Press release: ISPA Calls for Durban Internet Exchange Hosting Proposals

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The Internet Service Providers’ Association of South Africa (ISPA) has invited qualified industry players to submit proposals for the hosting of its planned Durban Internet Exchange (DINX).

The call for proposals closes on 31 March this year. “The successful bidder will be part of South African Internet history in the making as DINX will provide Durban-based ISPs with their own local exchange for the very first time,” said Ant Brooks, General Manager of ISPA.

The Durban Internet Exchange, like the Cape Town and Johannesburg Internet Exchanges, will enable local ISPs to save costs by interconnecting their networks and exchanging traffic. All ISPs in Durban, not just ISPA members, will be able to peer with DINX.

“CINX and JINX both process massive volumes of traffic with more than 30 ISPs peering with JINX and 16 peering with CINX. With Internet traffic volumes surging in Durban in recent years there is a clear need for the city to have an Internet Exchange of its own,” said Mr Brooks.

Local Internet exchanges encourage the local routing of internet traffic not destined for international locations and provide redundancy for an ISP’s own links. They also provide for shorter routes between ISPs, increasing service performance for end-users.

“Once DINX goes live, ISPs in Durban will be able to enjoy benefits such as improved performance for traffic within the city, cost-savings and an extra layer of redundancy from the DINX,” commented Mr Brooks.

Companies wishing to submit proposals to host DINX must be able to offer enterprise-class data centres with 24-hour on-site access for all DINX users, fully redundant air-conditioning systems, fully redundant UPS and power reticulation systems, back-up generators, and fire protection systems.

The host must be able to provide sufficient space for four server racks, growing to six over a three-year period, with a right of refusal for a further two. The winning bidder must be willing to commit to a 24-month contract with an option for ISPA to renew for a further 12 months.

All telecoms and Internet service provision companies that can meet the technical demands for the DINX are invited to submit proposals, including those that are not ISPA members. Please visit www.ispa.org.za for more information.

Further Information

For further information, please contact the ISPA secretariat on the Contact ISPA page.