Amazon Web Services (AWS) recently announced that it will build local data centers in the Asia-Pacific (APAC), including the Philippines. In particular, AWS Local Zones will roll out across Australia (Brisbane and Perth), India (Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi, and Kolkata), New Zealand (Auckland), the Philippines (Manila), Thailand (Bangkok), and Vietnam (Hanoi), joining 22 new AWS Local Zones planned to be launched in 20 additional countries around the world over the next two years. AWS Local Zones are a type of infrastructure deployment that places compute, storage, database, and other select Amazon services close to large population and industry centers.
The very-low latency access that AWS Local Zones provide supports customers with applications such as remote real-time gaming, media and entertainment content creation, live video streaming, engineering simulations, augmented and virtual reality, and more. The first AWS Local Zone was launched in Los Angeles, US in 2019.
“We know that delivering ultra-low latency applications for a seamless user experience matters for many businesses and industries, so we are excited to bring the edge of the cloud closer to more customers in the Philippines to help meet their requirements,” said Conor McNamara, Managing Director for Commercial at Amazon Web Services in ASEAN, “This new AWS Local Zone is a continuation of our investment to support customers of all kinds and commitment to accelerate innovation by bringing cloud infrastructure to more locations in the Philippines.”
For his part, Acting Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) Secretary Emmanuel Rey Caintic said, “DICT commits to fully implementing the Philippine Cloud-First Policy across all government agencies in the country, in-line with our efforts to maximize and harmonize the use of ICT in government. Cloud computing offers benefits such as access to global solutions and up-to-date cybersecurity. It also fosters innovation, scalability, security, and cost-efficiency among users.”
According to Synergy Research Group, Amazon kept a top share of over 30 percent in the global cloud market in the fourth quarter of 2021, topping Microsoft, Google and Alibaba. Amazon is also the market leader in the Asia-Pacific region, capturing top positions in all areas except China, where Alibaba leads.
“China remains a unique market that is dominated by local companies, while in the rest of the APAC region there is strong competition between global cloud providers, with some local companies also challenging for business in their home countries,” said John Dinsdale, chief analyst at Synergy Research Group.
Last year, Amazon announced the availability of AWS Outposts in the Philippines and Brunei. AWS Outposts is a fully managed service that extends AWS infrastructure, AWS services, APIs, and tools to virtually any customer datacenter, co-location space, or on-premises facility for a truly consistent hybrid experience.
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