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Ethernet was once the telephone company’s worst enemy, but the time for animosity is over. It used to be a computing-centric technology that lacked reliability, scalability, standardization, service management and quality of service capabilities that public networks must live by. But, Ethernet has changed its ways—the Metro Ethernet Forum’s carrier Ethernet certification program has seen to that..
Now, Ethernet is available as a carrier-grade telco solution, a fact that is reflected in Carrier Ethernet’s impressive market growth the last few years. It is a technology that can fill many roles for telcos. Carrier Ethernet provides a key entry path into the increasingly-important and competitive enterprise market, bringing Ethernet-based private line, virtual private line and LAN services into a segment where services based on frame relay and ATM were once the only options offered. On a broader scale, carrier Ethernet allows traditional telcos to match the fiber-based metro market bandwidth that many of their competitors already can provide. It can be deployed on an access scale, metro scale, national scale or even international scale.
Carrier Ethernet is a viable T-1 replacement technology at a time when T-1 prices remain high and carrier and business customers alike are looking for higher-bandwidth and more flexible T-1 alternatives. Carrier Ethernet also is a great introduction to the benefits of the IP network—an overall bandwidth richness and upgrade flexibility that makes TDM seem ancient by comparison.
From enterprise services to mobile carrier backhaul, there is a long list of applications creating the need for a solution with the capacity, flexibility and other attributes of Carrier Ethernet. Certified Carrier Ethernet provides the basis for telcos to offer service level agreements that guarantee end-to-end performance against metrics like committed information rate, frame loss and delay. It promises recovery from services disruptions in 50 milliseconds or less. It allows incremental bandwidth upgrades starting at 1 Mb/s.
But perhaps the two most attractive things about carrier Ethernet are economic attributes. First, telcos can offer these capabilities and others at premium prices to create a rich, new revenue channel. Second, while carrier Ethernet is an investment in new technology, it is a fairly inexpensive investment with quick and long-lasting returns. Though Ethernet is traditionally a fiber-based technology, great advancements have been made in the capability to run Ethernet over copper, which makes the cost of entry even lower and the value leveraged from existing network facilities even higher.
The operator environment will be an all-IP world some day, but there are plenty of reasons for it to be an all-Ethernet world much sooner. Embarq Logistics has the technology knowledge and the supplier connections to help you move forward with Carrier Ethernet.