BC Business
Top 20 Innovators in BC, Strangeloop Networks
Congratulations to Strangeloop Networks, #2 in 2011's Most Innovative Companies in B.C. (More: 2011 BCBusiness Guide to Innovation)
(More: 2011 BCBusiness Guide to Innovation)
There’s been talk for about four years that Strangeloop Networks was on to something big, but it was hard to know if the idea would ever take hold. The company has created software that accelerates the load times of websites by organizing and prioritizing data delivery, though the mechanics of it are a bit of a mathematical mystery. “That’s their secret sauce,” one of our panellists quips. “That’s where all their patents are.” The question was, Will it work in the real world?
The answer comes in the form of endorsements from a couple of top-flight global tech companies, and it is a resounding yes. Early this year, Strangeloop announced partnerships with some of the Internet’s biggest content movers, including Level 3 Communications LLC ($3.65 billion in revenue in 2010) and Akamai Technologies Inc. ($1 billion in 2010). Both operate huge content distribution networks – i.e., thousands and thousands of servers – that deliver mountains of online data behind the scenes. Their buy-in is a bigger validation of Strangeloop’s solution than a library of white papers.
For a more local example, take PNI Digital Media Inc., a Vancouver company that manages online photo-ordering services for retailers, including Costco Wholesale Corp. and Black’s Photo Corp., representing some 14,000 locations. PNI started using Strangeloop’s system early this year and reports that its sites are now running up to 50 per cent faster.