1. Withaclearvisiontotransformitsbusinesstobecome
atrulyglobalITservicesprovider,CenturyLinkembarked
onaseriesofstrategicacquisitionsfrom2008to
enhanceitsoverallserviceoffering.Today,theCompany
isfocusedonstrengtheningitspositionastheglobal
leaderinHybridIT
Writer:EmilyJarvis•ProjectManager:DonovanSmith
Director for Asia Pacific, Gery Messer.
“We began to see a growing trend
in businesses outsourcing their
workloads to the cloud early in the
game, and we identified this as a key
focus area to capitalise on, making
a decision to enhance our overall
offering in accordance with this trend.
Looking back, it is obvious we made
the right decision and we are ahead
of the industry when it comes to
our expertise in Hybrid IT,” explains
Messer.
CenturyLink has come a long way
from being a US$2.6 billion business
with 6,500 people in 2008 servicing
mainly US customers, to one with
combined revenues of more than
US$18 billion, 45,000 employees with
an end-to-end portfolio.
With more than 60 data centres
globally, coupled with the support of
its local infrastructures and dedicated
in-house expertise and support,
CenturyLink customers can enjoy
consistent levels of service anywhere
in the world.
“These are just some of the
reasons why 98 percent of Fortune
500 companies chose us for their
cloud, collocation, network and
managed services needs. We have
a robust, mission-critical platform
that supports various industries,
including financial services, retail and
government,” Messer adds. “Our
uniqueness and ability to compete
with in a competitive market extends
from our reputation, vast experience
and proven track record. Unlike our
competitors, we own our data centres,
and we manage our data centres end-
to-end with our skilled in-house talent.
This is a key differentiator and sets us
apart from others.”
Acutabovetherest
Some of CenturyLink’s more recent
Asia Pacific expansions include the
availability of its global managed
hosting services in China to better
serve multinational corporations
conducting business in the
world’s second-largest economy.
CenturyLink customers can now
access a comprehensive portfolio
of managed hosting, security, cloud
and networking solutions through a
Shanghai data centre.
“For multinational corporations
looking to grow their customer base,
entering China presents enormous
opportunities and challenges,”
explains Messer. “CenturyLink makes
it easy for businesses to host within
China’s borders, offering access to the
same highly secure managed services
and consistent IT experience available
21 WWW.ASIAOUTLOOKMAG.COM WWW.ASIAOUTLOOKMAG.COM
C E N T U R Y L I N K A S I A P A C I F I C T E C H N O L O G Y
G L O B A L L E A D E R I N
HybridITith an 85 year-long
history, stemming from
being the second largest
telco in the US,
CenturyLink has now
reached new heights as a global Hybrid
IT provider, thanks to making aptly
timed acquisitions and strategic moves
into cloud and associated services in
the late 2000s.
Today, the Company has a
comprehensive suite of Hybrid IT
offerings, including data centre
collocation managed services, cloud
and network services in the US, EMEA
and Asia Pacific.
CenturyLink has a global reach in
85 countries with more than 400,000
kilometres (km) of owned and
operated fibre network in the US, and
480,000km international transport
network. The CenturyLink Data Centre
Initiative (DCI) interconnects not just
other CenturyLink data centres and
buildings, but to more than 250 third
party data centres, and more than
40,000 buildings and offices.
“Our comprehensive IT solutions
help enterprises accelerate
business performance throughout
their organisation, and ultimately
transforms an IT department from a
cost centre into a business enabler,”
explains CenturyLink’s Managing
Gery Messer
Managing Director, Asia Pacific

2. 3 WWW.ASIAOUTLOOKMAG.COM
EXFO
CenturyLink constantly innovates to
push the boundaries of performance,
reliability and quality even further.
In order to continue growing, the
company needed to gain more visibility
throughout its network and access
actionable information to proactively
detect and address potential end-to-end
service impacting issues—all in order
to optimize service delivery, improve
quality of service (QoS), and maximize
customer quality of experience (QoE).
Over the years, EXFO developed a
strong relationship with CenturyLink,
demonstrating its leadership and
technological expertise by introducing
innovative solutions tailored to help
CenturyLink overcome challenges in a
competitive market and achieve key
corporate objectives including improved
end-to-end quality of service and
operational efficiencies.
EXFO’s Service Assurance Division
proposed a comprehensive
solution comprised of a centralized
test orchestration system (EXFO
Worx) and strategically deployed
measurement probes (Verifiers)
throughout CenturyLink’s network.
This combination solved the operator’s
challenges in multiple ways:
• The Verifiers provided continuous
network and service assurance
via highly accurate performance
measurements taken at the transport
and application layers — a unique
approach that combines QoS and
QoE in a single platform.
• EXFO Worx gave users complete
network visibility by managing
and leveraging the highly scalable
Verifiers and processing millions of
measurements per second, enabling
quick deployment of new services
and test sequences as well as
providing near real-time access to
performance metrics.
• The solution generated gains in
process efficiency via centralized
test management service activation,
where trucks rolls were eliminated in
favor of remote service turn-up and
troubleshooting.
www.EXFO.com/Xtract
across our global footprint.”
On the cloud front, CenturyLink
has a proven history and has a total
of 13 cloud nodes globally. Since 2011,
the Company has been offering its
public cloud making it one of the first
cloud offerings in the region. In March
2015, CenturyLink Cloud, the fourth
generation cloud, was launched in
Singapore. Further to this, in April 2015,
the Company announced their global
data centre expansion into Australia,
one of the most connected countries
in the world.
Messer details: “CenturyLink has
a great value proposition for local
companies in Asia Pacific who are
looking to expand to the US and/or
EMEA. Given that we own our data
centres and operate fibre network in
the US, coupled with an international
transport network, we can offer
better performance, agility and cost
effectiveness when compared to other
providers.”
It’sallaboutthepeople
Throughout the decades of
CenturyLink’s existance, the Company
has never lost focus on the one thing
that made it successful: its people.
CenturyLink prides itself for nurturing
the right talent that will drive their
business and ensure their customers
receive the highest levels of service
quality.
C E N T U R Y L I N K A S I A P A C I F I C
In order to ensure the best quality of service possible
and improve overall customer experience. EXFO’s service
assurance solutions have enabled CenturyLink to increase
visibility throughout its network, flagging potential issues
before affecting customers and offering operational
efficiency pointers to optimise the network quality.
EXFO support CenturyLink’s
expansive IP-network system
2015 Acquired Orchestrate, a Company
that offers a fully managed database
service for rapid application development
2014 Acquired Cognilytics, a leading
provider of advanced predictive analytics
and big data solutions to mid-sized and
large enterprises
> Acquired Data Gardens, a pioneer
of disaster recovery and threat
management software systems
> Launched its managed hosting
availability in China
2013 Acquired cloud provider, Tier 3 to
accelerate the company’s cloud platform
strategy and AppFog to extend its
Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) capabilities
2011 Acquired Savvis, a global leader
in cloud infrastructure and hosted IT
solutions
2009 Acquired Embarq Corporation,
the largest independent local exchange
carrier in the US
> Acquired Qwest, a telecommunications
and network provider
Recent Company
Timeline

3. 6WWW.ASIAOUTLOOKMAG.COM5 WWW.ASIAOUTLOOKMAG.COM
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CIENA
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CenturyLink for over 15 years to deliver
best-in-class solutions for carriers and
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• Connecting to the cloud - named
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interconnect market by research firm
Ovum, Ciena has a successful track
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data from unwanted intrusions,
transporting it reliably and
transparently across a variety of
architectures.
For more information on Ciena’s
capabilities, visit:
www.ciena.com/solutions/enterprise
C E N T U R Y L I N K A S I A P A C I F I C T E C H N O L O G Y
WhatisHybridIT?
Hybrid IT delivers the network,
systems and IT environment to
businesses that need to optimise
their IT infrastructure, workloads, and
business strategy with the best mix
of internal and external solutions for
critical business needs.
Hybrid IT is not a one-size-fits-
all solution, but instead should be
uniquely tailored to the capabilities and
strategy of the business. CenturyLink
can manage their collocation, private
and public cloud assets, and network
demands so that IT can be an agile
service provider to their organisations
and end users Demand for Hybrid IT
is driving business growth across Asia
Pacific.
According to Frost & Sullivan’s
recent report titled ‘Asia Pacific
Data Centre and Cloud Computing
Market Update 2015’, Hybrid IT is fast
becoming the new normal across
organisations in Asia-Pacific. With
the increasing utilisation of data
centres and cloud services across the
Asia Pacific region, companies have
gradually updated or upgraded their
existing IT systems, giving rise to the
Hybrid IT environment.

4. C E N T U R Y L I N K A S I A P A C I F I C
87 WWW.ASIAOUTLOOKMAG.COM WWW.ASIAOUTLOOKMAG.COM
to collocation and managed-service
models.
“OutsourcingandadoptingaHybrid
ITapproachwillallowbusinesses
tofocustheirinternalresourceson
mission-criticalsystemsandapplications
on-premise,whilstallowingbusinesses
totaponaproviderlikeCenturyLinkfor
additionalexternalskillsandresources
onsystemsandprocessesoff-premise,
tomitigateriskandalsoprovide
anaddedinnovativecompetitive
advantage,”Messersummarises.
For more information on CenturyLink,
visit their website: www.centurylink.
com/business/enterprise
T E C H N O L O G Y
CenturyLink has been operating
and serving global and local
customers in Asia Pacific since 1999,
and has invested over US$400m
across the region since 2008. Over
the past two years, the company
has accumulated an impressive
list of Asia Pacific awards and
accolades, reinforcing their
dominance as a leader in hybrid IT:
> Awarded the ‘Asia Pacific
Hybrid IT Strategy Award’ in the
2015 Frost & Sullivan Asia Pacific
Best Practices Awards
> Best in the ‘Managed &
Consulting Services’ category
of Enterprise Innovation
Technology Innovators Awards,
2015
Winner of the ‘Data Centre
& Hosting’ category of
Computerworld Reader’s Choice
Awards 2015
> Winner of the ‘Cloud Services’
category of the Network World
Asia Reader’s Choice Awards
2015
>Winnerofthe‘DCIMAward’
categoryoftheNetworkWorld
AsiaInformationManagement
Awards’2015
> Recognised as a visionary
in the 2014 Gartner Magic
Quadrant for Cloud-Enabled
Managed Hosting Asia Pacific
> Winner of the “Best
Hybrid Cloud Service”
category of Asia Cloud
Computing Awards
2014
Awards
Need for financial and human resources to
manage IT infrastructure continues to grow
The Call
for Efficiency
People and power costs are
forecast to constantly rise with the
need for new skills and more, densely
packed hardware form factors
Consumption-based Services
50%
35%are doing nothing
to measure power
consumption.
These organizations
need to change
and take control of
these issues
of Asia/Pacific organizations
are suffering from the increase
in costs and yet...
Asia/Pacific CIOs'
top business priorities
see significant increase in
people and costs every year
50%
say that their company mandates
them to control power and cooling
consumption costs in their datacenter
25%
Lack of understanding of new technologies
Growing complexity in IT environment/varied
user requirements
How to take risks
out of business
Risk Management
Tops Asia/pacific
ICt priorities
1 in 5 Asia/Pacific
organizations say
reviewing and developing
a robust governance
strategy and plan is a
top priority
Building a
more secure
IT environment
Improving
or simplifing
IT infrastructure
Building
better
management
tools
Risk management for
business continuity
Today’s cloud solutions factor in business continuity
planning to mitigate disasters
How ready are you
Simplicity
Regulatory
and
compliance
readiness
High
availability
CapEx
to opEx
Future-
proofed
infrastructure
This third installment of
the IDC Infographic series
sponsored by CenturyLink
throws the spotlight on the
role of scale, efficiency
and execution in driving
competitive differentiation.
Needforfinancialandhumanresourcesto
manageITinfrastructurecontinuestogrow
TheCall
forEfficiency
People and power costs are
forecast to constantly rise with the
need for new skills and more, densely
packed hardware form factors
Consumption-basedServices
forBetterCostmanagement
Enterprise
50%
35%are doing nothing
to measure power
consumption.
These organizations
need to change
and take control of
these issues
of Asia/Pacific organizations
are suffering from the increase
in costs and yet...
Asia/PacificCIOs'
topbusinesspriorities
see significant increase in
people and costs every year
50%
say that their company mandates
them to control power and cooling
consumption costs in their datacenter
25%
KeyBusinessPriorities
ToP3AsIA/PACIfICITConcerns
Lack of
ICT budget for
the business
requirements
1
Lack of
understanding
of new
technologies
2
Growing complexity
in IT environment/
varied user
requirements
3
Cloud
solutions
“I am very proud of my Asia Pacific
team. Together, we have achieved
so much in such a short time. It’s
remarkable to see such passionate
people,” Messer shared. “All our
achievements in Asia Pacific are only
possible with the support of a world-
class team and I am very honoured to
be working alongside them.”
What’strending
According to a study conducted by
international research firm, Vanson
Bourne, cost savings, in-house skills
shortages and growing emphasis on
business-advancing applications will
drive enterprises to outsource nearly
70 percent of their IT infrastructure by
2018. This study projects a reversal to
today’s situation, in which 65 percent
of IT infrastructure resides in in-house
environments, and suggests most
organisations will arrive at outsourced
cloud through hybrid approaches
Governance and regulations
limitations/restrictions among
top Asia/Pacific IT Concerns
Businesssuccesscallsfor
embeddingcompliance
intostrategy,planning
andmanagingcosts
GovernanceandRegulations
top3ItConcernsoftheAsia/PacificC-Suite
Lack of ICt budget for the business requirements
Lack of understanding of new technologies
Growing complexity in IT environment/varied
user requirements
Howtotakerisks
outofbusiness
RiskManagement
TopsAsia/pacific
ICt priorities
1in5Asia/Pacific
organizationssay
reviewinganddeveloping
arobustgovernance
strategyandplanisa
21 3
An IDC infographic
In this second installment
of the IDC Infographic
Series sponsored by
CenturyLink, IDC highlights
the importance of finding
an equal balance of
innovation and compliance
to stay ahead of the fast-
changing marketplace.
INNOVATION
Walkingthe
risk
Tightrope
and
Governance and regulations
limitations/restrictions among
top Asia/Pacific IT Concerns
Business success calls for
embedding compliance
into strategy, planning
and managing costs
Governance and Regulations
top 3 It Concerns of the Asia/Pacific C-Suite
Lack of ICt budget for the business requirements
Lack of understanding of new technologies
Growing complexity in IT environment/varied
user requirements
How to take risks
out of business
Risk Management
Tops Asia/pacific
ICt priorities
1 in 5 Asia/Pacific
organizations say
reviewing and developing
a robust governance
strategy and plan is a
top priority
Building a
more secure
IT environment
Improving
or simplifing
IT infrastructure
Building
better
management
tools
Risk management for
21 3
An IDC infographic
In this second installment
of the IDC Infographic
Series sponsored by
CenturyLink, IDC highlights
the importance of finding
an equal balance of
innovation and compliance
to stay ahead of the fast-
changing marketplace.
INNOVATION
Walking the
risk
Tightrope
and
limitations/restrictions among
top Asia/Pacific IT Concerns
Businesssuccesscallsfor
embeddingcompliance
intostrategy,planning
andmanagingcosts
top3ItConcernsoftheAsia/PacificC-Suite
Lack of ICt budget for the business requirements
Lack of understanding of new technologies
Growing complexity in IT environment/varied
user requirements
Howtotakerisks
outofbusiness
RiskManagement
TopsAsia/pacific
ICt priorities
1in5Asia/Pacific
organizationssay
reviewinganddeveloping
arobustgovernance
strategyandplanisa
toppriority
Building a
more secure
IT environment
Improving
or simplifing
IT infrastructure
Building
better
management
tools
Riskmanagementfor
businesscontinuity
Today’scloudsolutionsfactorinbusinesscontinuity
planningtomitigatedisasters
Source: IDC Asia/Pacific C-Suite Barometer Survey
EssentialGuidance
Outsourcing provides
scale and access to
resources and skills not
found in-house
Outsourcing can provide
sufficient levels of disaster
recovery and fault
tolerance
Selecting the right
vendor that can
work through the IT
transformation maturity model
help mitigate any financial or
regulatory risk
An enterprise hybrid
IT provider mitigates
risks such as data
security and network latency,
which are part of their core
business offerings
FourareaswhereahybridITsolutionspartnercanhelp
surveyed say that more than
50% of their IT functions/
applications can be up and
running from the disaster
recovery site in real time
22%
of Asia/Pacific
businesses
are not
prepared for a
disaster
10%
Howreadyareyou
foradisaster?
Simplicity
Regulatory
and
compliance
readiness
High
availability
CapEx
to opEx
Future-
proofed
infrastructure
Source: IDC Asia/Pacific C-Suite Barometer Survey
This IDC Infographic was produced by IDC Go-to-Market Services. Any IDC information or reference
to IDC that is to be used in advertising, press releases, or promotional materials requires prior written
approval from IDC. For more information, visit: www.ap.idc.asia or email: gmsap@idc.com
Copyright 2015
Sponsored by
To download the full IDC topline titled ‘Managed Hybrid IT – Enabling Enterprise Agility’, click HERE