Today, Level 3 Communications launched an enhanced wide area Ethernet data networking service in the U.S. and Europe called (3)Flex Ethernet service to be marketed to enterprises. NetCologne, one of the leading regional carriers in Germany, will be among the first users of the service.
The (3)Flex Ethernet service, which replaces the company's (3)Packet service, features new capabilities and expanded availability. The service can handle video, voice and data on one network, and offers customers the capability to connect multinode, fully meshed networks. The service also provides guaranteed quality of service that can be managed as applications require.
Level 3 will market (3)Flex Ethernet to its service provider customers through its direct sales force, and to enterprise customers primarily through other service providers, system integrators and value-added resellers.
"(3)Flex Ethernet provides our customers with more flexibility to manage their applications by enabling them to take advantage of the low cost and simplicity of Ethernet technology," says Charles Meyers, president of IP Services for Level 3. "And by incorporating the new local access capability, we're now able to provide an end-to-end data networking service that leverages the benefits and wide use of Ethernet technology from the LAN to the WAN. And we can do it with the security and performance of more costly traditional data networking solutions."
