Companies waste billions on Gigabit Ethernet

FIRMS INSTALLING Gigabit Ethernet to the desktop will waste more than $100 billion over the next five years, according to bean counters, Gartner.

According to Network World, Gartner analysts Mark Fabbi and Bob Hafner told a Gartner Symposium IT Expo presentation on network design, that companies will buy much more bandwidth than they can actually use.

Executives were mistaken that they should buy more bandwidth just in case they needed it. Fabbie said that more often this "just in case" notion never happens. Fabbi and Hafner said companies should only buy as much bandwidth as they really need for two years.

They added that outfits should use WAN optimisation tools to reduce network traffic, rather than splashing out on more bandwidth.

Fabbi reckons that most companies bandwidth needs will grow by 35 per cent a year. If you buy the WAN tools you can defer buying more for three years.

Hafner added that companies should not spend cash on IP phones with large display screens. Cheaper phones could save the company $150-$350 savings which would be better spent on unified communications software. µ

L'INQ
Network World