Imagine a world where data flows seamlessly across borders. CenturyLink made this vision a reality. CenturyLink expanded its managed hosting services into China. This was a significant step for multinational corporations. They aimed to grow their customer base in the world’s second-largest economy.
CenturyLink’s expansion in 2014 included a Shanghai data center. This allowed customers access to managed hosting, security, cloud, and networking solutions. CenturyLink now has 57 data centers worldwide, including five in Asia.
Gery Messer, CenturyLink managing director for Asia Pacific, understood the market. He knew entering China presented both opportunities and challenges. CenturyLink aimed to simplify hosting within China’s borders. They offered secure managed services consistent with their global standards.
IT spending in China was projected to reach $375 billion in 2015. This was according to Gartner Inc. analysts. They highlighted the fast growth of e-commerce. They noted the vibrant Internet and social communication ecosystem. Mobile and social technologies were changing how businesses engaged with customers. Enterprises needed agile IT infrastructure to manage fast-changing requirements and massive data.
CenturyLink partnered with Neusoft. Neusoft is a leading IT solutions and services provider in China. This partnership allowed CenturyLink to meet the demand for China-based managed hosting solutions. Angela Wang, senior vice president at Neusoft, saw the collaboration’s potential. It offered clients a chance to expand their IT presence in China. They could leverage the resources of two world-class global IT providers. This would simplify the complexities of operating in China.
The CenturyLink data center was located in the Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone. It was operated by GDS. GDS is a provider of high-availability data center services in China. Citic Telecom CPC served as the network provider. They are an information and communication technology solutions provider. William Huang, CEO of GDS, emphasized reliability and security. He noted that GDS matched a high-quality data center with CenturyLink’s managed hosting platform.
The expansion into China was part of CenturyLink’s global data center growth. This included opening a second data center in Toronto. This growth responded to the demand for colocation, hybrid IT, and cloud services.
CenturyLink is a leader in the network services market. CenturyLink is a global leader in cloud infrastructure and hosted IT solutions. CenturyLink provides data, voice, and managed services. They operate in local, national, and international markets. Their advanced fiber optic network and multiple data centers support businesses and consumers.