The Yankee Group Finds That Frame Relay Services Will Be Around for Awhile Longer

Business Wire, May 15, 2001

Business/Technology Editors

BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 11, 2001

According to the recently published Report, "Frame Relay Service Update: The Latest in a Legacy Technology," the Yankee Group believes that the rumored demise of frame relay is premature. Despite being classified as a legacy data technology, frame relay continues to maintain a strong market position among end users both domestically and internationally. In spite of the emergence of IP services and the hype surrounding them, frame relay technology continues to be widely accepted as a cost-efficient, high-speed data solution for both local-area networks (LANs) and wide-area networks (WANs). Frame relay has long seen double-digit growth rates and we believe strong growth will continue, although at a slower pace, for the next few years.

Service offerings among frame relay providers have become more and more standard, leading to the emergence of value-added services and competitive pricing as differentiators. Intelligent and informed end users have led service providers to improve not only the total frame relay package, but also the overall quality of service through service-level guarantees (SLGs). The original factors that fueled frame relay's takeoff when it was introduced in the early 1990s are still attractive. On top of that, many additional enhancements to the frame technology and its ability to be used in conjunction with ATM and IP technology have proven frame relay to be extremely versatile.

NOTE TO EDITORS: For more information or to schedule an interview, please contact Sandra Palumbo at spalumbo@yankeegroup.com.

The Yankee Group (www.yankeegroup.com)

As a global leader in technology research and strategic consulting, the Yankee Group provides accurate and reliable research, custom consulting, and personalized one-to-one client interaction encompassing all areas essential to e-business success: the Internet, electronic commerce, communications, wireless/mobile, computing, and enterprise applications. Established in 1970 and headquartered in Boston, the company maintains offices throughout North America, Europe, Latin America, and the Pacific Rim.