WASHINGTON, Sept. 18 — AiNET, a critical IT solutions company based in Beltsville, MD, which is building the region’s largest data center at 300,000 square feet, today announced it has joined the Internet Infrastructure Coalition (i2Coalition). This public policy and advocacy group will ensure that innovation is harnessed and brought to market effectively.

The i2Coalition is comprised of 41 global and domestic Internet infrastructure providers and related technology firms. It supports companies such as AiNET in businesses such as web hosting and data center providers, registries and registrars, software and service delivery and cloud computing services, or what it calls the “nuts and bolts” of the Internet.

The i2 Coalition is the first advocacy organization to represent the “nuts and bolts” of the Internet and plans a major role in public policy development. It will help: 

•     Determine whether specific decisions are right or wrong for the Internet economy.

•     Assess how the Internet’s foundational industries can foster innovation and growth.

•     Ensure that coalition members’ voices are heard as others seek to regulate the Internet and enable them to prepare for new challenges.

•     Provide a vehicle to explain how i2 Coalition members can help solve pressing Internet infrastructure development and cost issues.

“We realized that data center companies like ours need a stronger voice and ongoing representation among legislators,” said Deepak Jain, AiNET president and founding member. “The i2 Coalition can help us develop that voice and bring the data center industry to the table when major decisions on Internet are made.”

According to a market research study by Tier1 Research, the Internet infrastructure industry generated an estimated direct and indirect $46 billion in annual revenue in 2010 with expected 20% growth by 2013, and a trade flow to the United States of $9.2 billion. The infrastructure industry is a job creator, and i2 Coalition members want to ensure that those who seek and obtain these positions have the right training and support.

“The i2Coalition will serve a liaison between its members, the public’s they serve, and policymakers to ensure that the Internet infrastructure industry continues to harness the full potential it has for creating jobs and driving innovation in the United States.” said Christian Dawson, i2Coalition co-founder and Board Chair.

i2Coalition 
The i2Coalition coalition will facilitate public policy education and advocacy, develop market-driven standards formed by consensus and give the industry a unified voice. Members will receive the support and tools they need to be heard in Washington and by their state and local officials across the country. Interested parties can visithttp://i2coalition.com/get-involved/ for more information about membership. 
Board members include representatives from the Endurance International Group, INET, ePanel, Inc, and Rackspace Hosting.

About AiNET 
AiNET of Beltsville, MD is a leader in design, construction, operations, and technology solutions for Internet data centers and fiber optic networks supporting secure, critical applications. The 19 year-old firm currently owns and operates three data centers in MD, including one of the world’s few certified SAS 70 Type II, TIA-942 Tier IV data centers. All data centers feature AiNET’s patented power protection technology, which provides an extra measure of data center reliability. It will open AiNET CyberNAP, the largest data center in Maryland, and the beginning of a new industry to support it, this summer. AiNET is also building an optical fiber network of approximately 10,000 fiber-route miles throughout the central business district of Washington, DC.

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Source: AINET