"Gartner recently highlighted a number of technology trends that are taking hold with Indian organizations this year. These findings, coupled with research that shows rising levels of data traffic in the country, are creating an environment where data center operators can thrive. In order to support the increasing data traffic and many of the new technology trends, computing facilities are needed in the region. Several service providers have responded to these growing client needs, including Netmagic and IBM, which recently announced plans to open data centers in India.
Technology Trends, Rising Data Traffic Takes Hold
According to Gartner research, there are a number of technology trends that organizations in India should take notice of in order to remain competitive in the marketplace. These include the rising use of business intelligence and analytics, currently the most popular software market in the country. In addition, social media. machine-to-machine communications and hosted virtual desktop solutions are also seeing increasing utilization in the region.
Gartner also noted that cloud systems, while still in their infancy in India, are being adopted more rapidly. These implementations are being driven by data center services including infrastructure-as-a-service, Web-based storage and disaster recovery solutions.
""This fast growing adoption by a diverse range of organizations has catalyzed providers to invest in high quality data centers and innovative cloud infrastructures, as well as a portfolio of cloud-related offerings such as security, communications and managed services,"" Gartner stated.
Another trend highlighted by Gartner was mobility, which the group notes is providing a number of opportunities, especially for IT leaders in enterprise settings. These benefits include decreased operating costs and more streamlined business transactions as well as a rise in overall productivity.
The increasing use of mobile devices, alongside the other trends featured in Gartner's list, creates a new environment in India's technology sector, where data traffic is continually growing, noted The Economic Times. This sparks rising demands for data center services, leading to growth in the industry.
All told, Gartner estimated that India's current data center footprint stands at 4 million square feet in total, and will expand to reach 6.6 million square feet within the next two years. This means the data center market will be worth $3 billion by 2016, according to The Economic Times.
Data Center Operators Respond: Netmagic's New India Data Center
In response to the increase in technology use as well as the rise in data traffic levels, service providers are expanding their service footprints in the country. One such organization involved in this trend is Netmagic, which recently announced the opening of its newest data center in Electronic City, Bangalore, according to Datacenter Dynamics.
The facility was built as a joint project between Netmagic and NTT Communications, leveraging skills and approaches from both companies to create the 100,000 square foot structure. NTT purchased controlling stake in Netmagic in early 2012, noting that the new Bangalore data center represents the launch of the Nexcenter data center services brand in the country.
Specifically, the new facility will provide cloud, managed colocation and IT services, as well as custom hosting space and a high level of power and cooling density. Additionally, the location for the data center was particularly chosen due to its lack of natural disasters, making it ideal for business continuity.
Akira Arima, NTT Communications president and CEO, noted that the company's new India data center will provide resources in the current ""supply-constrained"" marketplace.
""Given the large concentration of data intensive activities in Bangalore, our objective is to accommodate enterprises' demand to house their critical IT infrastructure closer to them, as well as ensure that our data centers have the scalability to meet their growing needs, while offering efficient services at the same time,"" Arima said.
IBM Plans for India Data Center
Another group growing its service footprint is IBM, which announced plans for a new India data center as part of a $1.2 billion investment in the company's cloud program. According to Business Standard, the organization operated 25 data centers as of late June, and plans to have 40 global facilities in total by the end of the year.
Vamsi Charan Mudiam, IBM India head of cloud computing, noted that there has been a spike in demand for cloud service in the country, including backup, email collaboration, social media analytics and archiving services.
""We would finalize the location for the Indian data center once the due diligence is completed,"" Mudiam said. ""The center aims to capture the sharply growing domestic cloud services market.""
In addition to its plans for a new facility in India, the company is also working to add data centers in Western Asia as well as Africa next year. The India data center in particular, however, would provide the resources necessary for IBM and its partners to establish better services and improve client customization abilities, in addition to extending the company's reach.
Picture of a German Data Center planning to open in Mumbai India"
