Michael Tobin, chief executive at the Telecity Group, told delegates that "mobile, video and cloud are the drivers while supply, particularly of high quality facilities is highly constrained."

Fabrice Coquio, managing director of Interxion France, said that data centre hosting prices had risen by 15 to 20 percent over the last year and they look set to rise by at least 15 percent again this year.

"There is a structural gap in supply and demand and it is not going to get any less in the next two or three years in Europe," he said.

Tim Anker, founder The Colocation Exchange, a pioneering brokerage in London, suggested that datacentre costs, particularly in core business centres such as London, will double in 10 years time.

A leadership panel - made up of senior executives from some of Europe's leading data centre and hosting companies - agreed that despite supply constraints, enterprises would increasingly move to data centre outsourcing.