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MPLS is a new technology with a young track record. Over the years, MPLS has received some “bad press”, based upon neither operational availability nor mean time between failures (MTBF).
Despite this disadvantage, we find that over 70 carriers are “on board” with MPLS (see Figure 9.20). The list of carriers reads like a “Who’s Who in Telecommunications”, from internationals (PTTS) to the “baby bells” (BT, Verizon, and BellSouth).
Figure 9.20: Unofficial MPLS Carrier List
What is it about the technology that has given it such a large following? Two factors involved are that MPLS allows for granularity of service at a fraction of the cost of ATM and that MPLS provides a means of network convergence. It shows substantial promise, as is evidenced by the fact that so many companies are involved with, and see a future in, MPLS.
Some market analysts advise to “focus on the service, not on the technology.” It is true that some customers do not care about how they get a quality link. They simply want granularity of service for a controlled and reasonable cost. There are, however, a good number of customers that are approaching MPLS service with some degree of caution.
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