What Drives Data Center "Location?"

Data center markets generally are defined by metro area, when describing capacity. End user demand has something to do with those locations. Internet usage and computing demand obviously are greatest in highly-populated areas. People and businesses tend to drive economic activity and therefore internet usage, which drives the need for cloud computing and data center capacity. 

But actual locations are driven by a variety of other considerations, including access to major global optical fiber backbones, internet exchange points, electrical power cost, land costs, labor force skills and a variety of other issues ranging from political stability to data privacy laws or government mandates. 

Rank	Data Center Market	Capacity (MW)	Region
1	Northern Virginia, USA	2,552	North America
2	Beijing, China	1,799	Asia Pacific
3	London, UK	1,053	Europe
4	Singapore	876	Asia Pacific
5	Tokyo, Japan	865	Asia Pacific
6	Frankfurt, Germany	864	Europe
7	Shanghai, China	832	Asia Pacific
8	Sydney, Australia	723	Asia Pacific
9	Dallas, USA	620	North America
10	Silicon Valley, USA	566	North America
11	Amsterdam, Netherlands	564	Europe
12	Paris, France	537	Europe
13	Chicago, USA	504	North America
14	Miami, USA	421	North America
15	Toronto, Canada	398	North America
16	Seoul, South Korea	381	Asia Pacific
17	Hong Kong	372	Asia Pacific
18	Dublin, Ireland	367	Europe
19	Frankfurt/Rhein-Main, Germany	348	Europe
20	Ashburn, USA	342	North America
21	Mumbai, India	337	Asia Pacific
22	Atlanta, USA	335	North America
23	Washington D.C., USA	326	North America
24	Osaka, Japan	323	Asia Pacific
25	Madrid, Spain	317	Europe

source: Visual Capitalist

Generally speaking, “capacity” also is correlated with “revenue,” with the major hyperscalers and largest telcos tending to drive activity. 

Rank	Data Center Market	Estimated Revenue (USD Billion)	Region	Major Players
1	Northern Virginia, USA	50-60	North America	AWS, Microsoft Azure, Equinix, Digital Realty
2	Tokyo, Japan	30-40	Asia Pacific	NTT, KDDI, Amazon Web Services, Google Cloud
3	London, UK	25-35	Europe	Interxion, Equinix, Telehouse, Digital Realty
4	Singapore	20-30	Asia Pacific	Equinix, ST Teleport, Digital Realty, Google Cloud
5	Frankfurt, Germany	15-25	Europe	Deutsche Telekom, Interxion, NTT, Equinix
6	Shanghai, China	15-25	Asia Pacific	China Telecom, China Unicom, Alibaba Cloud, Tencent Cloud
7	New York City, USA	10-20	North America	Equinix, Digital Realty, Verizon, AT&T
8	Paris, France	10-20	Europe	Orange, SFR, Equinix, Telehouse
9	Amsterdam, Netherlands	10-20	Europe	Interxion, Equinix, NTT, Telehouse
10	Sydney, Australia	10-15	Asia Pacific	NextDC, Macquarie Telecom, Equinix, Digital Realty
11	Hong Kong	10-15	Asia Pacific	PCCW, HKBN, Equinix, Digital Realty
12	Chicago, USA	10-15	North America	Equinix, Digital Realty, NTT, AT&T
13	Miami, USA	8-12	North America	eNAP, Equinix, Digital Realty, NTT
14	Dublin, Ireland	8-12	Europe	Interxion, Equinix, Telehouse, Digital Realty
15	Washington D.C., USA	8-12	North America	Equinix, Digital Realty, Verizon, AT&T
16	Los Angeles, USA	8-12	North America	Equinix, Digital Realty, NTT, AT&T
17	Frankfurt/Rhein-Main, Germany	8-12	Europe	Deutsche Telekom, Interxion, NTT, Equinix
18	Ashburn, USA	8-12	North America	Equinix, Digital Realty, NTT, Amazon Web Services
19	Mumbai, India	8-12	Asia Pacific	Reliance Jio, Adani Connex, ST Teleport, Equinix
20	Toronto, Canada	6-10	North America	Equinix, Bell Canada, Rogers Communications, CGI
21	Seoul, South Korea	6-10	Asia Pacific	SK Telecom, KT Telecom, LG Uplus, Equinix
22	Atlanta, USA	6-10	North America	Equinix, Digital Realty, NTT, Google Cloud
23	Osaka, Japan	6-10	Asia Pacific	NTT, KDDI, Google Cloud, Equinix
24	Madrid, Spain	6-10	Europe	Telefonica, Vodafone, Equinix, Telehouse
25	São Paulo, Brazil	6-10	Latin America	Oi, Vivo, Claro, Equinix, Ascenty

Mobile Operators Have, in Many Cases, Been Able to "Raise Prices" for 5G Service

Though many mobile operators seemingly have decided to price 5G access at the same rates as 4G, while others might price packages in ways that represent a 5G price premium, though indirect (bundle 5G with unlimited-usage plans, for example), at least some mobile operators have concluded they must price 5G at a premium. 

Generally speaking, mobile operators who have chosen to do so set 5G prices at a premium of about 20 percent above 4G prices. 

If you think about the way home broadband is priced, it is the same framework. Faster speeds cost more. 

Country	Mobile Service Provider	5G Pricing	4G Pricing	Pricing Difference
Australia	Telstra	5G plans start at AU$65/month	4G plans start at AU$45/month	20% difference
Canada	Bell	5G plans start at CA$75/month	4G plans start at CA$55/month	20% difference
France	Orange	5G plans start at €35/month	4G plans start at €25/month	20% difference
Germany	Telekom	5G plans start at €45/month	4G plans start at €35/month	17% difference
India	Reliance Jio	5G plans start at ₹599/month	4G plans start at ₹399/month	29% difference
Italy	TIM	5G plans start at €25/month	4G plans start at €15/month	40% difference
Japan	NTT Docomo	5G plans start at ¥4,980/month	4G plans start at ¥3,980/month	20% difference
Mexico	Telcel	5G plans start at MX$499/month	4G plans start at MX$399/month	20% difference
New Zealand	Spark	5G plans start at NZ$79/month	4G plans start at NZ$59/month	21% difference
Spain	Movistar	5G plans start at €30/month	4G plans start at €20/month	33% difference
South Korea	SK Telecom	5G plans start at ₩49,800/month	4G plans start at ₩39,800/month	20% difference
United Kingdom	EE	5G plans start at £35/month	4G plans start at £25/month	28% difference
United States	Verizon	5G plans start at US$70/month	4G plans start at US$55/month	20% difference

But there also are indirect ways of pricing 5G at higher levels, such as bundling 5G access only on premium-priced service plans.

Country	Mobile Service Provider	Indirect 5G Price Premium Strategy
Australia	Telstra	High-Tier Bundles: 5G access only available in top-tier bundles with significantly higher costs compared to 4G bundles.
Canada	Rogers	Limited 5G Availability: Lower-tier plans lack 5G access, pushing users to higher-priced plans for 5G.
France	Orange	Uncapped Data with 5G: Unlimited data plans only offered with 5G, making unlimited data significantly more expensive than on 4G.
Germany	Telekom	Speed Tiering: 5G offered across all tiers but only higher tiers include high data allowances comparable to 4G, effectively increasing cost for equivalent data.
India	Reliance Jio	Limited 4G Data: Lower-tier 4G plans have very limited data allowances, pushing users to 5G plans for adequate data, despite similar pricing.
Italy	TIM	Exclusive Features: 5G bundled with exclusive features like cloud storage or streaming subscriptions, justifying higher overall price compared to similar 4G bundles.
Japan	NTT Docomo	Priority Network Access: 5G plans include priority network access and faster speeds, making them more expensive than regular 4G plans with slower speeds.
Mexico	Telcel	Limited 4G Network Reach: Some regions only have 5G coverage, leaving users with no choice but to pay for 5G plans even if they prefer 4G pricing.
New Zealand	Spark	5G Speed Boosts: Limited-time 5G speed boosts offered on higher-priced plans, creating a temporary incentive to switch but eventually leading to higher costs for sustained 5G access.
Spain	Movistar	Entertainment Bundles: 5G bundled with TV and streaming subscriptions in higher-priced packages, potentially increasing costs for users who only need mobile data.
South Korea	SK Telecom	Premium Content Access: 5G plans include exclusive access to premium content or streaming services, making them more expensive than comparable 4G plans.
United Kingdom	EE	Limited High-Speed Data: Lower-tier 4G plans have significantly reduced data speeds, pushing users to 5G plans for comparable speeds, despite similar data allowances.
United States	Verizon	Unlimited Data Only with 5G: Unlimited data plans only available with 5G, significantly increasing the cost of unlimited data compared to 4G options.