BUSINESS CONNECTIVITY MARKET ASSESSMENT (2018) - CARTESIAN
Ofcom contracted Cartesian to assess how the enterprise was consuming their connectivity in order to plan for future changes to the supply chain.
e good news for the Channel is that, for the most part, smaller organisations still favour VARs over dealing with the network operators and
aggregators directly. However, from the companies interviewed during the research there were both positive and negative perceptions of dealing
with a VAR.
Interviewee views on VARS
Positive Perceptions Negative Perceptions
Better Customer Service
• VARs sometimes seen as o ering a better customer service, partly as
they are smaller
• Some organisations believe that network operators/aggregators will
not be interested in selling to them because they are too small, or
they will deliver poor customer service.
Less Control and Accountability
• VARs need to work with their upstream suppliers in resolving
network faults and provisioning, and some issues can only be
resolved by the end-provider.
• As a result, VARs are seen as a potential cause of additional delays
when xing network faults.
More Negotiation Power
• VARs often perceived to provide lower pricing, especially for smaller
organisations, as they have a stronger commercial leverage with the
CSPs that they buy the services from.
More Costly
• VARs could be more expensive as they add a margin to the services
supplied by the end-providers.
Provider Diversity
• VARs portrayed as provider-agnostic, leveraging assets from several
wholesale providers (“best-in-breed” in each location).
Insuffi cient Scale
• Some larger organisations do not consider VARs to have su cient
scale to be able to deliver services to meet their needs and future
growth prospects, especially those with a multinational footprint.
Liaise with Final Supplier
• Some organisations appreciate the fact that the VAR will liaise with
the network operators, who tend to be harder to communicate with,
and VARs can have stronger relationships with them.
Less Expertise and Knowledge
• Some organisations prefer to deal with traditional network
operators/aggregators as they are perceived as the experts in the
telecom space.
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GUY MILLER, FIBRE FOR EVERYONE DIRECTOR, TALKTALK BUSINESS
“Gigabit is available everywhere via EAD ethernet, but this is still only at the reach of
businesses of a certain size. Gigabit Britain is about empowering every business (and
ultimately every consumer) with an Internet connection that means that bandwidth is never an
issue again. They can get on with their day without being slowed down by poor speeds. For the
channel it will mean a whole new set of products from a whole new set of access providers – a
huge challenge unless they partner with someone who knows how to navigate this new world.
TalkTalk Business will guide Partners through the new connectivity landscape, offering the right
support to maximise new opportunities.”
AltNets are springing up all the time but we must be honest about the fi gures – the number of
connected homes and premises currently does not turn the dial! However, times are changing.
With advances in PIA (duct and pole access), it will be signifi cantly cheaper for AltNets to build
and therefore we will see a ramp up in homes and businesses passed. One of the big challenges
for the UK channel is how to work with multiple access providers who might have different
products, different SLAs, different prices and different APIs and portals.”
Source: Cartesain
CARL GRIVNER,
CHIEF EXECUTIVE
OFFICER, COLT
TECHNOLOGY
SERVICES
“The requirement for
digital skills probably goes
deeper – and starts sooner – than
with partner ecosystems. In order for partners
to equip themselves they should be able to
delve into a deep pool of skilled and emerging
talent. That size of that talent pool will – in part
– be determined by how enthusiastically STEM
is encouraged across the country’s schools,
colleges and universities. A skills shortage
on that front runs the risk of stunting the
development of many devices, services and
applications that will underpin digital living in
the future. So it’s vital that we make a concerted
effort to invest in our future talent. That said,
there’s immense value in partner ecosystems –
or adopting a ‘best-of-breed’ approach – which
will be key for paving the path toward a Digital
Britain.”
www.commsbusiness.co.uk Digital Britain 2019 | 11
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