Business Internet: More than meets the eye

Business Internet: More than meets the eye

Business Internet: More than meets the eye

July 18, 2019
Blog

Business internet. Not many people truly understand what it means, whereas others would just assume that it simply refers to “Internet connection”, or “Firewall”. But did you know that there is so much more to the meaning of Internet, especially when used by businesses.

From 1994 to 2000, there was the dot com bubble in the US, whereby there was a huge internet crash that resulted in a huge fluctuation in the price of goods on the internet. According to Chron, the internet continued to be a huge profitable tool for businesses as a means to market their organisation and products. There are actually many building blocks that forms the internet that businesses use on a daily basis such as Fibre Broadband, GPON, Ethernet, Metro Ethernet. Each of these internet grades would form “Business Internet” and here are some of the reasons why these building blocks would help benefit your organisation.

Fibre Broadband

Fibre Broadband is a connection that uses fibre optics to deliver data to businesses and homes. In April 2019, SP Telecom announced that it was investing “hundreds of millions” of dollars over the next five years to build an alternative to the government-backed Next Generation Nationwide Broadband Network (NGNBN).” This shows that the Singapore government understands the importance and benefits of Fibre Broadband. So you may ask, how is fibre broadband different from standard broadband? Well, it’s fairly simple and straightforward. Standard broadband uses copper wires for data transfer, whereas Fibre Broadband uses fibre optics which is much faster. Here are some benefits of Fibre Broadband according to Atlantech:

Speed

Fibre broadband speed (which ranges from 5 Mbps to 100Gbps) is many times faster than the normal internet connection, so much so that even during times when there is high usage of internet access, you wouldn’t notice any difference in internet speed! Furthermore, research conducted by Sandisk has shown that slow internet connections cost employees “one week per year of productivity.”

Latency

Latency refers to the delays that occur while processing data over an internet connection. Hence with fibre broadband, you get to enjoy

  • Downloading and uploading of large sizes of data
  • No interruption on international calls that require an internet connection
  • Security

With fibre broadband, you can protect your data anywhere as did you know, the only way to steal information through fibre optics is to manually cut the wires that is linked to the database!

GPON

GPON, which stands for Gigabyte Passive Optical Network refers to networks that rely on optical cables to transmit and deliver information. A GPON network consists of 2 transmission equipment, which are Optical Line Termination (OLT) & Optical Network Unit (ONU). What GPON does is that it uses splitters from the network provider’s central location to “split” the network to multiple users. You might be wondering why your business might need GPON. Well nowadays, many internet service providers require a longer transmission reach, higher reliability and bandwidth. Hence, GPON is able to meet these requirements by using the OLT and ONU to

  • Longer transmission distance: Covers up to 60km coverage radius
  • Higher Bandwidth: GPON could be able to support the maximum transmission

In fact, GPON is getting so successful that Cisco, a multinational technology company has announced a GPON system that is part of their plan for implementing “Access Networking”. To read more about their new developments, click here.

Furthermore, GPON gives users the ability to consolidate multiple servers into a single transport network, which is the perfect solution for businesses with multiple points. Hence, instead of using separate servers which could be separated geographically, businesses could use GPON to consolidate all these servers to ensure the smoother transmission of data and the overall increase in productivity.

Ethernet

What exactly is Ethernet? As explained by LiveWire, Ethernet simply refers to technology that is commonly used in Local Area Networks (LAN), which refer to a network of electronic devices that cover a small area such as an office or your house! In fact, you are probably using Ethernet every day without even realising it! According to The Chartered Institute for IT, many network providers across the globe are looking to utilise Ethernet in their businesses to reap the benefits that come along with it.

Why should you use Ethernet as compared to your normal Wi-Fi? It’s fairly simple. For starters, the maximum speed of a typical Wi-Fi connection is 866.7Mb/s, whilst an Ethernet connection could offer up to 10Gb/s. Furthermore, as compared to Wi-Fi, which is prone to hacks as it is not entirely secure, Ethernet is much safer as all the data is transmitted through the cables that are connecting all the electronic devices together, hence the only way to actually “hack” an Ethernet connection is to physically plug the device into your router!

Therefore, switching our office or home internet connection from Wi-Fi to Ethernet would be highly recommended! For more benefits about Ethernet, you can refer to this Link to find out more!

Metro Ethernet

Metro Ethernet is basically an Ethernet technology network that covers a metropolitan area. It is mainly used for connectivity to public internet, or connectivity between businesses that are geographically located separately. The difference between metro Ethernet and Ethernet is that metro Ethernet caters towards a much bigger area, as suggested in the word “Metro”.

Benefits

  • Flexibility—Supports a wide variety of services and transports.
  • Reliability—Ethernet operations, administration, and maintenance (OAM) performs path discovery, detects and reports connection failures, and measures performance.
  • Cost-Effectiveness/Ease of Use— The network is much easier to maintain and use, which would, in turn, lower ownership, manpower and equipment cost.
  • Quality of Service (QoS)—Supports QoS features, such as classification, marking, policing, queuing, and scheduling.
  • Scalability— Metro Ethernet is able to support internet speeds ranging from 1 Mbps to 10 Gbps, and it could be done without any prior instalment or purchase.

If you would like to find out more about the features, further benefits and cloud exchange networks, here’s the Link!

In Conclusion, these 4 main building blocks make up the “Business Internet” that you experience on a daily basis, whether you are at home or in your office. Understanding the benefits of GPON, Fibre Broadband, Ethernet as well as Metro Ethernet could help boost productivity in the workplace, as well as ensuring that your database is secured 24/7.

If you are looking for a company that is able to cater to all your technological needs and provide you with the benefits of “Business Internet” mentioned throughout this blog, then find out more at Netpluz.

Author: Tristan Oh Jiaxuan

References:

Netpluz Internet Connectivity for Business | Secure & Reliable Internet

https://www.netpluz.asia/services/data/managed-internet/

11 Huge Business Benefits of Fibre Internet Connectivity

https://www.atlantech.net/blog/11-huge-business-benefits-of-fibre-internet-connectivity/

What is GPON?

https://www.router-switch.com/faq/what-is-gpon.html

Ethernet LAN Explained

https://www.lifewire.com/what-is-ethernet-3426740

Insights from CableWholesale

https://www.cablewholesale.com/blog/index.php/2016/06/07/benefits-of-the-ethernet-cable-why-you-should-be-plugging-in/

What is Metro Ethernet? | Juniper Networks

https://www.juniper.net/us/en/products-services/what-is/metro-ethernet/

What is GPON (Gigabit Passive Optical Networks)? | Carritech Telecommunications

http://www.carritech.com/news/gpon-gigabit-passive-optical-networks/

What Are the Benefits of the Internet to Business?

https://smallbusiness.chron.com/benefits-internet-business-316.html