back to article AWS to build 32 more small clouds around the world

Amazon Web Services has completed the first 16 of its Local Zones – small versions of its cloud located in cities that don't host full regions – and announced 32 more across 26 nations. The cloud colossus announced Local Zones in December 2019, touting them as offering single-digit millisecond latency access to a subset of its …

  1. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    How long before we see an extention to the deal between Amazon and BT, covering 'edge'?

    An agreement to transition all of BT's obsolete telephone exchanges to 'Edge' AWS Cloud Data Centres? Many of the exchanges have been marked obsolete in routing plans, and no longer feature in BT's future full fibre plans.

    Though, saying this - I'm not sure co-opting the locations to Amazon for edge computing, is more profitable than converting to Yellow Box Storage Warehouses. A combo of Amazon drop-off/collection points + Amazon Cloud facilities?

    The Tesco Express model in every town, might be pushing the Amazon 'edge' model a tad far, probably some larger telephone exchanges though.

    P.S. Whoever is managing all this, will never be off a plane.

    1. Anonymous Coward Silver badge
      Thumb Up

      Re: How long before we see an extention to the deal between Amazon and BT, covering 'edge'?

      Stick the Amazon gear in the basement and have shops or whatever on the surface. Maximise value and those premises get free heating from the DC (a great boon in winter, not so appreciated in summer)

      I like the idea though - those exchanges obviously have connectivity available already.

  2. elsergiovolador Silver badge

    Too big to fail

    One of the problems with late stage capitalism is that corporations grow too big, distort the markets and supress competition - the very thing capitalism should be embracing.

    Entities like AWS should be regulated so that these behemots would have been split into small independent companies, that other small companies would have a chance to compete with.

    Other way to deal with that problem is to require AWS to connect local companies to their network on fair terms rather than having their own local zones.

    The cancerous growth of the likes of AWS, Google Cloud or Azure should have never been allowed to happen.

    1. runt row raggy

      Re: Too big to fail

      ok, i have absolutely no idea how an anticapitalist rant fits in here. but humor me. why is AWS opening up mini regions bad in general? and how is this anticompetitive?

      1. elsergiovolador Silver badge

        Re: Too big to fail

        Not sure where you see anticapitalsm rant, but okay.

        Big corporations like AWS have access to tax avoidance structures that local small and medium businesses can only dream of, so just by that measure they have a huge unfair competitive advantage, accelerating formation of monopolies.

        Having a couple of global big corporations controlling internet data is also a security issue.

        1. doublelayer Silver badge

          Re: Too big to fail

          The solution to that is to remove their tax loopholes. That's unpopular with politicians, but it is the problem you've identified and it can be solved directly. However, it isn't related to where they choose to put servers. They also don't have a monopoly. They're big, but I can put servers in any of those cities and connect them to the internet without having AWS penalize me for doing it. There are many large players even if the big three are pervasive.

  3. Philip Stott

    Wot no London?

    Seems a bit of an odd omission.

    1. Rob Daglish

      Re: Wot no London?

      Must be one of those Brexit Benefits we keep hearing about...

      I did think it was an odd omission, but I'm guessing that London/Amsterdam or London/Berlin fit within the transit times AWS are aiming for?

    2. Victor Ludorum
      Thumb Up

      Re: Wot no London?

      There's been a London region since 2016:

      https://aws.amazon.com/blogs/aws/now-open-aws-london-region/

    3. EnviableOne

      Re: Wot no London?

      was expecting at least one in the UK, Manchester, Edinburgh, Leeds all have significant digital firms needing good latency

      1. Robert Grant

        Re: Wot no London?

        There was an article about Didcot A being bought by AWS to be a data centre, along with some other locations: https://www.theregister.com/2022/01/13/aws_planning_app_oxford/

        Might be related?

    4. doublelayer Silver badge

      Re: Wot no London?

      These are small centers for areas they don't already have big centers. They have already created big centers in London and one in Ireland which probably has low latency to the UK as well.

      1. david 12 Silver badge

        Re: Wot no London?

        Same for Australia. Brisbane gets a new small centre: Sydney has had a regional centre for 10 years.

  4. Kev99 Silver badge

    More clouds on the front. And what will these clouds bring? Why, a rain storm of proprietary, confidential, business-critical data falling to the ground for anyone to grab.

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