Microsoft to open United Kingdom data centres for cloud business

Microsoft is interested in growing its cloud computing business in which it finds itself in an unlikely war against Amazon.

Nadella, speaking at Microsoft’s Future Decoded event in London, not only showed off his iPhone homescreen, but also talked about the way in which our worlds are transforming.

“We can guarantee customers that their data will always stay in the UK”, he said.

Nadella was proclaiming his usual cloud-centric message around the announcements, saying Microsoft intends to offer “more data centres than anyone else”, and in doing so being able to “deliver on these bold ambitions so we can empower you as users within enterprises more of the technology you need”.

Microsoft is working to a timeframe of “late 2016” for the opening of the new facility, which will be at an as yet undisclosed location.

Alongside expanded facilities in Ireland and the Netherlands, these services will enable regulated industries and government organisations to replicate data within the United Kingdom for backup and recovery, reduced network distance and lower latency.

Nadella said in his keynote that the move was a landmark for Microsoft in the UK.

Michel Van der Bel, area vice president and general manager of Microsoft United Kingdom, added: “The United Kingdom is a global leader in embracing the benefits of cloud-based solutions”.

Both Ireland and the Netherlands serve as hubs for Microsoft cloud services, including Microsoft Azure, Office 365 and Dynamics CRM Online, and will provide additional capacity for customers across Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

Microsoft announced the completion of the most recent expansion of its Ireland site and that its data centre facility in Middenmeer, the Netherlands, is now operational.

Mr Nadella said Microsoft was “building out cloud infrastructure that will fuel the next generation of cloud computing”. Our commitment to offer Microsoft Azure, Dynamics CRM Online and Office 365 from local data centers will help meet such demand, especially for those organizations looking for solutions delivered from data centers based in the UK. He said such technological innovations could go as far as saving countries cash on their health services as citizens gain greater insights into their own health and wellbeing.

“This [Microsoft Band] is not just about having a nice application”, he said.

On the basis that Safe Harbour “denies supervisory authorities their powers where a person calls into question whether the decision is compatible with the protection of the privacy”, the court invalidated the agreement – raising questions over the potential impact on authority data protection.