Verizon Business has extended its existing relationship with Cisco with three additions to its software defined-wide area network (SD-WAN) offerings.
The first is a co-managed option, based on Cisco’s Viptela technology, that enables enterprise IT staff to hand off some responsibilities to Verizon Business. Customers can control and self-manage SD-WAN security and application policies, but allow the carrier to manage fault, performance and configuration management.
The capability now is available. The idea is to relieve IT’s day-to-day network operations responsibilities while enabling them to retain control of SD-WAN policies and configurations.
The second offering is a product that targets branch office operations, which can be a challenge in an SD-WAN environment. The Viptela-managed SD-WAN platform for the Cisco ISR1100 series provides secure SD-WAN capabilities on a high-performance, low-cost appliance.
The final element of the announcement is the addition of managed service tiers for Cisco SD-WAN that are powered by Cisco Meraki. The new tiers complete the Cisco Meraki “cloud-first platform managed service” and provide management capability for Cisco Meraki MV smart cameras. The tiers provide faster deployment, management and troubleshooting from one pane of glass, the company says.
Verizon SD-WAN
“Global enterprises are taking a hard look at their digital transformation agendas to find ways to win, coming off one of the more challenging years in recent history,” Aamir Hussain, Verizon Business’s Senior Vice President of Business Products, said in a press release about the Verizon SD-WAN additions. “Working with Cisco, we continue to provide innovative solutions that can give customers the choice and tools they need to enhance efficiencies and grow. These new services reflect the significant ongoing joint Cisco and Verizon research and development investments which aim to help customers accelerate change.”
The Cisco announcement is not Verizon Business’s only recent move to expand its SD-WAN managed service portfolio. In December, the carrier added Silver Peak’s Unity EdgeConnect edge platform, which supports the transition to an SD-WAN via an integrated WAN optimization environment for the management of business applications.
