Limelight Networks

Mid-tier CDN provider with a private global network, competing against Akamai and Fastly in media, gaming, and enterprise content delivery

Limelight Networks was a prominent content delivery network (CDN) and edge cloud services company founded in 2001 and headquartered in Tempe, Arizona. The company built and operated a private global network designed to deliver digital content, video streaming, and web applications at scale. Limelight served major media companies, broadcasters, gaming firms, and enterprises seeking reliable, high-performance content delivery with low latency across global audiences. Its infrastructure was particularly well-regarded for large-scale live video streaming and software distribution use cases. Limelight Networks was publicly traded on NASDAQ under the ticker LLNW and competed directly with Akamai, Fastly, Cloudflare, and other CDN providers. Over the years, the company invested heavily in its private fiber network and edge computing capabilities to differentiate itself from competitors relying on third-party infrastructure. Despite strong technical capabilities, Limelight faced ongoing revenue and profitability challenges in an increasingly competitive CDN market. In 2022, Limelight Networks completed a transformative merger with Edgecast, Verizon's CDN and edge platform business, and rebranded the combined entity as Edgio. The merger was intended to create a more competitive, scaled alternative to dominant CDN players by combining Limelight's network with Edgecast's developer-focused edge platform and customer base. The Limelight Networks brand was retired as part of this transition, with Edgio operating as the successor company. Edgio subsequently faced financial difficulties and filed for bankruptcy in 2024.