Cloud Offerings, Security Leadership, Industry-Specific Innovation Drive Verizon Business Success in Third-Quarter 2010

BASKING RIDGE, N.J., Oct. 26 /PRNewswire/ -- Businesses and government agencies worldwide, and their key stakeholders, were beneficiaries of the advanced communications and IT offerings, industry-specific solutions and forward-thinking expertise delivered by Verizon Business during the third quarter.  

The company continued to implement its "everything-as-a-service" strategy, introducing new cloud and security offerings and a host of industry-specific innovations.

"Our ability to tailor customer solutions while setting new industry benchmarks is a hallmark of our business," said Kerry Bailey, Verizon senior vice president for enterprise strategy.  "We're helping customers evolve their business models by improving the IT-delivery model with everything-as-a-service, while helping to create a more secure, borderless work and lifestyle for our global society."

New Offerings Advance Better Outcomes

Verizon Business rolled out several strategic IT and communications technology solutions and professional consulting capabilities during the quarter to help transform business-as-usual approaches and create new opportunities across private industry and the public sector.  The capabilities include:

• A global data center expansion   that will extend the company's flagship cloud computing services suite -- Computing as a Service (CaaS) -- into centers in San Jose, Calif.; London; and Canberra, Australia.  In addition, CaaS data centers to serve U.S. government customers will come online in Miami and Culpeper, Va., next year to further enable the delivery of private clouds via data centers connected to Verizon's MPLS network, Private IP.
• An expanded agreement and field trial with VMware to offer a new hybrid cloud computing solution -- Computing as a Service (CaaS) enabled by VMware vCloud™ Datacenter -- that will enable enterprises to move their applications to the cloud more quickly. The offering is designed to help enterprises leverage the scalability and cost effectiveness of the public cloud while delivering the levels of security, performance and control available in private cloud environments.
• The introduction of Computing as a Service SMB, for small to mid-sized businesses to take advantage of high-performance, pay-as-you-go IT solutions, and to customize server, storage and network resources to meet changing business requirements.  Additionally, CaaS became the first cloud-based solution to successfully complete the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) audit for storing, processing and transmitting credit card information on its dedicated computing platform.  
• The Verizon Health Information Exchange, a pioneering, cloud-based service that facilitates electronic sharing of patient information in a standardized format, securely accessible via the Web, with any U.S. physician.  As a result, health care providers will be able to obtain a complete view of a patient's health history, no matter where the data is stored.
• Video collaboration and professional consulting services tailored to help courts and prison health care systems operate more efficiently and effectively.  Verizon Telejustice Collaboration Solutions provide video collaboration tools to facilitate the judicial process from arraignment to parole hearings.  Verizon Teleheath Collaboration for Prisons enables prisons to cost effectively, quickly and securely provide inmate access to health care while mitigating the need to transport prisoners to medical facilities.
• Professional IT consulting services to integrate and employ a wide range of original technology at two new high-tech sports and entertainment arenas, the New Meadowlands Stadium and the Consol Energy Center.  Both venues are changing the game for sports fans and concertgoers by creating a new, multimedia live event experience.

World-Class Network Expands Reach and Capability

Verizon Business also took steps to expand the reach and capability of its world-class network.  

The steps included:

• Installation of 17 Private IP edge routers, for a total of 798 edge routers in 228 sites in 60 countries.  This included the addition of seven new sites increasing diversity and reach in Barcelona and Madrid, Spain; St. Petersburg, Russia; San Jose, Calif.; New York City; Oklahoma City; and Anchorage, Alaska.

• Addition of three new converged packet architecture switches in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates; and New York City.  This brings the total number of CPA switches to 149 in 131 sites across 36 countries.

• Preparation of Private IP for 100G speeds, with the installation of scalable 40G routers in key locations, including New Jersey; New York; Baltimore; Washington, D.C.; and Hamburg, Germany.  Connectivity was added to deepen Private IP presence across the U.S., Europe and the Middle East to accommodate continued traffic growth.

• Addition of 36 more GigE customers, as demand for 10GigE services continued to grow during the quarter.  There are now more than 150 10GigE customers active on the Internet network, with more than 50 customers in the provisioning or activation stages.

In addition to introducing compelling new capabilities during the quarter and expanding its global reach, the company continued to demonstrate technology and thought leadership with the release of the third annual "Data Breach Investigations Report," a first-of-its-kind collaboration with the U.S. Secret Service. The report found that breaches of electronic records last year involved more insider threats, greater use of social engineering and continued strong involvement of organized criminal groups.  

The report's key findings were widely disseminated, raising awareness of the need to pay close attention to individual and organizational security.

Industry Recognition Continues

Both customers and industry analysts continued to recognize Verizon for its service performance and customer care.  AEG, the American Red Cross and the U.S. General Services Administration completed new agreements with Verizon Business for a wide range of advanced communications and information technology solutions.  The company also received several notable industry-analyst marks of distinction, including:

• Frost & Sullivan named Verizon Business a Top Provider of Global Managed Security Services in its 2010 "Global Managed Security Service Providers Rollup" report.
• Nemertes Research named Verizon as the Top Provider among Market Leaders for multiprotocol label switching and Carrier Ethernet services, with two 2010 Nemertes PilotHouse Awards.
• Gartner, Inc. placed Verizon Business in the Leaders quadrant in the "Magic Quadrant for Communications Outsourcing and Professional Services, North America." (1)
• Gartner, Inc. placed Verizon Business in the Leaders quadrant in the "Magic Quadrant for Asia/Pacific Network Service Providers." (2)
• Verizon has earned certification as ISO/IEC 20000-1-compliant for its Government Enterprise Network Operations Center (GENOC), located in Cary, N.C. The GENOC, launched in 1997, provides managed services for local, state and federal government customers.

(1) Gartner, Inc. "Magic Quadrant for Communications Outsourcing and Professional Services, North America," June 30, 2010, Author Eric Goodness; ID Number: G00175375.

(2) Gartner, Inc., "Magic Quadrant for Asia/Pacific Network Service Providers" June 28, 2010, author To Chee-Eng, Bjarne Munch, Vincent Fu.

About Verizon Business

Verizon Business, a unit of Verizon Communications (NYSE, NASDAQ: VZ), is a global leader in communications and IT solutions. We combine professional expertise with one of the world's most connected IP networks to deliver award-winning communications, IT, information security and network solutions.  We securely connect today's extended enterprises of widespread and mobile customers, partners, suppliers and employees -- enabling them to increase productivity and efficiency and help preserve the environment.  Many of the world's largest businesses and governments -- including 96 percent of the Fortune 1000 and thousands of government agencies and educational institutions -- rely on our professional and managed services and network technologies to accelerate their business. Find out more at www.verizonbusiness.com.

VERIZON'S ONLINE NEWS CENTER: Verizon news releases, executive speeches and biographies, media contacts, high-quality video and images, and other information are available at Verizon's News Center on the World Wide Web at www.verizon.com/news. To receive news releases by e-mail, visit the News Center and register for customized automatic delivery of Verizon news releases.

About the Gartner Magic Quadrant

The Magic Quadrant is copyrighted 2010 by Gartner, Inc. and is reused with permission. The Magic Quadrant is a graphical representation of a marketplace at and for a specific time period. It depicts Gartner's analysis of how certain vendors measure against criteria for that marketplace, as defined by Gartner. Gartner does not endorse any vendor, product or service depicted in the Magic Quadrant, and does not advise technology users to select only those vendors placed in the "Leaders" quadrant. The Magic Quadrant is intended solely as a research tool, and is not meant to be a specific guide to action. Gartner disclaims all warranties, express or implied, with respect to this research, including any warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose.

SOURCE Verizon