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Switch and Data Announces Opening of Seattle Site Expansion to Meet Demand in Major Technology and Communications Market

^{Published on 2009-01-13 05:57:34, Last Modified on 2009-01-13 05:58:35 - Market Wire}
 

TAMPA, Fla.--([ BUSINESS WIRE ])--Switch and Data (NASDAQ: SDXC), a leading provider of network neutral data center and Internet exchange services, announced today that the company has opened additional space in Seattle. The new suite adds nearly 9,000 gross square feet of additional capacity to Switch and Data's existing site in the Westin Building at 2001 Sixth Avenue, bringing the company's data center capacity in the market to 65,000 gross square feet. The new capacity was built to satisfy high customer demand for interconnection in this key communications hub. The Westin Building is Seattle's premier carrier hotel.

Seattle is the major communications hub for the Northwest United States and serves as a major aggregation and distribution point for IP traffic traversing the Northern Transpacific undersea fiber route between North America and Asia. Seattle is also home to many technology companies and bandwidth providers. Deloitte reports that 19 of the 500 fastest growing technology companies in North America are based in Washington State. Switch and Data supports the interconnection requirements of high-tech companies by providing the broadest footprint of sites in major North American communications hub markets such as Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Miami, New York, Northern Virginia, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle, and Toronto.

Switch and Data's Seattle site is housed in the city's premier carrier hotel, the Westin Building at 2001 Sixth Avenue. More than 20 different networks have a physical presence in Switch and Data's 4 suites in the building. These range from leading national and international providers to regional metro providers. The 34-story Westin Building was built in 1981 and contains approximately 185,000 square feet of technical space including colocation space and meet-me rooms to support its communications and technology tenants. Switch and Data operates sites in two Seattle locations, The Westin Building and The Securities Building Technology Center at 1914 Third Avenue. Switch and Data has interconnected its two Seattle sites to increase connectivity options for its customers.

"Switch and Data facilities give our customers access to a critical mass of network and bandwidth providers across the broadest footprint of key communications hub markets in North America," said Ernie Sampera, Sr. VP of Marketing, Switch and Data. "Our Seattle market expansion builds on our plan to help our customers accelerate their Internet-centric businesses with high performance and availability."

Switch and Data's Westin Building expansion is built to the company's latest high-performance data center standard and can supply more than 200 watts per square foot of power and cooling capacity. This site was completed in December and was the final project in Switch and Data's 2008 capacity expansion plan. Switch and Data also offers its PAIX^® Internet exchange service in the Seattle site. PAIX^® pioneered commercial Internet exchange and provides a simple and cost effective way for Internet service providers (ISPs), telecommunications companies, and enterprises to peer their IP traffic to enhance performance and reduce cost. Switch and Data offers distributed peering between its Seattle metro area locations to maximize its customers' opportunities to reach important networks, partners and customers.

About Switch and Data

Switch and Data is a premier provider of network-neutral data centers that house, power, and interconnect the Internet. Leading content companies, enterprises, and communications service providers rely on Switch and Data to connect to customers and exchange Internet traffic. Switch and Data has built a reputation for world-class service, delivered across the broadest colocation footprint and richest network of interconnections in North America. Switch and Data operates 34 sites in the U.S. and Canada, provides one of the highest customer satisfaction scores for technical and engineering support in the industry, and is home to PAIX^® - the world's first commercial Internet exchange.

For more information on Switch and Data, please visit [ www.switchanddata.com ].