Data center operator TELEHOUSE America (telehouse.com) is trying to change this, announcing recently that it had signed agreements to establish working relationships between its New York and Los Angeles Internet Exchanges, as well as the London and Amsterdam Internet Exchanges.

TELEHOUSE says the exchanges joined forces to promote peering between their members and customers. And Vanessa Evans, sales and marketing manager for LINX, adds that members can use the peering opportunities to expand their global networks.

Another reason for the agreements, explains TELEHOUSE vice president of marketing Michael Vallone, was the creation of a working environment that lets the exchanges share technological information while promoting contact, connections and collaboration between members. The idea, says the company, stems from its customer-oriented approach.

"Our client-first approach includes fostering our members' business growth by continuously providing them with greater access to other members, companies, information, products, services and technologies here and internationally," says Vallone.

He uses the example of one of TELEHOUSE's Web hosting tenants interested in expanding from North America to Europe. Such an undertaking is not just a matter of deciding to make the move, Vallone says. Success depends on knowing the nuances of the market, having relationships with players and partners there and understanding the business culture and the culture of the customer. With TELEHOUSE's new relationships in place, it is easy for members to get this kind of information in addition to technical know-how, marketing information or advice on any particular matter.

"Things get done a lot quicker with the right people helping you navigate," says Vallone. "This is a key benefit available to Web hosting companies."

Other benefits include participation in TELEHOUSE's Breakfast on Broadway seminars, and access to informational newsletters, webcasts and podcasts. TELEHOUSE's newsletter News Waves provides members with access to community peering events and information such as peering requests, specific vendor services requests or event mentions. The seminar series focus on a range of topics, with recent events covering marketing opportunities in China and the impact of dark fiber networks.

The sides have had little difficulty getting the relationship off the ground. According to Vallone, the LINX and AMS-IX staffs are easy to work with and share with TELEHOUSE a long-term, proactive approach focused on providing added value to its members.

The relationships, however, are also a work in a progress. There is a lot of brainstorming and idea sharing between the memberships, which are always looking for new ways to work together.

"The idea, most importantly, is it's a cooperative relationship and it's a flexible one," says Vallone. "If we see a certain trend or certain need and we think that we can respond to it in the right way as a result of the relationships that we have developed, we'll give it consideration."

The New York Internet Exchange is based in Manhattan, while the Los Angeles Internet Exchange in located in downtown Los Angeles. The London Internet Exchange and the Amsterdam Internet Exchange are two of the most important Internet exchanges in Europe with LINX being the largest. Over half of the world's Internet routes are accessible from LINX, which handles 90 percent of UK traffic.