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Technology Industry

Security concerns bypass budgets

Communications News, April, 2004

Tight corporate IT budgets held little sway over network security purchases in 2003. According to Infonetics Research, worldwide VPN and firewall appliance and software revenue grew by 13% last year over 2002, reaching $2.4 billion in 2003.

"The VPN and firewall market was able to grow despite significant technology shifts and a rocky economy due to continued demand for security, the arrival of SSL VPNs, and the cost-savings benefits of VPNs in a tough economic climate," says Jeff Wilson, principal analyst at Infonetics Research. "The appliance market will continue steady growth through at least 2006, as there are still new vendors entering the market, and plenty of innovation and price pressure to make this market interesting. Juniper's acquisition of NetScreen will make for a very exciting battle between Cisco and Juniper in the years to come."

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The application security gateway marker is also strong, with worldwide revenue growing to $22 million in the fourth quarter, Wilson adds. Now that most of the major vendors have jumped on board through acquisition or internally developed products, he expects this market to take off. "The industry is abuzz with news of customer demand for SSL VPNs and many service providers are beginning to develop managed SSL VPN offerings," he says.

In fact, many enterprises are opting for service provider security services instead of bringing the tasks in-house. Infonet Services Corp. and Equant, for example, are two VPN service providers that have announced a steady stream of new customers in recent months.

TNT Logistics, a division of TPG, the global provider of mail, express and logistics services, has chosen Infonet to provide an MPLS-enabled IP VPN network for 15 TNT Logistics sites in Europe, Asia, Australia and the United States.

With more than 32,000 employees in 36 countries, TNT Logistics is the second-largest logistics provider in the world. It currently operates more than 1,100 contracts and manages more than 6.2 million square meters of warehouse space around the world.

According to Willem Veekens, IT infrastructure manager for TNT Logistics, the Infonet network is both flexible and scalable. "TNT Logistics can easily support future growth and clients' needs by quickly bringing new locations onto the network, in addition to being able to add new applications that require any point-to-any-point connectivity," Veekens says.

Infonet is providing TNT Logistics with a flexible IP VPN secure-based WAN that prioritizes TNT Logistics' mission-critical applications, including JD Edwards ERP. Using both MPLS and class of service, Infonet's IP VPN Secure gives TNT Logistics the benefits of IP, coupled with an awareness to support its mission-critical ERP and non mission-critical e-mail and Web-based applications in a secure and prioritized environment-allowing for the convergence of voice, video and data.

Veekens cites service-level agreements, technical network design and management reporting tools as key considerations in choosing Infonet. "Infonet has delivered on what it promised and what we expected, a robust and reliable network that addresses our business needs and remains cost-effective," he says.

ANOTHER IP VPN CUSTOMER

Acer Inc., headquartered in Taipei, Taiwan, but with offices around the globe, has also gone the IP VPN service provider route. The marketer of a full scope of branded IT products-including PCs, monitors, storage devices, displays and projectors--has chosen Equant to set up an 11-site IP VPN connecting Acer's key business centers in Asia, Europe and the Americas.

With the IP VPN service, says Acer CIO Eric Lee, Acer can run voice and data over a single, cost-effective network providing secure, high-performance connectivity to its 5,700-employee business. Using the class-of-service option, Acer can maximize bandwidth utilization and optimize performance of applications. As a result, users can access e-mail and transfer files more quickly and seamlessly, even from remote locations, than with the current frame relay network.

Equant spent more than a year working with Acer prior to the award of the contract to gain an understanding of its business and communications needs.

This allowed Equant to propose a customized, robust and flexible solution for Acer, with the option for future network expansion and the launch of other services, such as voice and video over IP.

Equant project managers will manage the migration from frame relay to the new platform. For end-to-end support, Acer chose Equant Network Management, a service that will monitor the network on a 24x7 basis, with a single point of management and problem resolution.

PUBLICATIONS

Next Generation SONET/SDH: Voice and Data, by Stamatios Kartalopoulos, is designed for communication specialists who need to understand the implications and implementation requirements of the next-generation optical network. The text explains and references the new standards, and provides detailed explanations of multiple optical systems. www.wileycom

Technology Industry

Security concerns bypass budgets

Communications News, April, 2004

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