Open Network Featured Article

For those hoping to see Big Switch Network cross the pond to the U.K., your wish is about to come true thanks to a set of new contacts, a sound base of paying customers, and a market that's clearly eager for more software-defined networking (SDN) services. This is a development that will likely prove concerning to Cisco (News - Alert), who has held the whip hand in the application centric infrastructure (ACI) business in the region for some time.

Big Switch Networks has been laying the groundwork for this British invasion for quite some time now, establishing key partnerships with Dell (News - Alert) and building a bedrock of users paying for its services elsewhere. Now, with a market clearly demanding services in the U.K., Big Switch can make its own play for the market that was largely dominated by Cisco.

Though Big Switch has already had a presence in the U.K. thanks to that Dell partnership—Dell's been offering Big Switch's Big Cloud Fabric system for some time as an option on its 1/10GbE and 10/40GbE switch lines—this move allows Big Switch to go beyond Dell, and offer up a fuller array of services not only in the U.K. but potentially elsewhere beyond. Big Switch reportedly plans to target public and private sector businesses alike, going after tech firms, financial services, manufacturing concerns, communications service providers (CSPs) and more.

Already Big Switch has some impressive clients thanks to that Dell connection; Verizon (News - Alert) is reportedly working with Big Switch, using the Big Cloud Fabric system along with the OpenStack platform from Red Hat to create one of the biggest network functions virtualization (NFV) deployments around. Big Switch is eager to become one of the top three firms in the SDN market around, and with what it's done so far, it may well be on track to land that lofty goal.

The good news for Big Switch is that it already has a user base, so it has recurring income coming into the coffers as well as a base from which to market. Companies who are already using a product with satisfaction and success become excellent marketing tools; when users are visibly succeeding with a product, others believe this success is transferable to at least some degree, and are thus more inclined to buy. So Big Switch isn't walking in cold, but rather with the support of user testimonials. That makes new customers more likely to be current ones, and gives Big Switch a little edge.

Cisco's current success, however, represents inertia, and inertia is tough to break. Big Switch's own current success will be some help, though it's going to have a long road ahead to break into current ranks.