MARKETWATCH
www.comms-dealer.com
EXIT MATTERS...
BROADBAND
update:
Andrew Dickinson, Sales and
By Nigel Cook, CEO of Evolution Capital
Marketing Director at Griffin
Quite apart from the rewards, people are
Internet, looks at why a plethora
often encouraged to build businesses
by the adrenalin rush that comes from
of choice in the NGN market is
a blend of excitement and risk. When
driving demand for specialist ISPs.
Surtees described fox-hunting as having
the excitement of war with just 25 per
cent of its danger, he could well have
been defining the entrepreneurial drive.
As I have probably mentioned in previous W
hile there are a number of network
operators promoting their NGNs
(Next Generation Networks) they
columns, I’m a history buff and it’s easy all seem to have different strategies, products
to see parallels between ancient wars and service offerings. Some are focusing on
and modern business pressures. For creating more robust business-grade ADSL
example, in Juliet Barker’s study of Henry products, while others are looking to roll out
V at Agincourt she shows how a small the next generation of Ethernet products over
army, well led and managed, mobile twisted pair. At the other extreme we find
and quick to react, overcame opponents NGN operators from the residential market
who were vastly numerically superior. targeting the SoHo (Small Office Home
Office) single line sector with cheap best-
One of Henry’s officers opined that effort broadband bundled with calls and
10,000 more archers would be useful. lines. Similarly, approaches to the channel
Henry disagreed. He would not wish for vary, with some dedicated to a channel only-
reinforcements. With faith, he said, the strategy and others happy to compete with
English, ‘Would be able to overcome their channels even to the extent of launching
the opposing arrogance of the French products unavailable to their own resellers.
who boast their own strength’.
Ideally, resellers would like to pick and choose
Henry showed grace under pressure from four or five different NGNs but practically
and confidence when facing heavy this is impossible. Most of the operators have
Andrew Dickinson
odds. The challenges in today’s business basic self-service portals limited to ordering
environment are similar to those faced lines, changing passwords and simple fault more than the reseller would pay by going
in war and the battles you fight in a diagnostics. Most will not provide a first-line direct, and because they are using the
recession are the fiercest – won or technical support option and some not even aggregator’s own IP addressing they can
lost by the narrowest margins. a proper second-line option. Keeping staff move their customers between NGNs without
up to speed with all the different portals, the inconvenience of having to change the
In times like these a business leader must be products and semi–manual fault management end users’ log-in details and IP addresses.
prepared and resolute, and the weapons processes is an administrative overhead few Imagine if you had hundreds of customers
are astute planning and cash management. resellers can afford. And when you consider on an NGN and that network suffered
If you are considering an acquisition a having to train for new products and new prolonged failures or was switched off for
strong fit isn’t just desirable, it’s absolutely staff it becomes unworkable. Griffin’s portal any reason. Without an aggregator you
essential. And post acquisition the business (MOPS) has evolved into a set of tools that would have to contract with a new NGN
must be able to respond quickly to change. mean partners only have to contact the operator, migrate all your lines to them
company for high level escalations and and find a way to re-programme all your
If your character is cast in the bold Henry pre-sales bid support. All of Griffin’s 400-plus customers’ routers before they all left you.
V mould, have deep pockets and a longer partners do their own provisioning and the
term exit plan. You might well acquire to majority do their own first line support. Finally, what if you had a customer that wanted
diversify, and you will need time to scale an inexpensive but secure private network with
the business. On the other hand, if you’re So this is where the true aggregator comes a leased line into their head office, SDSL into
a seasoned acquirer, aiming to improve in. They will integrate at a network level with their warehouses and ADSL2+ for homeworkers?
profitability and your cash position, you’ll the underlying NGN and present resellers with The only way to do this is through an aggregator
probably acquire to consolidate. a full service wrap. By buying at wholesale connected to several leased line and NGN
n
rates the aggregators’ prices are often little suppliers and operating an MPLS core network.
n
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34 COMMS DEALER MAY 2009 www.comms-dealer.com
34 PG Griffin.indd 1 27/4/09 13:38:09
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