Who's WAN Is It Anyway?

By Ted Schuman, , CEO, PlanetOne

There’s a business challenge brewing in the mainstream IT channel that some are ignoring, others are talking about, and a select few have embraced — and turned into a new relationship and a revenue opportunity that keeps on growing. It’s focused on the wide area network (WAN), ties back to the local area network (LAN) and includes everything and everyone that wants to securely connect to both.

The challenge isn’t around the technology itself, although that definitely comes into play. The bigger issue is around the customer relationship. Who owns it? Who wants it? And who will win the business at the end of the day? 

With the advent and adoption of cloud, the rules of engagement have changed. Historically, the telecom providers, or telcos, owned the WAN and the VARs and MSPs owned the LAN. It was a clean cut. But as appliances, content, applications, and services are being deployed more often in the cloud, these dividing lines are being erased — opening up road to revenue where these two channels will ultimately collide or collaborate.

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