To fast-track digital advantage in a complex and rapidly changing world, enterprises and service providers increasingly need flexibility to choose the right technology, located in the right places and operated by the right partners. However, many companies struggle to stay agile in the face of evolving business needs. Rising hardware costs, supply chain challenges and slow data speeds further encumber them. Up against these challenges, virtual infrastructure and digital services are a game changer, helping organizations get products and services to market faster, in more geographies, at a lower cost.

Leveraging cloud services is the hallmark of the digital journey, but the cloud isn’t in one place—it’s everywhere. Organizations are deploying in multiple regions to provide the best experience, and this necessitates optimizing their networks for a hybrid multicloud world. As companies move away from highly centralized networks to distributed architectures, digital infrastructure and services can unlock new value and opportunities.

Digital infrastructure solutions like virtual network devices, interconnection and bare metal services multiply the benefits of your digital transformation while connecting you to a robust ecosystem of partners and service providers. A recent commissioned study conducted by Forrester Consulting on behalf of Equinix[1] shows that leveraging digital infrastructure and a dynamic, interconnected partner ecosystem not only better equips companies to press their digital advantage in the market—it also saves them money. Businesses that take advantage of hybrid multicloud and interconnected vendor ecosystems are better equipped to expand their global reach, deliver new products to market quickly and scale as business needs change.

Accelerating innovation with a digital-first, ecosystem-driven approach

Companies that take a digital-first approach are better positioned to compete and scale in today’s economy. A digital-first strategy empowers you to win or defend markets, respond to competitive threats and adapt with agility. Digital infrastructure services improve technology choice and flexibility while reducing management challenges. Simplified management, in turn, frees employees to focus more on innovation and higher-value tasks. Combining a strong digital-first strategy with participation in a thriving partner ecosystem sets companies up to accelerate their advantage.

The recently published Global Interconnection Index (GXI) by Equinix shows that low-cost neutral ecosystems are a key ingredient of successful digital transformations. The report notes that ecosystem density—the number of potential partners a company interacts with in a digital ecosystem—is a catalyst for speed and enables the agility needed to compete in today’s world. In fact, the research states, “interconnected leaders have grown their digital infrastructure more in the last five quarters than in the past five years.” This is no coincidence—and it’s why Equinix has invested in ensuring that more companies can benefit from the global reach and ecosystem choice of Platform Equinix®. With cloud consumption “as a service” virtual data center and digital infrastructure services from Equinix, businesses can now reach more geographies with the right services via robust automation to access global, neutral ecosystems and supercharge their digital initiatives.

Data from the Total Economic Impact (TEI) study by Forrester Consulting based on a composite organization comprised of interviewees with experience using Equinix Digital Services shows that using Equinix Digital Services enables companies to transition to a digital-first, virtual infrastructure faster with a significant return on investment. Our Digital Services include Equinix Fabric™ for software-defined interconnection, Network Edge for virtual network devices and Equinix Metal™ automated bare metal servers and storage appliances. With Equinix Digital Services, organizations can get more from their investments, using only what they need when they need it, and connect quickly and easily to the dynamic digital ecosystems that accelerate innovation.

Equinix Digital Services enable faster, smarter innovation at a better value

The benefits and cost savings of working with Equinix on a hybrid multicloud, digital-first strategy are tangible. The Forrester TEI study shows that digital infrastructure and interconnection services on Platform Equinix deliver a 142% ROI. We believe this quantified ROI not only shows that Equinix Digital Services deliver a clear economic benefit, but that companies can fast-track their digital advantage more easily, securely and sustainably with Equinix.

Here are six ways Equinix Digital Services can facilitate your organization’s success:

1. Accelerate time to market with the agility and speed of virtual infrastructure. The Forrester TEI study demonstrates a 10x increased speed to deploy infrastructure in support of new business initiatives.
2. Connect to a dynamic network of strategic partners. With Equinix Fabric on-demand interconnection, businesses can connect with hundreds of network, communication, security and cloud providers in minutes—from anywhere and to anywhere in the world.
3. Modernize networking for efficiency and cloud connectivity. Equinix Fabric and Network Edge allow you to use virtual connections and a robust suite of enterprise virtualized network functions that offer more agile cloud connectivity than traditional networking. In the Forrester TEI study, the composite organization decreased connectivity costs by 30% over 3 years by leveraging connections through Equinix.
4. Reduce costs with virtual infrastructure. Digital services on Platform Equinix enable seamless migration to the cloud without the need for physical infrastructure. Companies saw a 60% decrease in infrastructure management costs over a 3-year period when using Equinix Digital Services, according to the Forrester TEI study.
5. Expand reach into new geographies. The Equinix 2022 Global Tech Trends Survey found that 72% of global businesses are planning to expand into new markets in the next year. Equinix Fabric and Network Edge vastly simplify your ability to launch services and products in new geographies very quickly, without having to stand up new physical infrastructure, thanks to the Equinix global footprint.
6. Improve environmental sustainability. Because Equinix has achieved 100% renewable energy in U.S. data centers and 95% worldwide, companies can reduce emissions and lower their overall carbon footprint to improve sustainability using Platform Equinix.

Move faster, spend less and innovate more with Equinix

Moving from a centralized to a distributed infrastructure is a major transformation that companies have been navigating, but Equinix is uniquely positioned to help—wherever the business is on that journey. Equinix enables organizations to deploy a distributed architecture in close proximity to the right clouds via cloud on-ramps and connects them to a rich interconnection ecosystem for customers, partners and employees in all the markets where they do business. Equinix Digital Services provide the agility to accelerate and simplify that transition to a distributed architecture while delivering a sizable ROI. The savings mean that your company will not only spend less on infrastructure by accessing the right things in the right places; you’ll free up critical resources to accelerate the pace of innovation.

In our opinion, the results of the Forrester TEI study drive home this point. The economic and competitive advantages of working with Equinix are real. It’s an exciting time to be in digital infrastructure. The challenges for businesses investing in digital are real, but the opportunities to accelerate digital transformation and innovation are extraordinary.

Read the Forrester TEI study to learn more about the business benefits realized by Equinix customers.

[1] Forrester Consulting, “The Total Economic Impact™ Of Equinix Digital Services.” A Forrester Total Economic Impact™ Study Commissioned by Equinix. September 2022.