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Open-IX Association Appoints Gabe Cole as Executive Director

BLOOMINGDALE, MI — (Marketwired) — 08/25/15 — The (OIX), a 501(c)(6) non-profit industry association formed to promote better standards for data center interconnection and Internet exchanges, today announces the appointment of Gabe Cole to the newly created position of Executive Director. Mr. Cole is responsible for overall strategy and execution of OIX–s mission, as well as general management and operations of OIX certification and member programs, and their international expansion.

“We are honored that Gabe Cole has accepted the position of Open-IX–s Executive Director,” states David Temkin, Co-Founder and Chairman of the Open-IX Association. “Gabe–s invaluable service as the Chair of the Data Center Standards Committee and leadership experience in the global data center and interconnection exchange markets make him a natural choice as Open-IX–s first Executive Director. His onboarding will be instrumental to Open-IX as well as we push our expansion internationally.”

Gabe Cole is an accomplished technology executive with more than 20 years– experience across data center, network, and cloud sectors. Prior to his appointment as Open-IX Executive Director, Mr. Cole served as the Chair of the OIX Data Center Standards Committee, where he was charged with overseeing the development of facility, infrastructure and operating standards necessary to support installation of an Open-IX endorsed Internet exchange. In 1993, Gabe co-founded RTE Group, an infrastructure strategy consulting firm and real estate brokerage specializing in data centers, network interconnection exchanges and other mission critical facilities. He has personally worked on more than 150 engagements in North America and in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Gabe also founded and / or participated in a number of venture-backed emergent technology companies, including Telwares, Virtustream, Verne Global, Enclave, and Ixpanse. He was one of three founders of CO Space, Inc., a leading provider of colocation and data Center facilities and related operations services. Gabe holds a Master of Science in Civil & Environmental Engineering as well as a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

–It is a great honor to be entrusted with the stewardship of the Open-IX Association as it seeks to expand its mission internationally,” states Mr. Cole. “As global data center IP traffic is expected to grow steadily to reach seven zettabytes per year by 2017, it will become incumbent upon our organization to continue to establish consensus-based standards that will not only ensure performance, reliability and security for data centers and interconnection exchanges, but that in effect will protect the lifeblood and future growth of a global economy.”

Organized and operated by volunteers from the Internet, the Open-IX Association was created to increase the reliability, resiliency and competitiveness of massive-scale interconnection for all. With the help of broad participation of interconnect and data center professionals, the association has successfully developed Internet Exchange and data center consensus-based community and since its establishment in 2013.

The Open-IX Association (OIX) is an Internet community effort to improve the landscape of Internet peering and massive-scale interconnection. OIX encourages the development of neutral and distributed Internet exchanges while promoting uniform standards of performance for interconnections backed by the Internet community. The Association aims to promote common and uniform specifications for data transfer and physical connectivity and improve overall Internet performance by developing criteria and methods of measurement to reduce the complexity that restricts massive-scale interconnection in fragmented markets. The OIX Board is comprised of volunteer representatives from the Internet community, including William Charnock, Christian Koch, Chris Malayter, Keith Mitchell, Josh Snowhorn, David Temkin, and Barry Tishgart. More information about OIX can be found by visiting .