DALLAS -- AT&T* today announced AT&T Synaptic Storage as a Service, a storage-on-demand offer that provides enterprise customers with control over the storage, distribution and retrieval of their data from any location, anytime, using any Web-enabled device.

AT&T Synaptic Storage as a Service provides a business-class storage service that lets customers use the AT&T network cloud to store, distribute and retrieve data as needed to meet their business or legal requirements. Customers will be able to specify their storage criteria – called user policies – through a Web-based customer portal. The service automatically scales storage capacity up or down as needed, and users pay only for the amount they use.

AT&T has selected EMC®, a world leader in information infrastructure solutions, as the technology provider for the underlying AT&T Synaptic Storage as a Service platform. The companies have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to jointly develop and market the service.

AT&T is introducing the service to customers on a controlled basis this month, with plans to make the service generally available in the third quarter. The service is deployed in AT&T Internet data centers (IDCs) in the U.S. and will be accessible by customers connecting to the Web anywhere. In time, AT&T plans to add the service to select global IDCs to meet customer demand internationally.

“The demand for data storage continues to grow at a staggering rate, driven by companies’ need for 24x7 access to business critical data,” said Roman Pacewicz, senior vice president of strategy and application services, AT&T Business Solutions. “AT&T Synaptic Storage helps enterprises get a handle on these increasingly complex storage environments, while controlling costs and improving service levels.”

AT&T Inc.