Equinix gives enterprises direct access to Microsoft Office 365

Equinix is giving enterprise customers that are migrating to a cloud-based architecture a private, managed connection to Microsoft Office 365 Azure ExpressRoute through its Cloud Exchange platform.

Set to be available in the third quarter, Equinix said that it will provide direct access to Office 365 in 15 markets worldwide.

What's driving the trend of offering direct access via a private connection to cloud services is reducing latency and service uptime for enterprise customers.

Through a dedicated and private connection, Equinix can control the quality of experience by providing mechanisms to manage network availability. What's more, a business does not have to deal with the unpredictable security and speed issues associated with the public Internet.

A Forrester report called "Beware the Pitfalls Within Networking for Hybrid Cloud" revealed that end-user experience should be a company's top priority when considering cloud connectivity options for business productivity applications. By offering direct access to Microsoft Office 365 Azure ExpressRoute, the two companies are enabling the enterprise to use its existing MPLS or wide area network (WAN) infrastructure to get high speed, secure access to Office 365 and potentially a better user experience.

Equinix and Microsoft are hardly strangers as the two began a partnership last April and currently offer direct connections to Microsoft Azure ExpressRoute in 15 markets globally via the Equinix Cloud Exchange.

Similarly, Equinix will offer direct access to Office 365 in all 15 markets, including Amsterdam, Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, Hong Kong, London, Los Angeles, New York, Osaka, Seattle, Silicon Valley, Singapore, Sydney, Tokyo and Washington, D.C.

For more:
- see the release

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