Akamai and IBM Announce Strategic Alliance to Improve Web Performance - Company Business and Marketing

Edge: Work-Group Computing Report, Jan 31, 2000

IBM and Akamai Technologies, Inc. Thursday announced a strategic agreement to establish a set of services that will dramatically speed delivery of content over the Web.

As part of a broad alliance between the companies, IBM will use Akamai's technology to build a set of systems integration and application development services to speed and more smoothly handle unpredictable demands on Web sites. Additionally, IBM Global Services, a world leader in Web hosting and integration, becomes the largest company to resell and integrate Akamai's FreeFlowSM service, a global, high performance service for the delivery of Internet content and applications.

The companies also announced that Akamai will purchase and deploy IBM Netfinity enterprise-class servers, running the Linux operating system. As Akamai expands its network's reach, IBM will be Akamai's primary supplier of servers. Furthermore, Akamai will support IBM's standards-based roadmap, known as the Application Framework for e-business, to help customers, partners, and developers get their e-businesses up and running quickly and securely.

"This relationship represents a significant step for Akamai," said George Conrades, Akamai's chairman and chief executive officer. "As a leader in Web hosting and with its global reach, IBM is uniquely equipped to bring Akamai's services to a whole new set of customers. Now, with one-stop shopping at IBM, e-businesses around the world can speed performance using Akamai's content and applications delivery network."

"Servicing our e-business customers requires expertise to manage huge traffic volumes and transactions," said Doug Elix, senior vice president and group executive, IBM Global Services. "In addition to our Web hosting services, Akamai's technology will allow us to deliver to customers entirely new levels of speed and reliability, which are increasingly seen as two of the critical success factors of any e-business."

According to Elix, IBM is beginning implementation of Akamai's FreeFlow service in customer sites and will use FreeFlow on its own site, www.ibm.com.

Akamai Technologies is headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and has offices in San Mateo, California, and subsidiaries in Europe. Akamai provides global Internet content, streaming media, and applications delivery services for hundreds of customers, improving Web site speed and reliability and enabling richer, more engaging Web site content. Currently, Akamai has deployed 2000 servers in 40 countries across 100 different telecommunications networks. Akamai (pronounced AH kuh my) is Hawaiian for intelligent, clever and cool.

IBM Global Services (www.ibm.com/services) is the world's largest information technology services provider. IBM's Web hosting business manages more than 30,000 servers in more than 130 data centers worldwide. IBM's Web hosting customers include high traffic events such as Wimbledon, Ryder Cup, and the upcoming Grammy Awards, as well as leading e-businesses including Macy's, JP Morgan, CIGNA, and the New York Stock Exchange.