Switch & Data Facilities Co

Founded in 1998 by James F. Lavin and Stephen Kelly, Switch & Data Facilities Co. carved a niche for itself as a provider of network-neutral data centers and internet exchange services. The company's business model was centered on offering colocation, interconnection, network connectivity, and peering services from its numerous data center locations. It catered to businesses with significant internet dependency, such as telecommunications carriers, internet service providers, and online content providers, which required scalable and interconnected networks to manage increasing IP and network traffic.

A significant milestone in the company's history was the acquisition of PAIX, the world's first commercial Internet peering exchange, in March 2003. This strategic move solidified Switch and Data's position in the global internet peering market and brought in major internet content and service providers as clients. The company continued its expansion through the acquisitions of RACO, Meridian Telesis, and LayerOne between 2004 and 2005. This growth trajectory culminated in an initial public offering on February 8, 2007, with its stock trading on the NASDAQ under the symbol SDXC.

The core of Switch and Data's service offering was providing the physical infrastructure—power, cooling, security, and technical support—to house its customers' network and computing equipment. Its network-neutral stance was a key selling point, allowing customers the flexibility to interconnect with various competing carriers within its data centers. Before its acquisition, the company operated 34 data centers across 23 markets in the United States and Canada, serving over 900 customers. In a definitive move that marked the end of its journey as an independent entity, Switch and Data was acquired by Equinix in a deal announced in October 2009 and completed on May 4, 2010, for approximately $683.4 million in cash and stock. The acquisition integrated Switch and Data's assets and operations into Equinix, expanding the latter's footprint significantly.

Keywords: data center, colocation, interconnection, internet exchange, peering services, network connectivity, network-neutral, PAIX, telecommunications infrastructure, data center acquisition, colocation services, internet infrastructure, carrier-neutral data center, IP traffic, network infrastructure, data center operations, public corporation, content distribution, financial services data, network edge