DE-CIX is advancing its existing partnership with Lightstorm, a provider of digital infrastructure for hyperscale networking, to now provide access to Microsoft Azure Peering Service (MAPS) as part of the collaboration suite of services and enhance the customer experience via Polarin, a unique Network-as-a-Service (NaaS) platform by Lightstorm.

As part of the ongoing partnership, Lightstorm has added 17 DE-CIX-enabled data centres to the 17 independent data centres DE-CIX India currently has a presence in. DE-CIX India, which already has a strong presence in the Indian internet sector, has strengthened its position through this partnership, doubling its presence in India.

Access to MAPS will allow the users to benefit from reliable and optimized connectivity, latency telemetry and security alerts for Microsoft Software-as-a-Service (SaaS). It also offers a dedicated, controlled, secured, and direct connection to the Microsoft network for businesses of all sizes to improve user experience.

Polarin platform helps enterprises to consume instantaneous network services with complete transparency, enabling them to access and utilize them on-demand as they would consume Cloud. This is done by eliminating the cumbersome process of months of network setup and multiple partner onboardings, allowing faster GTM execution. The integration of Polarin with the DE-CIX fabric in India will enable customers to enjoy a seamless experience in connecting to the exchange.

The partnership helps customers of DE-CIX and Lightstorm directly access DE-CIX’s internet exchanges, thus allowing them to benefit from extended network coverage and superior network performance. Powered by utility-grade fibre and leaf-spine mesh network architecture, Lightstorm is empowering digital enterprises to realize their business vision without network issues becoming an obstacle. Joining hands with DE-CIX further allows the enterprises to benefit from its global presence and a track record of providing first-rate interconnection and peering services.

In markets where internet traffic is perpetually on the rise, the enhanced services under this partnership come with optimising connectivity to meet the needs of the fast-paced business world, boosting online operations and the overall productivity of enterprises. Additionally, the new set of services includes customised interconnection services and improved security, the capability to build private ecosystems in the form of closed user groups, and the provision of direct connections to clouds.

Commenting on the partnership, Ivo Ivanov, CEO of DE-CIX, says, "The collaboration with Lightstorm is an important step for us as we continue to expand our partner network in India. In the digital world, dependable connectivity is crucial, and we are delighted to offer Lightstorm's customers direct access to our DE-CIX India Internet Exchanges and to the digital ecosystems that form around them. This will provide Lightstorm’s customers with lower latency and more reliable connectivity to other networks, better performance of content and applications, and advanced interconnection services for their business needs. We look forward to working alongside Lightstorm to offer truly exceptional connectivity to India’s enterprises."

On a similar note, Amajit Gupta, Group CEO and MD of Lightstorm, said, “Partnership with DE-CIX is in line with our commitment to provide the best digital infrastructure for business of all sizes. Lightstorm is bringing a paradigm shift in the industry by introducing Network-as-Service. Collaboration with DE-CIX allows us to offer greater value and superior experience to our customers and accelerated revenue growth by reducing time to market.”