To: djane who wrote (46170 ) 5/7/1998 2:42:00 AM From: djane Read Replies (1) | Respond to of 61433
WorldCom details its ISP plans By Denise Pappalardo Network World, 5/6/98nwfusion.com Las Vegas - WorldCom, Inc. used its time at NetWorld + Interop to lay out its plans for integrating its four separate Internet service provider companies. WorldCom is dividing its four ISPs - UUNET Technologies Inc., CompuServe Network Services (CNS), ANS Communications, GridNet International - into two organizations, as John Sidgmore, chief operating officer at WorldCom and CEO at UUNET revealed to Network World earlier this year (NW, March 16, page 31). The first group, deemed UUNET WorldCom is handling basic IP infrastructure services from all four companies such as Internet access and IP fax and telephony offerings. Mark Spagnolo, from the UUNET side of the house, is president of this group. The second group, deemed WorldCom Advanced Networks, is handling value-added services from all four companies such as managed virtual private networks, managed security and Web and application hosting services. Peter Van Camp, from the CNS side of the house, is president of this group. In dividing the groups, Spagnola, Van Camp and company, also looked at overlapping services. "Overall we had 10 different VPN products," Spagnolo said. The VPN services, under the WorldCom Advanced Networks group, will be divided into two categories, dial-up and dedicated. The dial-up VPN umbrella will cover services such as ANS' Sure Remote and UUNET's ExtraLink Remote. The dedicated VPN umbrella will cover services such as ANS' Virtual Private Data Network (VPDN), UUNET's ExtraLink and CNS' frame relay based VPDN service. And integration is planned on the network side as well. By the end of the year, WorldCom expects to have UUNET and ANS' IP backbones completely integrated. Some of that work has already begun by adding more dedicated connections between UUNET and ANS network hubs, Spagnola said. WorldCom also plans on migrating most of CNS' ATM network onto WorldCom's ATM backbone by the end of the year. Today, AT&T and MCI provide the majority of CNS's backbone circuits, Van Camp said. WorldCom plans on keeping its dial-up networks separate for now, primarily because ANS' network is predominately used by AOL, Spagnola said. Feedback | Network World, Inc. | Sponsor Index Marketplace Index | How to Advertise | Copyright Home | NetFlash | This Week | Industry/Stocks Buyer's Guides/Tests | Net Resources | Opinions | Careers Seminars & Events | Product Demos/Info Audio Primers | IntraNet