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By Tony Hallett, 13 October 2003 17:19

NEWS Cable and Wireless has started offering an interconnect service aimed at guaranteeing the quality of corporate connections between locations around the world. C&W Carrier Connect will take advantage of the growing demand for IP VPNs, which allow secure communication between sites. Analysts generally see revenues in this market trebling over the next four years. IP VPNs often now take advantage of a technology called MPLS (multiprotocol label switching) for greater flexibility and quality of service (QoS), however QoS can become difficult for carriers to maintain as traffic jumps from one network to another internationally. C&W has seen this opportunity and its latest offering means other operators can piggyback on its network, which is in 80 countries. Duncan Black, C&W director corporate solutions strategy, said: "Interconnect used to be about minutes or bandwidth. Now the bar's been raised. You have to do quality too." C&W's first taker is Reach, an Asian wholesale carrier, which will offer its customers QoS-assured connections to Europe. Peter Ip, Reach's global manager Internet Access and Data Services, said his company has partnered with C&W because of its geographical coverage, features and availability. C&W says some of its customers, such as HJ Heinz, Marks and Spencer and network equipment giant Cisco, already benefit from its coverage across Europe. Black wouldn't rule out deals where it would make use of others' networks in areas where his company has no or little presence.