Episode 015 - Meet Me Room and Internet Exchange Innovation in the Data Center Industry Hunter Newby

This week on the I Love Data Centers podcast: Meet Me Room and Internet Exchange Innovation in the Data Center Industry, I interview Hunter Newby. If you've worked in the data center industry for more than a few years and haven't heard name Hunter Newby, you simply haven't been paying attention. Hunter is a 20 year data center industry veteran who innovated the concepts of the Meet Me Room (MMR) and Internet Exchange (IX). Our paths finally crossed last year during a data center conference in DC and a friendship quickly ensued. The conversation shared here covers how Hunter got started in the industry post college, the large impact his father has had on his approach to life, what the catalyst was for starting Telx in 1998 and what it was like boot strapping and growing the company through 2009. I am certain you will enjoy listening to this interview as much as we enjoyed having the conversation together! Episode 15 Show Notes 2:16 Interview starts 3:48 Where Hunter comes from 6:21 How did you get involved in tech? 13:10 Hunter’s first experiences with computers 14:45 Hunter’s first experiences in data centers 19:36 What led you to want to work at places like MCI WorldCom? 21:00 Going to WorldCom for the first time 26:16 What it took to get Telx up and running 30:09 Did the bubble bursting in 2001 affect your business? 40:43 Thoughts on Open-IX (OIX) 44:57 Why has nobody revolted? 51:15 How Hunter got Telx to become Digital’s exclusive Meet Me Room Provider 58:51 When did things shift to charging for cross connects in Meet Me Rooms? 01:00:20 Where did the peering exchange come from? 01:16:39 What is one belief you hold that most people would find crazy? 01:20:36 What is a common misconception about the data center industry? 01:25:17 What is one of the most influential pieces of advice you received when you were young in the data center industry? 01:28:22 Hunter’s upcoming work, and how to get in touch with him Links mentioned in this episode https://www.linkedin.com/in/hunternewby http://www.hunternewby.com/