European WAN services market changing as IP VPNs and Ethernet-based services drive new growth, reports Probe Group

June 29, 2004 Cedar Knolls, NJ -- IP VPN services based on MPLS and IPsec are penetrating the European WAN services market at the expense of older technologies such as Frame Relay and ATM, according to a recent report from Probe Group. WAN services based on Ethernet technology are growing even faster, but from a small base.

"Frame Relay is still the largest WAN services segment, but not for long," comments John Marcus, Probe Group vice president. "IP VPN will become the largest segment in 2006."

In addition to profiling leading service providers, the new report outlines how incumbent carriers are looking to outsourcing, systems integration and other professional services to add additional value to their data services, both through partnerships and in-house development. This is in response to the threat by competitive providers that do not share the same cost structures as traditional carriers.

The report, "Enterprise WAN Services in Europe," forecasts service revenues for Frame Relay, ATM, IP VPN, and Ethernet-based WAN services through 2008. It is part of Probe's Enterprise Data Services and Markets series, which provides ongoing analysis of the worldwide market for enterprise data services.