Today heralds a new era in the development of communications infrastructure in Ireland, Today, I am launching INEX’s (Internet Neutral Exchange) first ever expansion to an additional site and also the formally lighting the fibre ring that links the two sites together.
The addition of a second site to the exchange and a redundant high speed fibre connection between the sites form part of an aggressive expansion plan currently underway at INEX and follow a recent agreement with the IDA to develop the facility to become a world class exchange.
It’s important to highlight important changes in our communications infrastructure such as the expansion at INEX, as we work towards making broadband access to the internet de-facto across the country, it is critical to know that the back-bone of the Irish internet here at INEX is ahead of the curve and, above all, the competition.
This is a significant advance in the country's communications infrastructure and with the exchange now available at more than one location, it enhances the competitive offering to existing businesses in Ireland and also those the IDA are targeting to set up operations here. You’ve come a long way since Fenian St.!
Founded in 1996, INEX exists to ensure the fast, efficient and cost effective transfer of Internet traffic between its members' networks. This second site for INEX at TeleCity complements the existing IP exchange infrastructure located in Data Electronics Group, Kilcarbery Park. The high speed fibre ring, which is rated at speeds of up to 40 gigabits/sec, is on the T50 fibre ring and it ensures that all INEX members have the opportunity to exchange IP traffic with all other members, regardless of which site they are located in. Fibre capacity on the T50 has been delivered by Aurora Telecom.
I am delighted to announce that four new members join INEX as part of this expansion to TeleCity, including Microsoft who are the first digital content provider member peering at the exchange. The membership of a content provider such as Microsoft is a significant departure for INEX and is at the heart of the development strategy going forward. No longer can we afford to think of infrastructure and content as discrete elements of the broadband play. The killer application is content. Without content, the Internet would be a valueless collection of silent machines with grey screens….a marine desert, -lovely elements, nice colours - no life!
INEX infrastructure has been designed with speed and world class resilience as the core considerations. Each site has two redundant Cisco 6500 switches and all four switches have individual connections to the fibre ring linking the sites. As the importance of INEX increases, this best-of-breed design for the exchange provides a high level of resilience for members and a long-term growth path to enable the facility to scale with its members' needs. Future infrastructure developments at INEX include; multi-casting, upgrading the network to 10 gigabit/sec backbone and member connections and the potential deployment of DWDM (Dense Wave Division Multiplexing) on the network to boost this further. The future developments plan also includes additional INEX sites.
Without further ado, and in wishing INEX every future success, I now formally light the fibre connection..
ENDS