Lumen Technologies says its Network-as-Service (NaaS) platform Internet On-Demand, has expanded beyond its own network in an effort to simplify connectivity for customers who want to link to off-net entities.
The press release says that connecting outside the network can require dealing with multiple contracts and service models. The expansion addresses those obstacles through collaborations with network providers for last-mile connections.
Lumen says that the collaborations with network providers have expanded its Internet On-Demand service to more than 10 million new locations. No details about the nature of the collaborations — such as how many they are or where they are focused — are included in the press release.
Lumen’s Internet On-Demand provides pay-as-you-go connectivity that can scale up or down within minutes, the company says. It enables customers to use a portal to choose from flexible bandwidth tiers, add static or dynamic routing options and security features and pay hourly for what is used.
“Customers tell us their biggest challenge is reach — getting reliable, on-demand connectivity wherever their business operates,” Lumen Technologies Chief Technology and Product Officer Dave Ward said in a press release.
“For too long, businesses have been constrained by geography, but we’re eliminating that barrier. By extending Lumen’s Internet On-Demand service beyond our network, we’re meeting businesses where they are and delivering one self-service solution that gives them the speed and flexibility they need to compete.”
Last month, Lumen Technologies said it had made significant progress in its buildout of the backbone for the artificial intelligence (AI) economy. It said that it was progressing towards its goal of adding 34 million new intercity fiber miles by the end of 2028, bringing its total of intercity fiber miles to 47 million.
In August, Lumen announced demand generated by AI and multi-cloud architectures had led it to offer 400 Gbps Ethernet and IP services at more than 70 third-party data centers in 15 densely connected metropolitan markets. More data centers were slated for the upgrade.
