New China Network Can Shave Milliseconds Off Trades to New York
(Bloomberg) — Seven new trading routes linking Hong Kong to the rest of the world are promising to shave precious milliseconds off trades.
China Mobile Ltd. says its new network means information can travel from Hong Kong to a New Jersey data center in 225 milliseconds — or more than 10 milliseconds faster than existing connections. The move — which comes as regulators clamp down on algorithmic traders in China — is another sign the country is renewing efforts to lure foreign investors.
China Mobile’s network, the first ready-built for financial trading in China, will connect the company’s data center to exchanges in financial hubs such as Hong Kong, Tokyo, London and New York. Such speed matters in a robot-driven market where millions of transactions can take place in the blink of an eye.
On the new network, data will take 2 milliseconds to travel from the former British colony to the Chinese city of Shenzhen, just over the border, and 27 milliseconds to Shanghai, up to 13 milliseconds faster than currently available routes, according to a China Mobile official who asked not to be named citing corporate policy.
The 2015 market crash triggered a regulator crackdown on China’s speediest traders. Rule changes killed 99 percent of volume in the country’s stock-index futures market, and in October of that year the China Securities Regulatory Commission proposed what would have been one of the strictest algo-trading regimes in the world.
Those plans have reportedly been shelved, though the CSRC hasn’t commented. Traders are not allowed to sell securities on the same day they bought them in China’s stock market.
To prepare for the new network, the telecoms firm built new sections for the routes from Hong Kong to the mainland cities to ensure the shortest possible distance, the official said.
Further details about the network will be given during the Mobile World Congress in Shanghai from June 28 to 30, China Mobile said in its statement.
High-speed networks are an essential part of modern trading, as markets have moved to electronic systems that move at ever-faster speeds. In Europe and the U.S., some traders use microwaves to send orders and receive data. China Mobile has no plans for a microwave network, the official said.
QTS Pitches 2MW Data Center Product to Hyper-Scale Clients
Saying hyper-scale companies in addition to 10MW-and-up data center leases also like the option to deploy in smaller chunks but quickly, QTS Realty Trust announced a new product which enables those companies to fill the publicly traded REIT’s massive facilities around the country 2MW at a time.
The much larger deals the likes of Microsoft and Amazon have been signing with data center landlords in recent years as they race to expand the physical footprint of their cloud empires have been one of the primary effects of the cloud-computing revolution on the data center provider industry. But there’s also demand for smaller deployments by large clients, either to enter new markets where future demand trends are hazy or simply to avoid paying rent for unused capacity.
While QTS has data centers in top US markets – namely in Chicago, Dallas, and Silicon Valley – most of its locations are in places considered tier-two markets, where it is less likely to close those large hyper-scale deals, and where the 2MW product may be a better fit. If a client needs more down the road, they can take another 2MW in the same facility.
Case in point: along with announcing the 2MW product, called HyperBlock, QTS said it has sold and deployed one in Irving, Texas, to “one of the world’s largest cloud service providers.” The company said it delivered the block 60 days after signing the contract.
The cloud company, whose name QTS did not disclose, has been its client since 2016.
HyperBlock is an engineered turn-key solution, meaning the design includes everything from electrical and mechanical system configuration to connectivity and logistics. It also includes software APIs clients can use to manage the infrastructure, life-cycle management, and support.
It would be much too much of an understatement to say that Alibaba is on a roll — but it is.
Let’s forget the company’s 2014 IPO, which raised $25 billion and was the largest IPO in history, and only look at ways the company has made news this year. In April, for instance, it passed Walmart to become the world’s largest retailer. In online sales, it’s gross merchandise volume — which is how e-commerce folks count revenue — surpasses Amazon and eBay combined. And the scary thing is, since 2015 the company’s online sales and profits have been greater than all US retailers combined — a figure that includes Walmart, Amazon and eBay.
Not only that, but since 2009 it’s been a public cloud provider with its subsidiary Aliyun (or AliCloud). It’s no AWS — not yet — but it’s serious about growing. According to TechCrunch, it’s nearing the break-even point as it spreads its cloud operation throughout Asia — and the world.
Needless to say, packing that much power in e-commerce and cloud requires more that a dozen or so rusty IBM XTs strung together Halt-and-Catch-Fire style to meet demand.
On Tuesday the Chinese data center company GDS (which itself went public last year) disclosed that it has inked a deal that will see Alibaba take full-capacity of its Beijing 3 data center, which is currently under construction and slated to open in the first half of 2018. When completed, the facility will offer 45,854 square feet of technical space.
“We are pleased to announce this new pre-commitment by Alibaba, one of our most important strategic partners,” said William Huang, GDS Holding’s chairman and chief executive officer in Tuesday’s press release. “The Beijing 3 site is adjacent to our Beijing 1 data center where Alibaba already occupies a substantial part of the total area. It is an ideal expansion location for Alibaba’s growing capacity needs.”
No dollar — or Yuan — amount has been announced yet, but it appears to be enough to put smiles on the faces of GDS’s execs.
The announcement doesn’t come completely out of left field. Alibaba’s been talking a lot about expanding its data center footprint recently.
In May, the company announced plans to build a data center in Malaysia, the country’s first large-scale public cloud platform, “to provide enterprises in Malaysia and the region with powerful, scalable and cost-effective cloud capabilities to support their global expansion.” Then earlier this month, Alibaba used its Computing Conference in Shanghai to announce that it’s planning on launching data centers in both India and Indonesia, both of which it plans to have online before the end of the current fiscal year, which ends on March 31, 2018.
Alibaba’s cloud service currently has 14 data centers in operation, with two being in the US, in Silicon Valley and Virginia.
Wal-Mart Prods Partners, Vendors to Leave AWS for Azure
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The competition between Amazon Web Services (AWS) and a host of brick and mortar retailers reached a new intensity this week that could significantly impact managed services providers (MSPs) who partner with the market leader in public cloud, or with second place Microsoft Azure.
On the heels of Amazon’s announcement last week that it planned to acquire grocer Whole Foods Market, retail giant Wal-Mart revealed it has been asking some of its vendors, developers and other tech partners to no longer host applications on AWS, the Wall Street Journal reported.
In one example, Snowflake Computing Inc., a provider of big data management services, said it opted to host applications on Microsoft Azure instead of AWS, expressly to win business from a tech firm with a Wal-Mart account.
Snowflake said it was already developing an Azure offering, which it accelerated in order to capitalize on the opportunity.
“They influence their vendors, which has influence on us,” CEO Bob Muglia told the paper, speaking of Wal-Mart.
Wal-Mart spokesman Dan Toporek told the financial newspaper that the outreach was made to a “small number” of vendors and partners, but defended the move.
“It shouldn’t be a big surprise that there are cases in which we’d prefer our most sensitive data isn’t sitting on a competitor’s platform,” he said, according to the article.
An Amazon official described Wal-Mart’s moves as an attempt to “bully.”
“Tactics like this are bad for business and customers,” the unnamed spokeswoman is quoted as saying.
The pitched competition between Wal-Mart and the e-commerce giant has been well documented.
Also well documented is Wal-Mart’s close and growing ties to Azure cloud.
Wal-Mart is among Azure’s largest customers and was the primary provider of cloud infrastructure to e-commerce retailer Jet.com, which Wal-Mart bought for $3.3 billion last September.
Jet’s founder is now head of Wal-Mart’s e-commerce division.
But some observers predict the rivalry’s latest escalation could negatively impact AWS partners that provide migration or managed services to clients with current or future business with Wal-Mart; while benefitting Microsoft partners.
“People jump though hoops to do business with Wal-Mart all the time,” Gartner analyst Robert Hetu told WSJ. “That should absolutely accelerate the competition from Azure.”
Have you ever been to an industry conference (or even an internal training or presentation) and thought to yourself, “I could have done that.” Maybe you’ve thought about submitting a proposal to speak at an industry event, but something keeps holding you back. Here are the four most common reasons people don’t submit speaking proposals and recommendations for overcoming these misconceptions.
1. I DON’T HAVE ANYTHING INTERESTING TO SHARE.
Remember the session you attended where you thought “I didn’t learn anything new. This just validated what I already know.” Bingo. You know more than you think. A topic that is straightforward and obvious to you will be brand new and even inspirational to many attendees. Drawing from your own unique experience – your stories, your successes, your failures – will help you deliver an interesting session that will be different than any other presentation on the same topic.
Are you concerned about having enough content to fill a 60 minute session? New this year at Data Center World Global, we are introducing Lightning Talkswhich are no more than 10 minutes. What a great way to dip your toe in the public speaking waters, especially if number two is also a concern…
2. I’M NOT GOOD AT PUBLIC SPEAKING.
I get it. This is a real thing. According to several surveys, people fear public speaking more than death. There’s even a name for it: glossophobia. But here are a few things to consider.
You are comfortable talking about your topic. You do it every day. By preparing your presentation, you’ll become even more of an expert.
Know your symptoms. Do you get dry mouth? Have water nearby. Sweaty? Wear lighter, looser clothing. Fidgety? Bring a fidget spinner. Just kidding. Don’t do that. But, do gain some self-awareness about how you feel and do whatever you can to prevent or address it.
Practice. This is what it all comes down to. Practice by yourself, out loud, and then work your way up. Practice in front of your pet. Then a friend or significant other. Then a small group of coworkers. I’m sure your local AFCOM chapter would love for you to present at a meeting! Continue to rehearse until you feel comfortable and have received enough feedback to fine-tune your presentation to perfection.
Still too nervous? What about co-presenting or speaking on a panel? Speaking with others can be much less intimidating since all the attention is not on you, and you can divide up the presentation preparation tasks as well. At Data Center World Global, we’re accepting for session proposals for co-presentations and panels as well as stand-alone speakers. Grab a co-worker or a group of industry friends and speak together!
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Cindy Joos, Ileana Aquino-Otero, Cindy Choboain, and Carrie Goetz (left to right) at the Women in the Data Center panel session at Data Center World 2017.
3. I DON’T HAVE TIME.
Leonard Bernstein once said “To achieve great things, two things are needed; a plan, and not quite enough time.” I’m not a philosopher, but I interpret this to mean without a plan you can’t focus and without a tight deadline you don’t have the pressure to complete your plan. For many of us, time pressure brings out the best. The Data Center World call for proposals is open until October 1, 2017. This is deadline #1. And here’s your plan: Decide on your session type, come up with a catchy title, and a compelling description.
If your proposal is selected, you will have until February 2018 to submit your final PowerPoint slides. Since you will be speaking about a topic that is familiar to you and related to your job, preparing should not be too time-consuming or cumbersome. In fact, I’m sure it will benefit your current job.
4. MY COMPANY WON’T LET ME.
You don’t have to give away your company’s secret sauce to have a meaningful presentation. Think about what you, your team, or your client does well that others in your job function or industry can learn from. There are a number of experiences you have gained that are “industry issues” and could be helpful to others, which have nothing to do with your company’s or client’s proprietary information.
If your company is not supportive, sometimes you have to take matters into your own hands. John Parker, an AFCOM Data Center Institute board member and a frequent speaker at industry events has some advice. “If management says no, the conversation needs to change. Speaking at an industry conference is a career builder. And when building your career, you can’t always rely on your company’s support.” Here are some of John’s tricks of the trade:
Submit your proposal as an independent consultant, not as a company employee.
If the conference is local, take a day or two off from work and attend the conference on your own. Speakers almost always receive a free conference pass.
If the conference is not local, check to see if the conference organizers will pay for your flight and/or hotel. (For Data Center World Global, we provide free conference registration and discounted hotel rates to our speakers.) But keep in mind that the career-building opportunity to speak, even for free, often outweighs the costs.
Just like finding out that lightning does strike the same place twice, the five-second-rule isn’t really a thing, and bats are not really blind, I have debunked the four myths of speaking at events. Submitting a proposal to speak at Data Center World is easier than you think.