Businesses of all shapes and sizes are becoming increasingly heavily reliant upon the internet connection. Unity is still navigating the many questions about what the best type of internet connection is for businesses, especially what the difference is between a leased line and standard broadband solutions. This blog shapes and answers the internet question. But ultimately, it depends primarily on the customer’s business.
Contention
Contention ratio is the number of users competing for a connection, when sharing a network connection with other businesses, there will be a level of competition for bandwidth. The bandwidth connection is divided between the number of users. To avoid slow internet speeds caused by contention is to use the internet at off-peak times when downloading large files or using the internet on a much heavier basis. It is not always easy to utilise the best part of the connection in off-peak times
Broadband is one of the solutions that is not a dedicated connection, thus, meaning the connection is shared with other users. Whereas, a leased line, is a primary dedicated connection, therefore zero contention ratio. Businesses are connected directly to the local exchange and therefore shared access is not needed.
Connection Speeds
Leased lines tend to get higher connection speeds when compared to a standard traditional broadband connection. Additionally, providing symmetrical connection speeds. Meaning, download speeds, and upload speeds are similar. With a traditional broadband connection, the download speed is usually a lot quicker than the upload speed. The quicker the upload speed the better the online experience will be, and the easier it is for businesses to upload data to the Internet. In hindsight, this is particularly useful if there are a lot of users who utilise cloud technology within their business. Large off-site backups can take hours over a traditional broadband connection, therefore leased lines offer a faster speed and connection
A leased line connection is fixed, enabling businesses to get exactly what you pay for.
Service Level Agreements (SLAs)
Our SLAs come as standard with Leased Lines, but not traditional broadband connections, meaning expert care from us. A Service Level Agreement is deemed a minimum standard for you to expect. The provider defines how long fixes will take before you are due compensation or refund. Subject to price and feasibility
You have no guarantee as to the time any fix will take when it comes to broadband, and you’re not always, due a refund or compensation in an event of an outage.
In 9/10 cases, we’d recommend a leased line over standard broadband. Although it costs more, and often than not ties you into a longer contract, the benefits far outweigh the costs. A dedicated leased line supported by SLAs ensures a robust internet connection that customers can rely upon. No worry about downtime or slow speeds being of detriment to business.
