Amazon Web Services also recently launched services in Canada.
Amazon Web Services launched its first data center in the U.K., enabling local cloud storage for its 100,000 U.K.-based customers. AWS said it now manages three data center facilities in Europe, including those in Ireland and Germany.
“Our customers and [AWS Partner Network] Partners asked us to build an AWS Region in the U.K. so they can run their mission-critical workloads and store sensitive data on AWS infrastructure locally,” said Andy Jassy, CEO of AWS. “For the past decade, we’ve had an enthusiastic base of customers in the U.K. choosing to build their businesses on the AWS Cloud. A local AWS Region will serve as the foundation for even more innovative cloud initiatives from the U.K. that can transform business, customer experiences and enhance the local economy.”
“The new AWS Region shows a clear confidence in the U.K. being open for business and one of the best places in the world for technology companies to invest in and grow,” said Karen Bradley, U.K. Secretary of State of Culture Media and Sport.
AWS Regions are comprised of availability zones, which refer to technology infrastructure in separate and distinct geographic locations, ensuring that a single event does not affect service availability.
AWS said it now offers 42 availability zones across 16 regions, with five new zones in two regions (France and China) expected to be launched in the coming months. AWS recently launched the AWS Canada (Central) Region, which offers two availability zones, and the company also provides two Amazon CloudFront edge locations in Toronto and Montreal for customers looking to deliver websites, applications and content to Canada.