U.K. Enterprises Seek Colocation in the Data Center Market to Improve Security, Better Manage Data

U.K. enterprises are embracing colocation in the data center market as a way to enable multi-cloud strategies and deal with concerns about data sovereignty, security and privacy regulations, according to a new report published today by Information Services Group (ISG), a leading global technology research and advisory firm.

The 2020 ISG Provider Lens Next-Gen Private/Hybrid Cloud – Data Center Services & Solutions Report for the U.K. finds many enterprises in the country focused on colocation because it allows them to locate and manage data closer to their cloud, network and security functions. U.K. enterprises are increasingly viewing colocation providers as an extension of their businesses, with providers offering services such as tracking provisioning status, interacting with customer support and monitoring system health in real time.

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About 60 percent of U.K. enterprise workloads still reside on premises and many in private data centers operated by internal staff, the report says. “In an effort to save valuable time, money and space, many large enterprises will look to move in-house IT operations to managed colocation facilities or sell their data centers and lease the space they need to operate,” said Barry Matthews, partner and leader, ISG North Europe.

Meanwhile, with the U.K. facing the dual challenges of Brexit and the COVID-19 pandemic, the report sees U.K. enterprises moving cautiously with new IT projects. Due to Brexit, companies are not circulating large requests for proposal and request for information, but at the same time, many are concerned about a potential shortage of niche tech skills. The perceived skills gap, along with continuous demand for innovation, could eventually lead to more IT outsourcing deals.

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On the pandemic front, many U.K. business continue to catch up with automating processes they wish they had automated sooner, the report says. The pandemic “will be the deciding factor for many U.K. companies to move toward digitization and automate their work and business processes,” Matthews said. “This will lower the threshold for outsourcing in the future.”

In addition, the report sees significant adoption of software-defined data centers and hyperconverged infrastructure for remote and branch offices in the U.K. Enterprises that want to reduce power, space and cooling costs are exploring a move to hyperconverged infrastructure, and all the major hyperconverged market leaders are embracing hybrid cloud offerings and multi-cloud deployments.

The 2020 ISG Provider Lens Next-Gen Private/Hybrid Cloud – Data Center Services & Solutions Report for the U.K. evaluates the capabilities of 91 providers across seven quadrants: Managed Services for Large Accounts, Managed Services for the Midmarket, Managed Hosting for Large Accounts, Managed Hosting for the Midmarket, Colocation Services, Data Center Security Products and Hyperconverged Systems.

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