A\DSL and Cable are Just Options Today

by Russ Hewitt

Today, we're experiencing rapid growth of the interconnection of personal computers and telephones in the business environment, with T1 technology emerging as a cost-effective means of linking voice and data, both inter-office and intra-office, and as an alternative to segregated services.

Discussion has been significant of late about how T1 technology fits into the small business world as the cost of these services drop. Users are discovering that it costs less to have a T1 line than a series of point-to-point telephone lines and separate Internet access. This integrated access (voice and Internet, over T1) is gaining momentum in the small to medium business (SMB) market over a combination of DSL and Plain Old Telephone (POT) lines.

This rise in popularity is being brought on by continual declines in T1 pricing, less expensive Integrated Access Devices (IADs), under-delivery of DSL as an access technology and improvement of phone companies' ability to bundle and deliver T1-based services.

Breaking Down the Technology

So what is this Small Business T1 service? You can think of a T1 as a "24-lane digital highway," with each T1 "lane's" digital size at 64 kbits (that's 64,000 bits) and capable of carrying voice or data information.

For example, if you need six standard voice lines and 512 kbits of Internet access, you would use six of the "lanes" for voice and eight more "lanes" for data (512 kbits/64 kbits), leaving 10 "lanes" unused, which leaves room for future phone lines or Internet access expansion.

But what about reliability, you ask? Well, these Small Business T1s are managed services, meaning your circuit is being periodically monitored for proper operation. In most cases, problems will be detected and resolved long before the client even knows about them.

Most of these services have a Service Level Agreement (SLA) stating service guarantees, with monetary considerations if these guarantees are not met. They typically concern availability, time to repair, delivery and delay. These terms might be "Greek" to you, but what they basically mean that if your system is down for more 4.5 hours in a year, or that if you have degraded service (Internet access speed) due to packet loss, you can get monetary considerations up to your monthly recurring fees. Usually, these are calculated as one day of credit for every hour (and fraction thereof) of downtime for the outage that extends past the SLA availability guarantee.

Being Quoted

Pricing for the small business T1 service depends on tariffs in place, but typically, a six-voice line and 512K Internet access service runs in the mid-$300s per month. Couple this with very competitive in-state and long distance calling plans and the service will usually cost less then what a business owner is currently paying for segregated services and slower speeds.

Service features to consider are detailed below:

1. Make sure the provider has an SLA comparable to the typical guarantees listed above;

2. Compare long distance and intra-state fees, as they can vary widely;

3. Do not sign a contract for more than two years, as technology and rates change too fast to be locked in for any longer;

4. Be sure you can re-negotiate your contract if new rates or plans are released;

5. Obtain a thorough evaluation of your present phone and Internet access services and a good estimate of future costs;

6. Beware of "box droppers," which are telecom representatives that only want to make a sale, but won't be available after you sign the contact. Sign up with a company that supports growing customer relationships, as this helps to ensure that you'll kept abreast of new offerings that might save you more money or add more capability, for the same cost, during your contract.

Small Business T1s are providing reliable and affordable communication services for small- to medium-sized businesses that only large corporations could afford before. Now might be the time for your business to consider this service.

Russ Hewitt is the president of The Connextion, a local Internet service provider and web design firm located in Ellicott City. He can be reached at 410-461-5430 or rdhewitt@connext.net.

This article appeared in The Business Monthly in January, 2004.