Internet Speed: 8.2 Mbps downlink; 10 Mbps uplink

Population: 67 million

Internet Coverage: 75% of residents

Main Types of Internet Connections: Dial-up, ADSL, Wireless Internet (in remote areas)

Internet Censorship: Lenient

Colocation Datacenters: 141

Colocation Market: Very Developed – one of the most important in Europe

According to Akamai’s Q3 2015 rankings, the average downlink Internet speed in France is 8.2 Mbps and the average uplink speed is 10 Mbps.

Population & Internet Availability

The current population of France is approximately 67 million. More than 75% of residents have access to the Internet, especially broadband connections.

Main Types of Access to the Internet

French residents can access the following types of Internet services:

– Dial-up Internet (rarely used nowadays)
– ADSL Internet
– Wireless Internet (e.g. Satellite Internet)

Internet Access – Dial-up Internet

Dial-up services are almost entirely decommissioned in France, thanks to the fact that now over 94% of residents that can access the Internet may do so via broadband connections (i.e. ADSL). The remainder of customers that still use dial-up to access the Internet are expected to transition to broadband very soon.

Internet Access – ADSL

ADSL is currently the most popular form of Internet access in France, the entire technical infrastructure being adapted so as to support this technology. ADSL access had been introduced in France earlier than in other countries. By May 1998, the number of French households connected to the Internet was estimated at roughly 570,000, or 2.4% of French households. Nowadays, 94% of Internet customers are ADSL subscribers.

Internet Access – Wireless Internet

According to latest data, an estimated 500,000 households located in remote rural areas are unable to connect to the Internet via standard wired connections. These customers are forced to access the Internet via other wireless means, such as Satellite Internet.

Internet Censorship in France

France is not known to be promoting massive censorship on the Internet. In November 2010, a study conducted by OpenNet Initiative revealed that France was not showing any signs of Internet filtering in four areas that had been monitored over a certain period of time: political, social, conflict/security, as well as Internet tools. France continues to promote freedom of the press and online speech by allowing unfiltered access to most content within legal bounds. However, France does take very seriously copyright infringement issues, and anyone found to be breaking the copyright law will be punished severely.

According to datacentermap.com, there are currently 141 colocation datacenters established in France. Most datacenters are located in Paris (46), while the rest of facilities are distributed across various other cities, such as Lyon (8), Marseille (7), Toulouse (6), Strasbourg (4), etc.

In Paris, prominent colocation providers include the following:

– TELEHOUSE
– Digital Realty
– Interxion
– Telecity Group
– Alphalink

One of the most popular colocation providers located in this city is Interxion. This company operates many private facilities, all established in Paris. One of the most important datacenters owned and managed by Interxion is Interxion PAR5. The datacenter is conveniently located 10 kilometers away from downtown Paris, 16 kilometers away from Charles de Gaulle Airport, and 1 kilometer away from the Paris ring road.

Colocation services provided at this location are as follows:

– rental of suites, cages, rack cabinets, footprints, and diverse enclosures

The datacenter includes an important series of features and amenities, which consists of the following:

– a mix of redundancy setups and power densities
– N+1 primary generators, in addition to various backup generators, supporting 72 hours at full capacity
– full range of AC and DC output currents
– dual-entry fiber and SLA-based cross connects
– access to a comprehensive dark fiber network which connects Interxion’s 7 datacenters in Paris
– carrier neutrality, with on-site access to an ever-growing community of carriers, Internet Exchanges, as well as other connectivity partners

Another significant colocation provider established in Paris is Telehouse. One of the most popular facilities operated by this company is the facility located at Magny-Les-Hameaux. The datacenter facility is located on a six-hectare former military base, conveniently located 40 minutes away from central Paris, consisting of 9 buildings connected by underground tunnels. With regard to the colocation services provided at this location, customers can opt for leasing of suites, cages, rack cabinets, footprints, and diverse enclosures.

Colocation Industry in France

According to 451 Research, France ranks as the third colocation market in Europe, behind the United Kingdom and Germany, and maintains a steady position ahead of the Netherlands, in spite of larger supply capacity provided by the latter. Diverse analysts assert that France, as with other western countries, may be able to surpass the United Kingdom in terms of colocation owing to the uncertainty stemmed from the Brexit issue. At present, it is unclear who will claim the moniker of the best European country for colocation providers, but current trends also indicate that it will not be long in coming.

Advantages for Colocation

Despite relatively slow growth in this market prior to the advent of 2016, France has always been regarded as a great colocation market for numerous reasons. We may underline the most important ones as follows:

– year-round low risk for natural disasters
– great technical infrastructure
– conglomerate of providers outside Paris, specifically designed to cater to customers looking for cheaper colocation
– booming economy, especially in the Paris region (Paris’ economy amounts to an impressive 31 percent of the national GDP)
– numerous datacenter tax break incentives, which have boosted investments in this market considerably
– In Paris, there is a cluster of colocation providers that operate datacenters internationally, such as Digital Realty and Telehouse
– due to currently low supply for colocation space, new inventory is forecast for 2018, by colo providers such as Equinix, Interxion, as well as Data 4

Some of the most popular companies that provide web hosting services consist of the following:

– Phpnet.org
– Scaleway.com
– Lws.fr
– Amen.fr
– shpv.fr

France is one of the most sought-after countries in Europe for web hosting, thanks to the quality of service provided by the great majority of providers. In general, customers can choose from an extensive range of services, starting from core hosting services such as Shared, VPS, Cloud, and/or Dedicated Hosting, in addition to other auxiliary services meant to boost your hosting experience. While the market seems filled with resellers, this aspect is usually mentioned in the description of each company, but it is not a prerequisite.