Purchasing internet service for your office is a major decision that should not be taken lightly. Especially considering that most companies rely heavily on the internet to run their business. Picking a provider that can support your bandwidth requirements now and into the future is really important. You want a service provider that is responsive, reliable, and can meet your business requirements. So vetting the right company is a key component. But there are variances in reliability and service performance based on the product type as well.
Dedicated vs. Shared
A dedicated connection is a service in which the bandwidth or internet speed is dedicated for your office’s use only. For instance, 100Mb/100Mb refers to 100Mb download and 100Mb upload. If this is a dedicated connection, then you should receive 100Mb/100Mb 24 hours a day/7 days a week. However, if it is shared, you may only get a fraction of that speed. The reason for that is because other companies in your area are accessing that same pool of bandwidth. Generally, purchasing a dedicated connection is going to come with a higher price tag. However, the service level guarantees tend to be much greater as well as reliability tends to improve as well. Not to say a shared connection is a bad thing, it is a perfect fit for a lot of companies. It really comes down to the specific needs of your business, how many people are on the internet, and what they are doing online. To find out how much bandwidth your office needs read our previous post here.
Types of Business Internet Service
There are a number of types of internet service available to companies today. Here is a short list of what you can expect to find when you are doing your homework and whether they are generally shared or dedicated:
- Cable/HFC (generally shared)
- DSL (generally shared)
- T1 (generally dedicated)
- Ethernet over Copper (generally dedicated)
- Ethernet over Fiber (generally dedicated)
- Fixed Wireless (can be shared or dedicated)
- Satelite Internet (can be shared or dedicated)
This list is general and carriers have started getting much more creative to meet the growing technology demands of businesses today. For instance, service providers have started deploying fiber optic internet to multi-tenant buildings that can be shared amongst tenants. This allows companies to take advantage of the scale and reliability of fiber without the premium cost that typically comes along with it. Whether you are a small business, mid-size company, or large enterprise internet access will likely continue to play a large role in the future of business. Knowing how technology impacts your business is vital in today’s tech driven marketplace.
Want to learn more?
If you would like to learn more about how you can take advantage of the latest emerging technologies while keeping your budget in check we would be happy to be a resource. Comsource Communications is an independent telecom agency based in Scottsdale, AZ. We serve the greater Phoenix and Tucson and metro areas with a strong focus on fiber optic internet. Whether we choose to work together or not, our intention is to leave you with the education you need to support your company’s technology requirements
