WAN networking on the rise

Monday, January 23, 2012

Wide-area networks (WANs) are not the newest invention when it comes to the world of cloud computing - technically, the first WAN was created by Lawrence G. Roberts and Thomas Merrill in 1965. The popularity of WANs has increased dramatically with the rise of the internet, and the prevalence of cloud computing is driving the new trend of WAN optimization.

WAN optimization is essentially the incorporation of innovative managed network services into a WAN to allow for more efficient information security and increased bandwidth capability. Companies moving into the cloud are searching for more and more bandwidth for their data workloads, and cloud-based WAN optimization offers them maximum capacity.

An IDC report predicts that there will be an 8.7% growth in total network equipment spending in 2012, with revenue in the WAN sector estimated to reach $1.8 billion in 2016.

"The WAN application delivery market will continue to bring value to the corporate network," said Lucinda Borovick, IDC program VP of Enterprise Communications and Datacenter Networks." The unique combination of technologies facilitate IT optimization projects as well as provide a stepping stone to become an enabler of public and private cloud adoption." Enterprise Communications and Datacenter Networks.