ZenFi and Cross River Fiber Create Platform for Automated Metro Connectivity

NEW YORK and MORRISTOWN, NJ — ZenFi, New York’s carrier-neutral fronthaul fiber provider, and Cross River Fiber, a New Jersey-based fiber optic and telecommunications service provider, announced a new and innovative partnership focused on streamlining the ability for customers to connect to their resources. Together, the companies are launching ZenCross Connect (zXc), a self-service platform enabling automated purchase and configuration of interbuilding and interstate network cross-connects. Leveraging a robust fiber-optic network, zXc offers a streamlined portal for ordering bandwidth between data centers and colocation facilities in the New York/New Jersey metro area, making interconnections simple and easy to procure.

Pre-provisioned, On-demand Dark Fiber
Through the zXc platform, ZenFi and Cross River Fiber provide pre-provisioned, on-demand dark fiber and 1GB / 10GB lit services between 28 major data centers and colocation facilities in and around New York and New Jersey. Customers are guided through a series of simple, online ordering steps through which they identify the route, select products, agree to the terms and conditions and, if they want, pay the initial invoice — all through one website. Orders are for month-to-month service and configurations can be completed within minutes with uncomplicated point-and-click location features. Services are delivered within 15 days.

Leading-edge Transport Services
“Companies want to be able to order a circuit from point A to point Z immediately, automatically and on-demand,” notes Ray LaChance, president and CEO of ZenFi. “Other companies have tried to implement similar services, but none have developed such a robust and user-friendly platform as zXc. Realizing that the marketplace wants faster delivery, ease of ordering and competitive pricing, ZenFi and Cross River Fiber have created this platform to provide leading-edge transport services, within and between the New York-New Jersey marketplace, which are straightforward to order and provide rapid deployment.”

Connecting to Service Providers in Different Data Centers
“As businesses become more digital and cloud-focused, the need to connect to service providers in different data centers increases,” comments Vincenzo Clemente, CEO of Cross River Fiber. “Currently, customers have to deal with carrier sales reps to give them pricing and go through a cumbersome ordering process. Often, they become stuck with term contracts that they don’t want. zXc changes all of that.”

ZenFi and Cross River Fiber will launch zXc in January 2017 with 28 colocation facilities connected. Over the next two years, the network and coverage areas for zXc will continue to grow to meet the demands of customers and expand capacity to carry the growing traffic load.