Akamai, the worldwide leader in CDN services, has just announced its acquisition of StackPath’s CDN business. We find ourselves slightly surprised, as we had predicted Akamai’s acquisition of StackPath just three days ago. The rapid occurrence of an event of such magnitude was beyond our expectations. Akamai has taken over 100 enterprise customers from StackPath, representing a billing of $20 million in ARR. What’s even more positive is that StackPath will retain its staff and technology. While the announcement doesn’t provide extensive details, there’s much to unpack here. To begin with, thi ..read more

Is the CDN industry experiencing a shakeout? Let’s take a deeper look, starting with the macroeconomic overview and then the micro. Global Overview There are several economies in the world that are struggling. China, once the largest US trading partner and the fastest-growing global economy, is struggling and facing a decoupling from the US. The Ukraine war has sent energy prices skyrocketing in Europe, and Germany, known as the economic engine of Europe, is breaking down. The story of the struggling economy is happening all over the world. Some are saying that the end of globalization i ..read more

Edge database startup pgEdge debuted in March, unveiling a fully distributed database based on PostgreSQL designed for the network edge. The startup raised a $9M seed round led by Sands Capital Ventures and Grotech Ventures. pgEdge joins the competitive edge database market which includes startups like Fauna, Cockroach Labs, and Yugabyte. The one main advantage they have over the competition is its database product is based on PostgreSQL, the most popular database in 2023, according to a 2023 Stack Overflow Developer Survey, replacing MySQL for the top spot. One of the benefits of using a pop ..read more

The first half of 2023 has been quite eventful. Despite the prevailing geopolitical crises, rising energy prices, inflation, and significant layoffs in the tech sector, the CDN industry is thriving. The US economy remains healthy as companies like Nvidia and MongoDB defy expectations. Moreover, the Generative AI movement has sparked a gold rush, with dozens of startups receiving millions in funding despite their products being in the early stages. Just look at Redpanda (Kafka competitor), who’s raised $100M+ as revenue quintuples, or MosaicML who just got acquired for $1.3B having raised just ..read more

Fastly reported earnings on August 3, 2022, and results were lukewarm. Total revenue for the year will come in at $415M to $425M, up from $354M in 2021. Fastly had 2,894 customers for the quarter, compared to 2,880 in Q1. That equates to 14 new customers for Q2, a significant reduction from the 76 new customers added in Q1. Fastly is showing signs of struggle in this tough economy. Also, Todd Nightingales, the new CEO, is starting on September 1, 2022. He has a lot on his plate, and the Fastly business model requires radical transformation. For inspiration, he only needs to look at Bob Lyons ..read more

Cloudflare reported earnings on August 5, 2022, and the results were impressive. They are a billion-dollar ARR company, the second vendor to reach this milestone in our industry apart from Akamai. Cloudflare has set the bar high for itself and the industry. They’re likely to continue growing +50% y-o-y for the next several years, even in the turbulent economy. They can and will because of their extensive product line and sales growth model (PLG + SLG). Cloudflare draws companies to itself because it saves them money compared to expensive hardware-based point products. Also, security is a must ..read more

Subspace (not to be confused with Subspace Labs), the once-promising CDN startup, closed on May 13, 2022. It joins the ranks of EdgeGravity and Instart Logic as promising ventures that fizzled out. It’s unfortunate because dozens of employees lost their high-paying jobs in this economy where companies are laying off by the thousands. The last CDN startup to close its doors at this scale was Instart Logic. After raising $140M in several rounds, the startup shut its doors a decade later, selling its assets to Akamai for a rumored ~$30M. When a CDN startup shuts down, it reverberates across the g ..read more

CDN Industry Buzz in January 2023 Ernie January 8, 2023 It’s been two months since our last industry snapshot. Recently, there have been no industry-impacting events. But, in the sign of the times, Netlify has laid off 16% of its staff and Edgio 10%. We understand Edgio’s decision since the merger between Limelight and Verizon is still playing out. However, the Netlify decision is surprising, given Vercel hasn’t done the same even though it’s twice the size in headcount.   It seems Netlify has gotten ahead of itself and hired too many people. And one possibility it had t ..read more

Apache Traffic Server vs. Nginx according to ChatGPT Here is a comparison between Apache Traffic Server and Nginx. Each platform has a cult following. The bottom line, the best platform depends on the use case. Here is the difference between the two, according to ChatGPT.  In a minimum of 700 words, compare Nginx and Apache Traffic Server. Nginx and Apache Traffic Server are both popular open-source web server technologies, but they have some key differences that make them suitable for different use cases. One of the main differences between Nginx and Apache Traffic Server is the w ..read more

Qwilt was born between the inception of Cloudflare and Fastly. Instead of becoming a traditional CDN, they opted to become a CDN for service providers, also known as network operators. They have some indirect competition from the likes of Akamai, Edgio, Broadpeak, and to some degree, AWS Outpost and Wavelength, but the companies mentioned are not serious competitors. Akamai offers Network Operator solutions, but the revenue generated from this business is a blip and no longer reported. More importantly, the largest CDN is heavily vested in building its cloud computing capabilities and develop ..read more