Making Sense Of European Ethernet Services

Carrier Ethernet services have moved out of the realm of the early adopters into the mainstream — more than half of European enterprises have deployed or are evaluating them. They offer enterprises benefits in three main areas — cost savings, higher speeds, and lower latency — compared with existing WAN infrastructure options like MPLS. They should be part of the telecom strategic plans of all major enterprises. However, buyers must note that Ethernet services have not yet reached the levels of maturity of MPLS services in terms of geographic availability, service-level management, and consistency in the ranges of product types and speeds available. To make sense of the range of services available, enterprise sourcing professionals will need to research both the technology and the market carefully and issue RFIs to understand the vendors' offerings in details.