One of the key data centre hub buildings in Manhattan has been acquired by Google for a figure believed to be just under $2bn.
The sale though poses interesting questions for the plethora of colocation providers and carriers who operate within this established network node.
111 8th Avenue is a vast building occupying a whole city block between 15th and 16th Streets and offers some 2.9million square feet of space, making it the 4th largest building in Manhattan. It was originally built by the Port Authority to act as a headquarters and warehouse building and as a result has huge lift capacity, tall slab heights and strong floor loadings, making the building highly suitable for the fit out and use of data centre space. Indeed there are lifts inside capable of taking whole trucks up from the ground floor for unloading, so easily capable of taking heavy date centre equipment such as generators, switch gear and so forth. As a result many telecoms companies and ISPs began to build out their own colocation facilities within the building particularly during the dot-com boom of the late 90’s, a time when capacity in the original New York network node, 60 Hudson Street, was harder to acquire and fit out. Today some 40 networks are now available within the building.
Colocation providers operating inside 111 8th include Equinix, who acquired their space here through their purchase of Switch and Data and Telx who acquired NYC Connect, whilst carrier owned facilities include Abovenet and Level3.
111 8th Avenue is one of several key locations within Manhattan, the others being 60 Hudson, 32 Avenue of the Americas and 75 Broad Street and in each building there are a range of colocation providers, thus adding a further range of complexity to the choice available, for not only does a prospective client need to choose which building best suits their needs but also which operator. Telehouse NY, located at 25 Broadway are a slightly simpler option being the only colocation provider in this building but similarly being a well established hub. The Manhattan data centre market itself though is just one of many markets in the US of interest to overseas clients, the other key ones being the North Virginia Internet Hubs, Miami as a gateway to the Latin American markets and Los Angeles acting as a Pacific facing hub.
Colo-X continue to provide assistance to many European companies seeking a first point of presence in the US market and the facilities available in the Manhattan market offer many options, thus our up to date market knowledge can often help buyers secure not only the best location but also the best financial arrangement as well, especially given there are a number of different cost models available, for example cross-connects fees can vary widely. Colo-X has closed deals in both the Manhattan and North Virginia markets in 2010 for a variety of both carrier and media clients.