Apple reportedly building own CDN, strikes interconnect deals

Apple has recently launched its own content delivery network (CDN) in the US and Europe, and has signed interconnect deals with a number of ISPs, according to a US report.

According to US news and analysis services Streamingmedia.com, Apple has been working on its CDN since last year and is now using its own infrastructure to deliver operating system updates and content.

According to Streamingmedia.com, Apple now has interconnect deals in place with US ISPs including cable giant Comcast, paying to get direct access to their networks.

According to Streamingmedia.com’s executive vice-president Dan Rayburn, citing US ISPs, Apple has put in place 10 times the capacity it is currently using. The company has just launched the latest version of its despktop computer operating system and plans to update iOS later this year.

While content from iTunes is currently delivered over Akamai’s CDN, the report says that Apple plans to migrate much of this content to its own network in the future.

Apple’s move follows that of other large internet companies including Microsoft, YouTube and Netflix. The latter now delivers all its content over its own CDN and has famously struck paid-for interconnect deals with large US last-mile network providers including Comcast and Verizon.

Separately, Apple’s plans for a new connected TV device are on hold until next year, according to a report by US news service The Information.

According to the report, Apple employees have cited slow progress in striking deals with US cable operators as the main reason for the delay, while cable sources and TV programmers have said Apple is struggling to align rights from multiple rights-holders to offer its planned service.