Megapath and Expanets Prove to be 'Priceless'

Simply put, because the two companies save him time and money. While keeping a rein on spending is key for any IT manager, being able to improve companywide communications and relieve the headache of managing myriad telco relationships is, well, priceless, Huber said.

Alliance, Houston owns and manages 197 apartment communities across the United States, all of which needed to be tied to Alliance's central database.

Most communication between the various locations and the central database was being handled via e-mail, phone calls and faxes, but e-mail via dial-up was overloading the system.

"Employees would send weekly reports that were uploaded [from a central location by my IT staff, but everyone sent e-mails at once, so it would be a week or a month before the information was processed and sent back to other locations," Huber said. "On top of that, e-mails were sent via dial-up connections, which was very painful."

MegaPath and Expanets deployed a DSL solution that renders employee communications instantaneous, Huber said. Staffers use their browsers to access a Web-based application that allows them to send, receive and analyze information in realtime.

Expanets, Alliance's original partner and networking equipment provider, brought MegaPath in on the deal to negotiate broadband contracts with several telcos. By leveraging its relationships with a dozen carriers and its own private network, MegaPath connected all of Alliance's locations, said Dan Foster, chief marketing and sales officer at MegaPath, Pleasanton.

"We were able to give them a national footprint,something they couldn't get from individual carriers, CLECs or RBOCs," he said.

Huber attempted to negotiate contracts with several connectivity providers, but the cost was prohibitive and he would have had to negotiate and manage the contracts himself, he said.

"Every time we got [carriers to come down on broadband costs, they raised the prices for phone lines," Huber said. "We wouldn't have been able to get the deal that we did if not for MegaPath. They pull more weight with and give more business to a provider like Bell South then we ever could."

In addition, Huber has to make only one phone call to resolve any connectivity issues that may arise.

MegaPath, which supports several service providers such as Expanets, offers a tiered partner program that starts with Access Partners.

The Access initiative targets systems integrators and consultants interested in recommending MegaPath services including T1/T3, Business DSL, Home Office DSL, Dial-up, VPN and Web hosting.

MegaPath provides all sales and operations support and maintains the customer relationship, as in the case of Alliance. The partner receives a onetime referral fee equal to the recurring monthly revenue.

The Advantage Agent program targets master agents, VARs, ASPs and network integrators that are willing to make a greater commitment to partnering in return for additional recurring monthly revenue and dedicated support and training, Foster said.

Advantage partners handle the sales cycle, while MegaPath provides all installation, technical support, billing and customer care. Agents receive a monthly commission for the life of the account.

The Virtual Broadband Carrier (VBC) program focuses on midsize ISPs, regional CLECs and national carriers interested in reselling DSL and T1s nationwide. The VBC partners provide primary customer care and technical support and receives "aggressive" unbundled wholesale pricing based on total monthly billed revenue in return.