Networking Unplugged

Wireless is thriving. The establishment of widely accepted standards means most of the technology's performance and security issues have been, or will be, ironed out. As a result, countless vendors large and small--many of them not even traditional networking companies--have been developing wireless solutions for all aspects of the corporate world.

The availability of affordable, secure broadband, the development of more sophisticated handheld and laptop devices, and the resulting increase in remote workers and telecommuters have combined to make business-class wireless LANs a sector that's receiving as much recent attention as any in the IT industry.

To no one's surprise, Cisco Systems once again won the VARBusiness Annual Report Card (ARC) Business-Class Wireless LANs category, easily outdistancing Hewlett-Packard's ProCurve division, D-Link, Nortel and NetGear. Cisco's third straight win was fueled by the company's stellar Product Innovation, Support and Loyalty scores.

Cisco's advantage over its wireless competitors is its strong data-networking background, which enables the company to offer much more comprehensive solution packages than its competitors.

"It's difficult to use multivendor solutions because it starts to look like a hodgepodge," says Tim Carney, CEO of the Network Guys, a systems integrator in Fremont, Calif. "It's better for the customer if we can present a solution instead of a series of point products."

Although many customers would prefer the simplicity of a single-vendor solution, not everyone feels that way. This is where challengers have already begun to arise for Cisco. Juniper Networks and 3Com both have wireless development projects in the works, and companies such as Avaya, Tropos Networks and ZyXEL Communications also have offerings in this area.

Wireless provider Tropos, while far from being able to topple Cisco, may find that it can make inroads in the market through the channel.

"We're looking for experienced solution providers who can sell, design, deploy and service wireless customers," says Patrick Sloter, channel manager for Tropos. "Even 18 months ago, it was much more difficult to find partners who could do these things than it is now."

That's because partners have sniffed out a market hotspot and ramped up their skills accordingly. Also, wireless-LAN vendors, systems integrators and VARs are finding opportunities outside generic office environments.

Tropos has had success in municipalities that set up wireless networks for emergency first-responders and city employees. "There's no other way besides wireless to deliver ubiquitous coverage over a broad area, and it can be deployed quickly and at a substantially lower cost than wired networks," Sloter says.

The emergence of wireless LANs also is complemented by technologies such as Wi-Fi and WiMAX, both of which have gotten a lot of press for consumer-oriented applications in locations such as airports and coffee shops.

"For the last couple of years, vendors have been developing Wi-Fi networks similar to what cellphones have," says Al Brown, vice president of business development for WFI, an enterprise network services provider in San Diego. "This is enabling us to take wireless to the next level."

The coming year will see big and small vendors continue their search for wireless killer apps. And with development continuing on existing killer apps, such as messaging or RFID-related tools, and devices, such as handheld machines with more comprehensive computing capabilities, the wireless sector promises to become even more competitive. Cisco has a great chance to retain the top WLAN spot in the 2006 ARC, but it may find it is joined in the rankings by some new faces.