Amazon.com Inc has extended the operations of its Amazon Web Services (AWS) in the Asia-Pacific region by expanding the services’ “Regions” coverage to Taiwan, the company announced yesterday.
As part of that commitment, Amazon could invest US$5 billion in Taiwan to support the construction, connection, operations and maintenance of data centers, the company said.
AWS Infrastructure Services vice president Prasad Kalyanaraman in a statement said that the Regions expansion to Taiwan would enable start-ups, developers and non-governmental organizations to use AWS’ on-demand information technology Web services.
Photo: AP
Those services include cloud computing storage, databases and even more advanced analytic utilities, as well as artificial intelligence.
Active customers in Taiwan include 104 Corp (104人力銀行), Acer Inc (宏碁), Cathay Financial Holding Co (國泰金控), Chunghwa Telecom Co (中華電信), Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (台積電) and many others, Amazon said.
Kalyanaraman said that organizations in Taiwan and other Asia-Pacific locations could join millions of clients in enjoying the speed of the services that is integral to increasing the pace of innovation, quality of operations and cultivation of sales for end users.
THAILAND ADDED
The worldwide network of AWS Regions includes 117 availability zones spanning 37 geographic locations.
Taiwan and Thailand have become the latest Regions additions to AWS services in the Asia-Pacific region, joining the likes of Tokyo, Osaka, Seoul, Malaysia, Singapore, Jakarta, Hong Kong and Beijing.
AWS Regions are made up of various availability zones that use infrastructure independent from one another, each working with its own power, cooling system and security protocols.
Taiwan’s three availability zones, for example, are far enough apart to provide a network to a large number of clients and are also close enough to operate in tandem at high efficiency and limited delays.
INTERNATIONAL SCALE
In Taipei, Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) thanked Amazon in a statement and said that the extension of the services to Taiwan demonstrated the nation’s importance as an integral member of the global supply chain.
He said he looked forward to seeing Taiwan’s information technology capabilities integrate with AWS to advance the world’s digital ecosystem and contribute to the progress of technological development at an international scale.
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