With the number of service providers increasing in all the circles and focus shifting from voice to data, the carriers are deploying or are in the process of deploying lot of data and IP infrastructure. Even service providers are now focusing on value-added services.

Service providers are realizing the potential of IP/MPLS based networks to meet customer expectations via converged networks. This has resulted in increased expectations from router vendors to provide feature-rich, affordable and dependable products.

There is a lot of change happening in routers. With broadband picking up, vendors are planning to have storage as well as optical devices to be integrated so that the packet can be handled in the best possible way. Even built-in security helps carriers, because with the increase in application seven the threats are increasing. In fact, they are increasing at a faster pace than ever.

With things moving at a fast pace in terms of subscribers and services, there is no doubt that today’s core will be tomorrow’s edge, today’s broadband will be tomorrow’s narrowband, and high-range routers will tomorrow become mid-range routers.

On the carrier router front, Juniper is the undisputed leader in India. The company has done pretty well on the core router front. Cisco occupies the number two slot and has bagged few deals on the carrier front.

Recently, Juniper Networks pioneered the concept of the ‘Infranet’, a vision for a network architecture that enables the seamless integration of multiple carrier networks to offer end-to-end services. 

Infranet will help in enabling a single-packet infrastructure for all communications whether initiated by human or machine, with quality, security and reliability from anywhere to anywhere at any time.