EarthLink is finding that its SD-WAN message is resonating as the competitive provider has deployed the solution for 41 customers across 1,706 locations.
The number of customers that have signed up for SD-WAN illustrate a rapid ramp and acceptance of a service that EarthLink only debuted in September.
EarthLink noted that 95% of these customers have opted for EarthLink SD-WAN Concierge, illustrating customers’ growing interest in EarthLink’s fully managed services that are built on personalized and proactive expert guidance.
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A number of multi-location connectivity customers in various market segments, including Entertainment (672 locations), Restaurant (203 locations) and Building Materials (153 locations), have cited interest in SD-WAN.
One of EarthLink’s key customer wins is a 400-restaurant contract with national restaurant chain TGI Friday's. EarthLink is providing a full suite of services to TGI Friday's including SD-WAN Concierge, MPLS, Cloud Express and Hosted Voice.
Earlier this year, EarthLink, in collaboration with Boston Retail Partners, debuted its Unified Communications as a Service (UCaaS) offering, which relies on SD-WAN to provide a fully managed, cloud-based communications platform with hosted voice.
Existing EarthLink SD-WAN customers will also benefit from a broader network reach when the service provider completes its merger with Windstream later this year.
Windstream has also rolled out its own SD-WAN service, one that's gaining interest among its smaller and medium-sized business customers.
Similar to EarthLink’s SD-WAN offer, Windstream is giving mid-sized enterprise customers access to the same technology advantages that large enterprises enjoy, including custom-designed networks and services, as well as a support team.
The service provider told investors last year that it can use SD-WAN and Unified Communications as a Service (UCaaS) to potentially bolster the revenue-challenged SMB/CLEC business unit.