Verizon launches global CPE management

Verizon Business is launching a new global program that will enable its large enterprise and government customers to more easily build networks around the world by managing the complexities of buying and deploying customer premises equipment (CPE). The idea is for Verizon Business to handle all the differing regulations for acquiring and moving equipment from multiple vendors into multiple countries, said Thomas Vitale, vice president of CPE, Customer Enablement and Product Support at Verizon.

“Our customers are looking for single-source providers to do everything from providing the network all the way through the equipment that hangs on the network,” Vitale said. “It is a very difficult area for customers, dealing with multiple manufacturers, multiple countries and rules for moving goods – there is a lot of headaches associated with that. They are looking for a partner to take those headaches away, not only for maintenance and management of that equipment but also to procure the goods.”

Today, enterprise customers live in what Vitale termed “a very inconsistent environment” in that they need to understand the rules for bringing equipment into each country in which they operate, including tax, shipping and environmental laws unique to each country. Verizon’s goal is to bring “global consistency” to customers by working with global partners that will provide consistent terms and conditions and disguising any complexity Verizon can’t eliminate.

Verizon’s first set of global partners, signed in 2008, includes Avaya, Cisco, Fluke Networks, Juniper Networks and Tandberg. In 2009, Alcatel-Lucent, Nortel Networks, Polycom and Siemens are joining the program.

“We are working with our partners, driving them to give us global terms and conditions,” Vitale said. “Where we can’t do that, we are disguising the complexity internal to our organization, so it doesn’t affect our customers.”

Prior to taking this new approach, the standard operating procedure for Verizon – and other businesses, Vitale said – is to buy equipment for a US customer that wants to deploy the gear overseas but pass the title to the customer in the US. “We are doing logistics, but they own the equipment already – they are the name on the bill of lading, when it goes into customs. They have a lot more liability in our previous environment. The customer is the importer of record.”

Another benefit to customers of this global CPE approach is that Verizon Business can leverage its economies of scale to get better pricing for customers on CPE. Verizon Business will be providing its expertise in selecting the right equipment as well, Vitale said, and the integration of equipment and services into Verizon’s global IP network.

Verizon Business will offer purchase options to customers as it has in the past, including offering leasing or purchase options and providing managed services, where Verizon owns the equipment and provides a service. There is growing interest in managed services, Vitale said, “but the CPE is table stakes today.”

The new Verizon Business Global CPE Service will be available in 120 countries today with more to come, he said.