Global information and communications technology (ICT) solutions provider Dimension Data has set its sights on Amazon Web Services (AWS) Direct Connect, launching Cloud Private Network Connection (CPNC), an add-on service for its public, private and managed hosting cloud offerings that it hopes will be a serious competitor to Direct Connect.

Using CPNC, Dimension Data customers have the ability to establish a dedicated network connection between their networks and Dimension Data’s Managed Cloud Platform (MCP) locations for additional control and security over their cloud-based data.

The new offering is targeted at enterprises and verticals including health care, retail, finance and government that are interested in connecting to Dimension Data’s cloud services without using the public Internet while also seeing greater throughput and a better networking experience. Or that’s the way Dimension Data is marketing CPNC.

Dimension Data is providing two CPNC options to customers, including:

“CPNC replicates the security, connectivity and responsiveness that enterprises are accustomed to from their own wide area and local area networks,” said Gerard Florian, director of Product Management at Dimension Data, in a prepared statement. “Enterprises that have delayed the migration of production systems and applications to the cloud due to connectivity concerns can now utilize this new service to deliver certainty in network performance and throughput.”

Dimension Data is aiming to provide customers with greater control over their WAN infrastructure when accessing the company’s Public Compute as a Service, Private Compute as a Service and managed hosting services.