du and Batelco have launched a joint venture, “Arc”, with a mission to simplify intra-regional connectivity in the Middle East, providing interconnected data centre solutions for carrier, cloud and content providers and major enterprise companies.
“The challenge for network-centric businesses in the Middle East is to rapidly connect, optimise and control their services while having presence as close as possible to users,” said Mahesh Jaishankar, CEO designate at Arc.
“So far, it has been costly, complex and time-consuming to roll out applications and services across markets in the Middle East. Arc directly addresses these challenges and provides a seamless platform for cross border connectivity, similar to what we have seen in other regions around the globe.”
Arc minimises the complexities of regional hub connectivity through developing a single platform for developing agile network ecosystems. It offers prompt access to data networks and data centre infrastructures across the region.
“Today’s ICT market is all about agility and experience. It’s about seamlessly connecting hubs and growing your ecosystem across the region,” said Ananda Bose, Board Member of Arc and Chief Wholesale & Corporate Officer at EITC.
“We’re proud to be investing in Arc and supporting an innovative business that will ultimately benefit the region and the entire value chain, from carriers through to end users.”
In its initial phase, Arc is offering connectivity solutions to over 30 points of presence (POPs) across the Middle East, Asia and Europe, integrated with data centres in the UAE and Bahrain, in addition to bridging cross connectivity with major regional cable hubs.
“For digital transformation and cloud adoption to grow in the Middle East, it needs to be simpler to connect and host solutions at the edge of the network,” said Adel AlDaylami, Board Member of Arc and Chief Global Officer Batelco Global.
“We are excited to invest in Arc and accelerate innovation across the Middle East. Arc supports a range of customers with an all-in-one solution that includes global points of presence, world-class data centres, multiple subsea cable systems and all major hubs across the region. Arc is a powerful yet a simple solution that has been long overdue in the Middle East.”
