U.K. Enterprises Seek Colocation in the Data Center Market to Improve Security, Better Manage Data

ISG Provider Lens™ report also sees U.K. businesses concerned about a shortage of niche tech skills due to Brexit


LONDON, U.K., July 17, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- U.K. enterprises are embracing colocation in the data center market as a way to enable multi-cloud strategies and deal with concerns about data sovereignty, security and privacy regulations, according to a new report published today by Information Services Group (ISG) (Nasdaq: III), a leading global technology research and advisory firm.

The 2020 ISG Provider LensNext-Gen Private/Hybrid Cloud – Data Center Services & Solutions Report for the U.K. finds many enterprises in the country focused on colocation because it allows them to locate and manage data closer to their cloud, network and security functions. U.K. enterprises are increasingly viewing colocation providers as an extension of their businesses, with providers offering services such as tracking provisioning status, interacting with customer support and monitoring system health in real time.

About 60 percent of U.K. enterprise workloads still reside on premises and many in private data centers operated by internal staff, the report says. “In an effort to save valuable time, money and space, many large enterprises will look to move in-house IT operations to managed colocation facilities or sell their data centers and lease the space they need to operate,” said Barry Matthews, partner and leader, ISG North Europe.

Meanwhile, with the U.K. facing the dual challenges of Brexit and the COVID-19 pandemic, the report sees U.K. enterprises moving cautiously with new IT projects. Due to Brexit, companies are not circulating large requests for proposal and request for information, but at the same time, many are concerned about a potential shortage of niche tech skills. The perceived skills gap, along with continuous demand for innovation, could eventually lead to more IT outsourcing deals.

On the pandemic front, many U.K. business continue to catch up with automating processes they wish they had automated sooner, the report says. The pandemic “will be the deciding factor for many U.K. companies to move toward digitization and automate their work and business processes,” Matthews said. “This will lower the threshold for outsourcing in the future.”

In addition, the report sees significant adoption of software-defined data centers and hyperconverged infrastructure for remote and branch offices in the U.K. Enterprises that want to reduce power, space and cooling costs are exploring a move to hyperconverged infrastructure, and all the major hyperconverged market leaders are embracing hybrid cloud offerings and multi-cloud deployments.

The 2020 ISG Provider LensNext-Gen Private/Hybrid Cloud – Data Center Services & Solutions Report for the U.K. evaluates the capabilities of 91 providers across seven quadrants: Managed Services for Large Accounts, Managed Services for the Midmarket, Managed Hosting for Large Accounts, Managed Hosting for the Midmarket, Colocation Services, Data Center Security Products and Hyperconverged Systems.

The report names BT as a leader in five quadrants, and IBM and Rackspace Technology as leaders in three. Atos, Capgemini, Cisco, Claranet, DXC Technology, Ensono, Fujitsu and T-Systems are named leaders in two quadrants. Accenture, Broadcom/Symantec, Check Point, Cloudreach, Computacenter, Dell EMC, Digital Realty, Equinix, Global Switch, HCL, HPE, Interxion, Juniper Networks, Logicalis, Nutanix, Palo Alto Networks, StorMagic, TCS, Telehouse, Trend Micro, Unisys, VMware, Vodafone and Wipro are all named leaders in one.

A customized version of the report is available from Hexaware.

The 2020 ISG Provider LensNext-Gen Private/Hybrid Cloud – Data Center Services & Solutions Report for the U.K. is available to subscribers or for one-time purchase on this webpage.

About ISG Provider Lens™ Research

The ISG Provider Lens™ Quadrant research series is the only service provider evaluation of its kind to combine empirical, data-driven research and market analysis with the real-world experience and observations of ISG's global advisory team. Enterprises will find a wealth of detailed data and market analysis to help guide their selection of appropriate sourcing partners, while ISG advisors use the reports to validate their own market knowledge and make recommendations to ISG's enterprise clients. The research currently covers providers offering their services globally, across Europe and Latin America, as well as in the U.S., Germany, the U.K., France, the Nordics, Brazil and Australia/New Zealand, with additional markets to be added in the future. For more information about ISG Provider Lens research, please visit this webpage.

The series is a complement to the ISG Provider Lens Archetype reports, which offer a first-of-its-kind evaluation of providers from the perspective of specific buyer types.

Starting this year, each ISG Provider Lens™ study will include a Global Summary to help enterprise subscribers better understand provider capabilities across all geographic markets covered by that study. All ISG Provider Lens™ reports also will now include an Enterprise Context feature to help executives quickly identify key insights related to their roles and responsibilities.

About ISG 

ISG (Information Services Group) (Nasdaq: III) is a leading global technology research and advisory firm. A trusted business partner to more than 700 clients, including more than 75 of the world's top 100 enterprises, ISG is committed to helping corporations, public sector organizations, and service and technology providers achieve operational excellence and faster growth. The firm specializes in digital transformation services, including automation, cloud and data analytics; sourcing advisory; managed governance and risk services; network carrier services; strategy and operations design; change management; market intelligence and technology research and analysis. Founded in 2006, and based in Stamford, Conn., ISG employs more than 1,300 digital-ready professionals operating in more than 20 countries—a global team known for its innovative thinking, market influence, deep industry and technology expertise, and world-class research and analytical capabilities based on the industry’s most comprehensive marketplace data. For more information, visit www.isg-one.com.

# # #

 

Contact Data