AMS-IX (Amsterdam Internet Exchange) and the Open-IX Association (OIX) have announced that AMS-IX Amsterdam has been awarded OPEN-IX® OIX-1. By receiving this certification, AMS-IX Amsterdam is the first neutral and distributed Internet Exchange outside of the United States to be OIX-1 certified.

The designation marks the first international Internet Exchange Point (IXP) to receive Open-IX certification, further expanding Open-IX certification outside of North America to points across the globe. Amsterdam is the third AMS-IX operated Internet Exchange to receive OIX-1 certification, joining AMS-IX New York and AMS-IX Bay Area in the United States. OIX-1 certification for AMS-IX Bay Area made it the first Internet Exchange worldwide to possess OPEN-IX-certified neutral and distributed Internet Exchanges in multiple U.S. markets.  By receiving OIX-1 certification for its New York platform in early 2014, AMS-IX New York became the first Open-IX-certified neutral and distributed IX in the New York / New Jersey metro area.

AMS-IX Amsterdam provides a physical platform, distributed over 11 data centers in the greater Amsterdam area, at which over 700 international unique networks interconnect and directly exchange traffic.  This number of connected networks makes AMS-IX Amsterdam the world’s largest Internet Exchange in terms of connected parties.

“We welcomed the announcement of the Open-IX Association to extend Internet Exchange certification across the globe and are excited to announce our third Open-IX certified Internet Exchange,” says Job Witteman, CEO of AMS-IX. “This achievement sets a precedent for other global exchanges to become Open-IX certified and drive higher worldwide technical and operating standards for IXPs.” 

AMS-IX Amsterdam has met all Open-IX certification criteria and adheres to Open-IX IXP Standards Committee-derived standards of neutrality, openness, service offering, infrastructure and operations, reducing the complexity that restricts interconnection in fragmented markets.

“We are pleased to name AMS-IX Amsterdam the very first international Open-IX-certified Internet Exchange,” remarks David Temkin, co-founder and chairman of the Open-IX Association.  “As our fifth Open-IX-certified Internet Exchange Point, AMS-IX Amsterdam’s OIX-1 designation marks yet another momentous event for Open-IX, initiating a new era of setting superior IXP standards not just within the U.S., but also around the world.”