Apple is in talks with Internet service providers as it works towards
establishing its own content delivery network,
says analyst Dan Rayburn. The company currently outsources data delivery infrastructure to firms like Akamai, potentially sacrificing quality in some cases. Having its own CDN should allow Apple to maintain end-to-end control.
The project has been in development for about five years; now, though, Apple is said to be deploying needed network hardware, and signing interconnection agreements with ISPs. "Apple has been very busy with their build out deploying a lot of boxes running Apache Traffic Server and buying a ton of transit, co-location, wavelengths and other infrastructure services," writes Rayburn. "Their CDN is quickly growing, and it won't be long before we start seeing a portion of their content getting delivered from their new CDN."
Rayburn is refusing to say which ISPs are involved in negotiations beyond them being "some of the largest" in the US. He is also refusing to identify which deals have already been signed.
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