The Hidden Cost of Running Your Own Edge
As more companies look for ways to improve performance, reduce latency, and build differentiated digital experiences, the idea of “running your own edge” has become increasingly attractive. At first glance, it sounds empowering: full control over routing, policy, hardware, and performance tuning. No dependency on a third-party platform. Your own network, your own rules. But the reality is far more complex. What looks like independence on paper quickly becomes a sprawling ecosystem of responsibilities that few organizations are truly prepared for. Whether you’re building global POPs, managing a hybrid presence, or just trying to move workloads closer to users, the hidden costs add up fast. Here’s what teams often underestimate. 1. The Operational Overhead Is Enormous Running your own edge means you’re now on the hook for everything: Hardware lifecycle management Regional provisioning and deprovisioning Peering relationships Transit negotiation Vendor management across dozens of ma...