Extending bandwidth-on-demand capability from Hong Kong to Singapore and accelerating enterprises’ shift to the digital economy in Southeast Asia
ICT service provider, HGC Global Communications Limited (HGC), a fully-fledged fixed-line operator and ICT service provider with extensive local and international network coverage, services and infrastructure, has expanded its bandwidth-on-demand (BoD) capability from Hong Kong to Big Data Exchange’s (BDx) Paya Lebar data centre in Singapore.
This is the second HGC SDN-enabled PoP established in Singapore that allows the company to provide enterprises across a wide range of verticals including the financial service industry (FSI), manufacturing and logistics, with a more flexible, localized way to manage their multi-region connectivity and multi-cloud direct connect with a secure and efficient software-defined network topology.
This can be achieved with ease via a centralised intuitive self-service portal, HGC SDXTM International Marketplace (HGC SDXTM) and BDx SoftConnectTM, which operates through a new SDN API and will offer enterprises a fast-track highway for rapid and streamlined regional business expansion to Southeast Asia.
BDx is Asia’s fastest growing data centre cluster that provides secure housing for its enterprise customers’ hybrid IT ecosystems, as well as edge nodes for OTTs and cloud service providers. The company acquired the Singapore data centre (SIN1) earlier this year which houses 1,500 racks with a 6 megawatts of power capacity.
BDx SoftConnectTM is a software-defined fabric that helps customers within the BDx data centre to connect to a network, cloud, or software-as-a-service (SAAS) provider based on their unique preferences and requirements. The BDx SoftConnectTM system enables data centre deployment and connectivity to be automated and virtualized, ensuring that the benefits of the site can be most efficiently realized. Combining SoftConnectTM with HGC’s bandwidth-on-demand capabilities advances BDx’s goal of enabling the facility to provide even stronger connectivity options for customers.
HGC has expanded its BoD capability to its reliable and resilient connectivity by establishing SDN PoPs from Hong Kong to BDx’s Paya Lebar data centre for customers such as MNCs, Internet service providers (ISPs) and over-the-top services (OTTs).
These customers will be able to instantly access HGC’s growing partner ecosystem that delivers on-demand interconnection across five continents, including instant provisioning to key cloud providers such as Alibaba Cloud, AWS, Azure, Google Cloud, as well as Internet Exchanges (IXs) including AMS-IX, DE-CIX, LINX. Users can enjoy a wider variety of interconnect choices through DC-DC connection between BDx data centres in Hong Kong and Singapore with just a few clicks on the single dashboard interface.
HGC continues to expand its SDN PoPs to other data centres globally, in particular within Asia, where customers will achieve faster regional business expansion with on-demand and zero-touch services, as well as secure, private, quick, sustainable and high quality connectivity under a stringent service-level agreement (SLA), fulfilling compliance requirements and meeting ever-changing customer expectations.
HGC has also activated the ‘pay-as-you-go’ business model on the HGC SDXTM International Marketplace. Customers can now be spared from signing up for long-term contracts and are able to take full control over their internet connections.
This enables users to enjoy agile connectivity to scale bandwidth up and down between 10Mbps and 10Gbps – anytime and anywhere, whenever you need, on a daily/monthly basis with data-driven analysis. This especially benefits OTT/enterprises that aim to conduct interim or short-term projects such as game and applications development, virtual event launch, disaster recovery solutions, data backup and business critical applications on cloud/SaaS platforms for international enterprises. OTTs and enterprises can address the longevity and strong SLA requirements of industrial and enterprise usage as well.
Ravindran Mahalingam, HGC’s SVP of International Business, said, “With the evolution of cloud and IoT technology, convergence systems, and mobile applications, SDN is widely used in the network infrastructure of different industry verticals for faster regional-wise expansion. We are committed to diversifying the HGC SDXTM International Marketplace by establishing densely interconnected data centres in Hong Kong, Singapore, and Southeast Asia for a more reliable and higher performing interconnection. Leveraging our network-as-a-service, we aim to empower enterprises with faster regional business expansion and deliver greater customer experience. HGC will continue delivering its digital strategy with one-stop integrated solutions to support business expansion in Southeast Asia and bridging the global markets.”
This comes off the back of HGC signing a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with CyberSecurity Malaysia, the national cybersecurity specialist and technical agency under the Ministry of Communications and Multimedia Malaysia (KKMM).
The MoU provides a framework under which HGC will facilitate its portfolio of critical cybersecurity skillsets to the telecommunications industry whilst fostering increased cybersecurity innovation by enabling CyberSecurity Malaysia to achieve its purpose of overcoming national cyber security challenges and deliver greater ICT benefits to internet users.
According to CyberSecurity Malaysia, between January and September 2020, Malaysia has recorded 8,366 cybersecurity incidents, including fraud, intrusion, and malicious code – an increase of nearly 10 per cent over compared to 2019.
Under the collaboration, HGC with its international exposure is tasked with provisioning its cybersecurity expertise including consulting, managed security services, engineering, risk management, cloud security and advisory services. This will in turn enable CyberSecurity Malaysia to boost its range of cyber security innovation-led services, programmes, and initiatives to reduce the vulnerability of digital systems, and at the same time strengthen Malaysia’s self-reliance in cyberspace.
The MoU will cover cybersecurity cooperation in key areas including telecom security, IoT security and threats intelligence. The exchange of information on telecommunication networks, ICT solutions and cybersecurity can further improve cyberattack readiness and prevention measures.
