WorldCom to increase global data centres

WorldCom aims to open 13 more International Data Centres (IDCs) in Europe, over the next twelve months.

The centres - located in Amsterdam, Dublin, Luxembourg, Milan, Paris and Stockholm - will offer broadband access to WorldCom and rival networks.

If the centres are completed on schedule, WorldCom will be running a total of 41 IDCs by the end of the year.

Liam Strong, CEO of WorldCom, said the company was facing exponential demand for co-location space and the IDCs would boost ecommerce in Europe.

Stephen Young, principal analyst at Ovum, said: "There is a slightly herdish mentality between carriers at the moment. WorldCom are slightly late in announcing their data centres, but this doesn't mean they won't finish them first, as they have a strong pan-European network."

He added that WorldCom's decision to offer access to rival networks fuelled the debate over whether future 'telecom hotels' would be carrier-independent - like Telehouse and Global Switch.

WorldCom's centres are aimed at corporate users, ISPs, telco carriers and ASPs.

Young's report on 'Telcom Hotels, Co-location and Data Centres' will be published by Ovum later this month.