What does carrier hotel mean?

A carrier hotel is a data centre where dozens or hundreds of telecommunications carriers, ISPs, and enterprises converge to interconnect. The term dates to the late 1990s when telecom companies began concentrating in specific buildings for peering and transit. Iconic carrier hotels include One Wilshire in Los Angeles (over 350 carriers), 60 Hudson Street in New York (a former Western Union telegraph building), and Telehouse London Docklands. These buildings remain critical internet infrastructure because network effects are self-reinforcing — more carriers attract more tenants, which attract more carriers. Space in premier carrier hotels commands 2-3x the price of equivalent colocation elsewhere.