How to choose a CDN service provider?

CDNs are used to deliver web content such as video, audio files, or software applications over a network (typically the Internet). They provide an alternative to hosting this content on servers at the originating site. Content Delivery Networks can be used by any business that needs to distribute large amounts of data or media online quickly and reliably.

CDN networks are used by many large companies such as Google, Amazon, Facebook, and Netflix. These companies have a lot of content that needs to be delivered fast and reliably to their users. CDNs are also widely used by small businesses have the limited resources to host their own servers or bandwidth.

What are the features of CDN Network?

CDN network is a collection of servers placed at different locations. These servers are used to store the content and make it available to users from any area. The primary purpose of the CDN network is to improve the performance of web applications by reducing latency and improving page load time.

The following are some features of the CDN network:

• Reduced Latency – A CDN server is placed at a location closer to your user base, so it reduces the distance between your server and client’s browser, which results in reduced latency. This means that users will have faster access to your website or application.
• Faster Page Load Time – When you use a CDN service, you can reduce the number of requests made by browsers because all files required for loading a web page are stored on multiple servers. This allows browsers to retrieve files from nearby servers.
• Higher Availability – If one server goes down, there are other redundant copies available on other servers in different locations worldwide. So even if one copy goes down due to technical problems or natural disasters, another copy will be available instantly without affecting end-user experience negatively.

Benefits of Content Delivery Network (CDN)

The Content Delivery Network or CDN network of servers spread across the globe to deliver content to users from the nearest server possible, thereby improving page load times.

Businesses deploy CDN services to ensure that all files are served from the closest locations, and there is no time delay or any other issues when accessing web pages from different parts of the world.

Let us explore a few of the significant benefits of deploying CDN services.

• A cost-effective solution for delivering content to a global audience.
• Accelerates the delivery of your web content, images, videos, applications, and other media files to end users with low latency and high throughput speeds.
• A great solution to reduce bandwidth costs and improve website performance, especially for video streaming and live events.
• Helps you comply with government regulations on content delivery, such as GDPR in Europe or DMCA in the United States.
• Improves the SEO of your website or application by caching static content and delivering it to the end-users faster than ever before.
• An excellent way to improve customer experience, reduce support costs and increase sales by providing fast access to your web content.

There is an increasing demand for CDN services. The major drivers for this market are video streaming services from both consumers and businesses;

• rising popularity of social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter;
• increased use of cloud computing services which require fast content delivery;
• growth in an e-commerce business which requires fast delivery of large files such as software applications or games over a network (typically the Internet);
• rising awareness about CDNs among small businesses due to increasing importance of online presence;
• increasing adoption rate of CDNs by large enterprises due to their ability to deliver content faster than traditional hosting solutions.

However, the high initial investment required for setting up an integrated CDN is expected to be a restraint for this market during the forecast period. While numerous free CDN service providers on the Internet help you deploy CDN on your websites and mobile apps.

Points to take care of while choosing CDN service providers

Before choosing your CDN provider, you must assure that the provider has-

1. Proper infrastructure in place for your project, including servers and other equipment that are up-to-date and reliable.
2. A proficient network of professionals and affiliates, including content providers, designers, developers, and many more, to help you with your project.
3. An efficient support team to help you with any queries or issues that may arise during the time you work with them.
4. Good track record in the market to be trusted to deliver on time and within budget.
5. Ease of integration into your application or website.
6. Major security protocols like SSL encryption ensure the security of your data.
7. Transparency in their pricing plans and compliance policies.

Thanks to technological advances! Nowadays, you can enjoy the benefits of CDN services right from the first day your dedicated business website is live.

Must-have features in CDN service provider

You should choose a CDN service provider due to the following reasons:

• User interface: It should have a crisp, clean, and clear user interface so that you can easily explore features offered by your service provider.
• Easy-to-use: CDN service providers must be easy-to-use soo that you can smoothly apply it to your website irrespective of your technical knowledge.
• Budget-friendly: You must able to enjoy the benefits of CDN without spending much of your resources. It should offer pocket-friendly plans for all your business needs.
• Fast and lightweight: Additional CDN features should not make your website bulky. So, choose a CDN provider that offers your services without creating delays in your website loading speed.
• Safe and secure: Your CDN provider must have safety compliances and must assure that there won’t be any security breaches or issues related to data privacy.

Wrapping Up

CDNs are increasingly being used for delivering content over mobile networks and providing services such as video streaming and live events broadcasting. The growth of these applications will drive the demand for CDN services in the coming years.

CDN services are also being used for delivering content to users in emerging markets, where the number of Internet users is increasing rapidly. The CDN market in the Asia Pacific is expected to grow at a CAGR of 25% from 2015 to 2020.

The goal of a CDN is to serve content to end-users with high availability and high performance. It offers a large fraction of the Internet content today, including web objects (text, graphics, and scripts), downloadable objects (media files, software, documents), applications (e-commerce, portals), live streaming media, on-demand streaming media, and social networks.