Rick Adams President & CEO UUNET Technologies, Inc
Providers of AlterNet Internet Services
3110 Fairview Park Drive, Suite 570
Falls Church, VA 22042
USA alternet-info@uunet.uu.net +1 800 4UUNET4 +1 703 204 8000


Buying an Internet Connection is a lot like buying a computer. As with buying a computer, your choice of Internet providers should be driven by your intended use. If you are looking for a minimum cost, bare bones computer for your kids, you might seek out the lowest priced system in the back of a magazine or even assemble something yourself from parts bought at a flea market. However, if you are buying something for your company that your business will depend on, you would probably choose differently.

For your business, you might consider buying the most expensive solution exercising the theory that you get what you pay for. However, once you've really studied the question, the right choice might well turn out to be a mid-range system from a stable, nationally recognized provider.

There are some low cost IP service suppliers who claim to be just as good as the others, but may not be in business next year to prove it. Conversely, there are other suppliers who will attempt to justify providing the same level of services as their competitors, at many times the price.

This guide suggests a set of questions to pose and evaluation criteria against which you can compare and contrast the different Internet service companies you have to choose from. In this exciting but still maturing market, the lure of Internet connectivity and Enterprise Wide Area Network outsourcing will require many companies to evaluate service providers within the next couple of years. The intent of this guide is to stimulate your thinking on the subject while challenging you to challenge your provider!

SELECTION CRITERIA FOR AN INTERNET SERVICE PROVIDER

Network Topology

Network topology is one of the most important criteria to consider when choosing a provider. Looking at the network topology can help you understand how vulnerable the network is to outages, how much capacity is available when the network is loaded more heavily than usual and most importantly, how well the provider understands network engineering.

Any competent provider should be happy to show you their network topology. It's a good way for them to demonstrate how well they understand their business .

Look closely at what they show you. Some providers will give you a virtual backbone map. Virtual networks are meaningless. Your data does not travel on a virtual network -- it travels on a physical network. A virtual network map is merely a representation of all the theoretical paths that could be implemented by the supplier's virtual circuit switching equipment and is an attempt to side step the issue of physical capability. Your supplier needs to understand the physical network to understand what is important for serving their customers. If they tell you that the physical topology is unimportant, they either don't understand how to engineer a network or they are trying to disguise something. Remember, there is nothing inherently wrong with using frame relay, ATM , or other technologies that use virtual circuits as part of the backbone. However, your provider must understand the physical topology on top of which their virtual (logical) network is running.

2. Network Link Speeds

Now that we're evaluating the physical topology, let's look closely at the speeds of the backbone links. If they won't show you the speeds, then they're really hiding something. The first thing to understand is that your network connection can only be as fast as the slowest link in the path.

It doesn't matter if you are connected to a T-3 node if there is a 56 Kbps link between you and your destination. This is like hooking a half-inch garden hose to a fire hydrant. The limit is the garden hose, not how much water the hydrant can put out!

Next, ask if the topology you are being shown is operational now. Some providers like to show links that are not operational as part of their backbone infrastructure. Some even go as far as to label the planned links with solid lines and the operational links with dashed lines! You're in for a big surprise if you don't notice this switch! Similarly, don't confuse the press release about a new high speed network link with that link actually
being operational.

3. External Network Links

Now look at the external links of your candidate's backbone. Do they have a
single connection to the rest of the world, e.g., via NSFNET? This is a potential single point of failure. Look for multiple, direct connections to
other network providers. The more of these connections the better. This shows that the provider is concerned about external connectivity and does not want to be dependent on some third party for interconnection. If they have a single connection to the outside world, ask them how often it fails and how long they usually are isolated. If they can't give you these statistics, are they managing their network well enough to manage yours?

Check to see if they have their own national backbone or if they rely on NSFNET for national connectivity. If they rely on NSFNET for connectivity, ask them what their plans are for national connectivity when the free NSFNET backbone goes away in April 1994. Now ask yourself if you have enough confidence in their plan to risk your connectivity to the rest of the world.

4. High Speed Backbone

If they claim to have a high speed backbone, check to see if it is that speed now or if it is just "planned." Some providers claim to have a T-3 (45 Mbps) backbone, but if pushed, will admit that what they really mean is "T-3 capable." A 2400 bps dial-up modem is also T-3 capable because tomorrow it is capable of being replaced with T-3. If they are misleading you about something as fundamental as their network capacity, what else are they trying to sneak past you?

The next thing to ask yourself about high speed backbones is if you can actually connect to it for a reasonable cost. All service providers require you to buy the local loop segment from your facility to their closest Point Of (service) Presence or POP. You will have to buy this directly or indirectly from one of the telephone companies serving your local area. Some providers offer their service in such a way that the local loop cost is greater than their fee to provide you with the service in the first place. Think of the hose analogy again. If you're limited by the local loop speed because the price of a high speed loop is not cost effective, then how useful is a high speed backbone?

Many providers will claim some impressive number of POPs. Find out what constitutes a POP by their definition. Some providers claim a POP anywhere they deliver service. Find out if many of their "POPs" are single customers at the tail end of low speed lines or if those POPs house high end routers linked by physically redundant high speed connections. Network POPs should be designed to scale with additional customers who, themselves, have growing requirements.

5. Technology

The technology being used to operate the network is also critically important. Today, there is plenty of commercial quality router, switch, and modem technology available from companies whose business is to make that equipment. Any provider still relying on their own internally developed equipment is doing you a disservice. You deserve the benefits of leading edge, production technology, not aging hardware that has been contorted into a use never intended by its designers.

Sometimes a provider can have a bad case of "Not Invented Here" syndrome. This is a sure sign of long term problems. Remember, you are buying a service. The provider of this service should be using the best available technology to deliver this service. They should not use the service as an excuse to use surplus equipment and technology. The recent popularity of Internet connectivity has some strange bedfellows offering connectivity services. Again, ask yourself who you think has the better incentive to make a network connection work and keep working: the researcher who gets paid regardless of whether it actually works or the commercial supplier who only gets paid if it's working?

6. Build or Buy?

Another worrisome syndrome to watch out for is the "Control Freak." Some providers claim that they need to run even the lowest layers of their network to deliver quality service. This is simply not true. The truth of the matter is all Internet service providers rely on one or more telephone companies to assemble "their" network. The only way for any company to build "their own network" is to physically dig their own trenches and lay their own fiber into the ground.

The only real question is at which physical link or transport level your potential service provider buys from the much larger phone companies. If the lower level infrastructure and service (such as T-1, T-3, Frame Relay or ATM needed to support an Internet service provider's value added service is offered by a phone company, it's not cost effective or in the best interest of the provider's customers for the provider to even think about building and operating it. The provider simply can not match the economy of scale that comes with being a phone company. If your provider has chosen to build something when they could have bought a more reliable service more cheaply, why should you have to pay for their misplaced priorities? (If they can do it better and cheaper than the phone companies, why aren't the phone companies buying it from them?) The job of an Internet service provider is to manage and maintain your IP/OSI level connectivity. Look for strong relationships and partnerships between your Internet service provider and the nation's host of Alternative (Bypass), Local (RBOC), and Long Distance (IXC) carriers.

7. Technical Staff

Probably the most important aspect to consider when choosing a provider is the quality of their technical staff. The technical staff are the ones who will get your connection running to begin with and then keep it and the network running in the future.

Check the experience of their staff in TCP/IP data networking. They should have several people who have been running TCP/IP data networks for close to 10 years. The average experience is also relevant, as it's likely that you won't usually deal with their most senior people. However, it's reassuring to know that the very senior people are available if you need them. Make sure that their "technical" staff consists of people who are experienced with TCP/IP and not of people whose previous assignment was "networking related" and have now been assigned to this new project.

Make sure the provider has adequate staffing to cover the usual situations. If they send people to Interop for a week, how many people are back at the office running things and how skilled are they? If they only have a few technical people and they all go to shows, then what happens if your network connection breaks while they are gone for a week? (Be suspicious if they say they can handle it by dialing back in...)

Find out what their technical staff turnover is. If people are leaving, find out why and who is left to keep your connection operational. Many suppliers of service have single points of failure in their staff capacity as well.

8. Network Operations Center

Check out their network operations center ("NOC"). It should be staffed by at least one person always. This includes nights, weekends, holidays, and during important sporting events. If they are quick to claim "7x24" operations, you might ask them what they provide the other 358 days of the year. An amazing number of providers claiming 7x24 operations really mean that someone will answer the phone all the time, not that they will have someone capable of dealing with your problem. An answering service or beeper number is no substitute for a trained network engineer. Insist on one being always available and not just on call, as you can never tell when your connection will fail and what critical project it will have an impact on.

Ask how the NOC is staffed. While it is normal to have only junior people on duty at odd hours of the night, it is critical that senior personnel be on site at least 8 AM-8 PM Eastern time, Monday through Friday. If your connection fails during normal business hours, you deserve to have very senior people immediately available to work on it.

9. Organization

Find out how long the company has been in the IP business. Determine if they are going to be in business for the long run. Maybe that deal is a bit too good to be true for a good reason. Quality networks are not built on a shoestring budget. The pricing may look attractive now, but the passage of time often reveals hidden costs and price increases, the greatest of which can be having to switch providers.

Ask about their financial stability. While you don't need to see copies of their audited financial statements, you should at least be comfortable that they have a positive cash flow and are going to be in business next month to provide your connectivity. Determine if they have one or two major accounts that provide a disproportionate amount of revenue and what impact losing those accounts would have on their ability to maintain your quality of service.

Are they an independent operating unit with its own staff and facilities or are they run out of the back door of a larger organization that doesn't know they exist? How critical do you think having the support of the parent organization is to their long term viability?

10. "Non-Profit"

At this stage of the market's development, some providers are operating from behind questionable non-profit cloaks. Some may be subjecting their sponsoring organizations to questionable legal and/or tax risks by selling commercial services in competition with for-profit corporations. The IRS requires that non-profits keep track of all revenue that is unrelated to their non-profit charter and pay the tax on it just like a for-profit corporation. Why should you care about your provider's tax troubles? It's all about selecting a provider that can supply you with the highest quality, best price performing, reliable Internet and Enterprise WAN network
services. Legal or tax problems can provide a major "distraction" to the provider. As these services become more and more an integral component of your successful business, your choice is more critical and all dimensions of your supplier are integral to your decision. There will be a shake out in the Internet service business and only the strong will survive.

Is the company rapidly growing and expanding or is it a stagnant anachronism and merely resting on its laurels and remembering the good old days when they were the only provider in the area? How long do you think they will survive in competition with healthy, growing companies?

Is the group you're dealing with actually providing the network service or are they fronting, merely acting as a local aggregator for some larger entity? If so, what is the health of the larger provider and why should the larger provider give your connection the same attention that they are giving their directly connected customers?

Does the provider have a straightforward internal business model or do they have a series of sub-contracts of sub-contracts and shell games with wholly owned subsidiaries? Why are they adding unnecessary levels of complication and expense, and why should you pay for it?

12. Commercial Activity

Is the provider a member of the Commercial Internet Exchange Association ("CIX")? This is a necessity if you are considering making commercial use of the Internet. If they are a member, see if they are really connected to the other members or have they just joined the association without interconnecting. Some groups advertise membership in the Association but have never interconnected. Some go as far as implying that they are connected to CIX members when they merely serve as a transit network for providers who are really members and are really interconnected. Don't let them confuse you. Insist on a straight answer.

Does the provider require you to abide by an Appropriate Use Policy? Do you understand it? Is it ever enforced? Do you need to worry about it suddenly
being enforced capriciously?

13. Full Range of Services

Does your provider have a full range of services, from low end to high end, or is it just filling a niche? If you need to increase or decrease your service level, will you need to switch providers?
Does your provider offer true one stop shopping? Can they supply equipment, manuals, training, consulting, etc., as well as basic service? Can they provide connectivity throughout the country (and the rest of the world) or do they just serve a small region? Can they provide service in other
countries through established partnerships with international suppliers and bill you on the same invoice as your domestic service?

14. Customer Base

Find out how many customers the provider has. Don't be mislead by the total number of customers the provider may brag about having. Some like to claim all of the individuals they have connected, while most others only count the
organizations they have connected. The number of organizations willing to pay $1,000 per month for connectivity is a lot better indicator of the service quality than the number of individuals willing to pay $10.

15. Comparison Shopping

Do a price/benefit analysis. Some providers may appear to be priced less than others. Make sure you do an "apples to apples" comparison. Don't compare one provider's no frills service with another's full service offering. Don't be confused by the names of the products. What one provider thinks is Basic may be minimal or useless to you.

Don't be afraid to ask for customer references and talk to them. See what issues current customers have. They will likely be similar to yours. If you get a reference, make sure there is no insider relationship with the provider such as an investor or a member of the board of directors.

Find out where their new customers come from. The most interesting statistic is how many of their customers have switched from other providers!

Conclusion

The astonishing, worldwide growth of the Internet as a public access computer network has all kinds of new users, large and small, investigating the virtues of "getting on the Internet." Today, more and more companies are using the Internet to conduct their business, communicate with and support their customers, exchange electronic mail with hundreds of thousands of users, and seek and find valuable information leading to competitive advantage. This resource is indispensable once turned on. The choice of the service provider to be responsible for ensuring this vital business tool is the most important decision you will make when embarking on the Internet.

Hopefully this white paper has provided assistance in examining some of the issues and raising some of the questions that will lead to a long and trusted relationship with your full service, professional Internet service provider.

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