Vertical Systems Group Ranks Business Ethernet Leaders

Vertical Systems Group’s Mid-Year 2011 U.S. Business Ethernet Leaderboard expanded to include nine providers, according to new research on enterprise installations of Ethernet services. The nine providers (in rank order) are AT&T, Verizon, tw telecom, CenturyLink/Qwest, Cox, Time Warner Cable, XO, Cogent and Level 3.

The U.S. Leaderboard ranks service providers that hold four percent or more of billable retail ports.

"Competition heated up in the U.S. market during the first half of 2011, with very strong enterprise demand that is tracking the 30+ percent port growth we quantified for 2010," said Rick Malone, principal at Vertical Systems Group, in a statement. "Also as expected, service provider consolidation is having a measurable impact on the market. CenturyLink made its Leaderboard debut in fourth position as a result of its merger with Qwest. Among the pending Ethernet-related transactions we’re watching for the second half of the year are Level 3’s acquisition of Global Crossing, and Windstream’s acquisition of Paetec."