What is an MPLS network?
Multi Protocol Label Switching network - it is essentially a private network, which connects multiple sites and remote workers without touching the internet, that doesn’t need specialist equipment and software on the customer’s site.
What is the demand?
A recent Forrester report stated that 200,000 UK SMEs intend to buy an MPLS network in the next 18 months.
Where has it originated from?
SMEs are looking to upgrade their corporate network to make it faster, cheaper and easier to manage. They also need to accommodate remote workers as 46% of firms now let staff work remotely or from home, compared to just 11% in 2001.
Until recently it has been mainly senior executives and middle managers that have worked from home and they have got by with their home broadband and a mobile phone. As remote working spreads to all parts of an enterprise, people need to be permanently and reliably connected to the office as if they were in the office. They need to be able to work on the corporate LAN and take and make calls via the telephone system.
The technology
SMEs are looking for a secure and cost effective way of facilitating remote working and an MPLS network fits the bill perfectly. Private broadband tails can be installed for little more than the cost of a standard DSL circuit and staff can be connected directly to the corporate LAN without the need for complicated tunnels, expensive software clients or specialist routers. Additions, moves and changes can be managed by the reseller (or even the SME themselves) on their own portal through which they can also test lines, report faults and call out BT engineers.
The challenge
You may be reading this and thinking great but I don’t know anything about MPLS networks. There are ISPs out there that offer managed solutions and a choice of different connectivity options with the 24/7 support options you need to support critical IP links. Some ISPs are offering lead generation, bid support, pre-sales support, solution design and implementation, unlimited technical and sales training, first line support or support tools to manage faults and changes yourself. All you need is the desire for high recurring revenues.
The pay off
The head office and larger satellite sites will often require leased line connections into the MPLS network generating even more revenue and margin for the reseller and the up-sell doesn’t stop there. The main phone system may need to be upgraded to accommodate remote access over IP and on the client side they will need an IP handset or a soft client licence. Many enterprises will install a second PSTN line into the home and with remote workers using the centralised phone system to route calls, the phone bills should increase.
Source: Comms Business March 2010.
Andrew Dickinson
