Drawing the line

MCI recently announced that it will manage a customer's network at a component level or SNA session level, if desired, through its managed services offerings. This proposal means managing a customer's data network or intranet-a space traditionally filled by data networking integrators. And integrators should watch out. Telecom companies offering performance monitoring and maintenance services will cut into their business.

Network value added resellers have realized that services grow revenues. Now, telecom carriers are getting into their game. Today carriers manage their own highly reliable, extremely fast networks. As the shift toward data continues and as networks get larger, carriers can parlay their expertise to smaller networks and reap the revenues from continuing maintenance contracts.

The expansion of managed services will displace many data integrators-eventually. Certainly, LAN integrators won't go away anytime soon. Most companies are not ready to turn over their existing data networks to telecom carriers, for cultural and fiscal reasons. LAN integrators know data. They are nimble, ready for change and expect to be on call to fix a customer's network when-not if-it goes down. Telecom companies operate more slowly and methodically, but their calculated approach pays off in terms of reliability. How many times in the past six months have you lost phone service? Or network access?

Based on their proven track record, carriers are well positioned to enter the LAN management market-if they choose to. Will they? Maybe not voluntarily. LANs are smaller, and problems often stem from obscure software and hardware incompatibilities. There is no need for carriers to dive into that niche. Teaming up with-or acquiring-a data integrator could prove fruitful as the lines dividing the two camps become increasingly fuzzy.

I predict that telecom carriers will be drawn into smaller-scale network management. One MCI senior manager told me that MCI-with its integration arm, MCI Systemhouse-will identify and locate problems for customers even on the local network. "We do it because we can and because it helps our customers," he said.

Forging that type of relationship is ideal for any carrier. Customers can focus on their primary business, while carriers monitor the network and build up their outsourcing services. Continual network management means continuing maintenance revenues.