IBM opens its first public cloud data center in India, in Chennai

BENGALURU: IBM has opened its first public cloud data center in Chennai, India. The announcement was made by IBM's Vanitha Narayanan  and her team at a press conference in Bengaluru.

The new IBM Cloud data center in Chennai will offer India customers and end users increased performance and speed for data traveling to and from the region.

"A part of IBM’s $1.2 billion investment to expand its global cloud footprint into every major financial market, the Chennai data center underscores IBM’s commitment to India, a key growth market for the company, providing the company an end-to-end capability," said Narayanan.

The Chennai data center joins IBM’s Mumbai cloud center and is part of an expansive network of data centers that blanket the globe, providing users with the performance and disaster recovery solutions needed to ensure business continuity. This is the company's 42nd data center, globally. Narayanan shared that IBM plans to add another 4 data centers in its portfolio, elsewhere in the world, taking the number to 46 for its fully-owned and operated data centers.

This in IBM's effort to accelerate digital transformation both at the enterprise and startup level. The company has also established a partnership with National Association of Software and Services Companies (NASSCOM) to launch Techstartup.in, a digital hub wherein the entire Indian startup ecosystem, including angels, mentors, investors, academia and venture capitalists, can interact with each other to grow the cloud market.

In addition, IBM has launched two initiatives for developers — developerWorks Premium and a cloud certification program — to enable developers with the right tools and skills to compete and innovate in the global marketplace. Also in support of developers, IBM is working with strategic enterprise IT leaders like Accenture, Tech Mahindra and CSC to extend the use of IBM Cloud technologies, including IBM Bluemix, to developer communities in India and around the world.

“India’s cloud market is poised for exponential growth, which makes it essential for Indian businesses to have local access to the resources and skills they need to help guarantee success,” said Robert LeBlanc, Senior Vice President of IBM Cloud. “With the opening of the IBM Cloud data center in Chennai and our collaboration with NASSCOM, IBM is not only delivering greater access to a globally integrated cloud data center that offers the performance and speed needed, but it is also creating the foundation for future growth by working with NASSCOM 10,000 Startups program to equip local developers with the skills they need to grow the market.”

Developers and startups are an integral part of India’s diverse ecosystem and key to the Digital India initiative, says IBM. A study by Evans Data Corp suggests that, with 2.75 million developers, India currently has the second-largest developer population. And by 2018, that number will grow by nearly 90 percent to 5.2 million, surpassing the United States with the most developers.