Telx will manage Meet-Me-Rooms in 10 major Internet gateways owned by Digital Realty Trust (DLR), the two companies said this morning. The deal is an immediate byproduct of last week's acquisition of Telx by GI Partners, which is also a major investor in Digital Realty. More significantly, the deal creates a network of connectivity hubs in major U.S. Internet markets, allowing Telx to offer a "one-stop shopping" option for companies seeking to rapidly deploy a national network across 12 markets, including the 10 Digital Realty sites as well as Telx facilities in New York and Atlanta.
The agreements call for Telx to lease and manage Meet-Me-Rooms in the 10 Digital Realty Trust facilities, providing customers with fully managed environments for interconnections between the networks of leading Internet companies, enterprises and global telecommunications providers.
"Creating a nationwide network of Meet-Me-Room operations is a mission we have focused on for years and reaching that goal with Digital Realty Trust brings together the two premier operators and brand names in the industry, creating an unparalleled value proposition for customers," said J. Todd Raymond, Telx's President and Interim CEO.
In recent months Digital Realty has focused its investment activity on the premier carrier hotels in major markets, purchasing 120 Van Buren in Phoenix, acquiring a 49 percent stake in the Westin Building in Seattle, and buying AboveNet facilities that included a data center at 111 8th Avenue, one of the primary carrier hotels in Manhattan.
Meanwhile, the purchase of Telx last week gave GI Partners access to facilities at the other leading Manhattan telecom hub, 60 Hudson Street, as well as the top carrier hotel in Atlanta, 56 Marietta Street.
The Digital Realty Trust facilities where Telx will take over management of Meet-Me-Room include:
- 300 Boulevard East in Weehawken, NJ
- 113 North Myers Street in Charlotte, NC
- 36 NE 2nd Street in Miami, FL
- 350 East Cermak Road in Chicago, IL
- 600 South Federal in Chicago, IL
- 2323 Bryan Street in Dallas, TX
- 200 Paul Avenue in San Francisco, CA
- 600 West 7th Street in Los Angeles, CA
- 1100 Space Park Drive in Santa Clara, CA
- 120 East Van Buren Street in Phoenix, AZ
"Partnering with telx will provide customers in Digital Realty Trust facilities with 24/7 hands-on Meet-Me-Room services from a company with an international reputation for excellence in the Meet-Me-Room environment," said Michael F. Foust, Chief Executive Officer of Digital Realty Trust. "These agreements benefit Digital Realty Trust customers by transitioning an ancillary part of our business to a true expert in the field whose 100 percent focus on Meet-Me-Room services significantly enhance the value proposition for our tenants. At the same time, it allows Digital Realty Trust to focus on our core business of owning, managing and building datacenter facilities."
"This partnership is very positive for telx and our customers because it gives us a presence in 10 world-class facilities in markets where demand for interconnection services are strong," said Hunter Newby, Chief Strategy Officer of telx. "We will be working closely with Digital Realty Trust and its Meet-Me-Room customers to ensure that this transition is seamless. We look forward to expanding the services that are available in these Meet-Me-Rooms and standardizing the physical layer interconnection process across all twelve facilities in the telx portfolio."
