How important are open networking solutions for data centre modernisation?

Cumulus Networks, a leader in building open, modern and scalable networks, has released research that shows UK IT leaders have reached a breaking point with proprietary infrastructure and open networking is their new norm. While 68% of technology leaders are interested in adopting more open technology, 59% of UK companies are already using open networking solutions to modernise their data centres to increase agility and scalability. Technology limitations within the data centre are often cited as a key roadblock adopting latest technology such as AI and 5G. Networking infrastructure, in particular proprietary solutions, is not immune to this as 77% of companies are mostly not getting what they need from their current network. Decision makers want to take advantage of 5G (33%), AI (35%) and high-bandwidth streaming (26%). And these trends are compelling the world’s largest data centres to change their entire philosophy about the architecture, dynamics and purpose of networks. It’s not just the young, ‘born-in-the-cloud’ companies either – of companies founded between 2000 to 2014, 65% have all, or most, of their tech as open. A total of 54% have recently switched over parts of their proprietary infrastructure to open technology. Once companies see the benefits of open infrastructure and the critical role it plays in data centre modernisation, they tend to adopt more of it. In fact, 61% of organisations like the open technology they have deployed and are planning on adopting more.