Easily compare Tata Communications and CDNetworks for POP locations, products, pricing, features & support. We hope this helps you better understand the similarities and differences between these content delivery networks.
Company
| Company | Tata Communications | CDNetworks |
|---|---|---|
| Short profile | Tata Communications is a full service, carrier grade, global CDN that has been in operation since their acquisition of BitGravity in 2012. The CDN rides on Tata’s global infrastructure which is the largest Tier 1 network in the world. Tata’s ownership of the network and peering relationships enable it to be very competitive when it comes to price. | As a leading network with over 2,800 global Points of Presence and more than 20 years of technology experience, CDNetworks has made huge leaps forward in edge computing, from basic CDN services to elastic, stable, and secure content delivery services and all-in-one WAAP Protection Solution. Recognized in Gartner Competitive Landscape: CDN and Edge Services in 2022. |
Products
| Product | Tata Communications | CDNetworks |
|---|---|---|
| Dynamic content deliveryNon-cacheable content delivery. User login, shopping cart ... | Dynamic Site Acceleration | Dynamic Web Acceleration |
| Small file deliveryStatic object delivery; caching of small files (file size <1 MB) | Whole Site Acceleration | Content Acceleration |
| Large file deliveryStatic object delivery; caching of large files (file size >1 MB) | Large Object Rapid Delivery | Content Acceleration |
| Live videoDelivery of live video. RTMP? Transcoding/transmuxing? | Live Streaming | Media Acceleration Live Broadcast |
| Video on demandDelivery of on demand video | Video On Demand | Media Acceleration VoD |
| Image OptimizationAutomatic image transformation/compression/optimization | Image Processing | |
| DNSAuthoritative DNS for customer domain | Cloud DNS+ | |
| WAFWeb Application Firewall | CDN Security | Application Firewall |
| Anti-DDoSDDoS attack protection. Specific product(s) for this. | CDN Security | Flood Shield |
| Private CDNDedicated edge resources & custom configs | ||
| Edge ComputeRun your code on CDN edge servers | Edge Computing Platform |
Network
How many POP locations do Tata Communications and CDNetworks have in different parts of the world?
| Region | Tata Communications | CDNetworks |
|---|---|---|
| North America | 8 | 13 |
| Latin America | 0 | 6 |
| Europe | 4 | 14 |
| Russia & CIS | 0 | 27 |
| Asia excl. China | 10 | 35 |
| China | 0 | 66 |
| Oceania | 1 | 3 |
| Middle East | 1 | 10 |
| Africa | 0 | 7 |
Pricing
| Pricing & contract duration | Tata Communications | CDNetworks |
|---|---|---|
| Minimum contract term | Unknown | 12 months |
| Minimum monthly costs | Unknown | Unknown |
| Requests costsCustomers pay for client to CDN requests | Unknown | Unknown |
| Ingress costsCustomers pay for origin-to-CDN bytes transferred | Unknown | Unknown |
| NA/EU traffic (low volume) | Unknown | Unknown |
| APAC traffic (low volume) | Unknown | Unknown |
| LATAM traffic (low volume) | Unknown | Unknown |
Features
| Web acceleration | Tata Communications | CDNetworks |
|---|---|---|
| Instant setupSign up, configure, start testing. | CDN Pro has self signup and getting started. For other products you must talk to sales | |
| Change propagation delayHow fast do config changes propagate to all POPs? | <10 minutes | ~ 15 minutes |
Apex/root domain OK  No performance degradation when using http(s)://domain.com |
Global Anycasted network
Tata recommends against root domain though, as they may make changes in DNS at any time
|
|
| HTTP/2 | End of 2017 | Docs |
| HTTP/3 | ||
| WebSockets | Docs | |
| IPv6Do the edge servers have IPv6? | Docs | |
| Compression Reduce file size for faster delivery |
Resend from origin
Always fetch compressed from origin
|
Resend from origin, or compress on edge |
| Origin pull - protocolHTTP only or HTTPS possible too? | HTTP and HTTPS | HTTP and HTTPS |
| Origin pull - Host headerUse client > edge value? Set specific value? | Can't configure specific other Host header |
Configure specific other Host header
CDN can also forward client request Host header to origin
|
| Origin ShieldOne POP pulls from origin, other POPs pull from the shield POP |
Tiered architecture, not single POP shield
Tata support is needed to enable/configure this
|
Multiple POPs can act as shield |
| Waiting RoomDuring peak traffic, route users to a virtual waiting room | ||
| Push / uploadStore your content directly on CDN, no customer origin | ||
| Cache control - CDN caching | Full and granular control | Full and granular control |
| Cache control - client caching | Full and granular control | Full and granular control |
| Serve Stale CDN serves cached but expired content in case origin is in trouble |
||
| Purge Invalidate or delete cached objects on CDN |
No longer than 2 mins, often much faster | Completion time is 5 - 10 minutes |
| Purge - capabilities | Purge all, purge by directory, not by tag or header | Purge all, by directory, by cache tag |
| Analytics |
Many metrics in the UI
2 seconds refresh ('instant') possible at extra charge
|
|
| Log files |
Refreshed every 24h. Available via FTP
15m refresh possible at extra charge
|
|
| API | Purge, configuration. Not analytics | Purge, analytics, configuration |
| HTTPS & Content Protection | Tata Communications | CDNetworks |
|---|---|---|
| CDN domain HTTPSUse the CDN's domain, like cloudfront.net | ||
| Customer domain HTTPSYour domain in the CDN's certificate | ||
| Customer cert HTTPSYour certificate on the CDN |
SNI. Pricing is custom.
Update cert via UI or API
|
|
| Token authentication | ||
| Geo blocking | ||
| Hotlink protectionThird parties cannot deeplink to your content | Their support team is needed | |
| Basic authenticationUser logs in on the CDN to get content | ||
| IP white/blacklisting |
White or black listing. IP addresses and CIDR blocks
Customer can configure self in UI
|
Support
| Customer support | Tata Communications | CDNetworks |
|---|---|---|
| Documentation | Some documentation, not public | Yes, public |
| Humans | All customers get 24/7 email and phone support. | All customers get 24/7 email and phone support |