect Solutions.  To schedule a meeting with Neutral Tandem at Ethernet Expo please email pr@jaymiescotto.com.

View the video here and to learn more about EtherCloud, please visit http://www.neutraltandem.com/prodServices/ethercloud.htm.