Here's Who Made Gartner's 2016 Global Network Services Magic Quadrant

Challenger: Level 3

Strengths: Landing in the Challenger's quadrant, Level 3 is expanding its coverage of U.S. markets, thanks to its recent acquisition of U.S. domestic network service provider TW telecom, Rickard said. The deal will also set the stage for Level 3 to expand its SDN offering, Adaptive Network Control Solutions, the report said. Currently, Level 3 offers Ethernet, Internet access MPLS services, and SIP trunks over a single access line via converged Ethernet access.

Weaknesses: Reach is the largest roadblock standing in Level 3's path to the leadership quadrant. The provider will need to improve its network coverage in the Asia/Pacific region and Africa. Level 3's main SIP trunk offering, Voice Complete, is available only in the U.S. The provider does plan on expanding the reach of Voice Complete, and also cited plans for vCPE and NFV deployments in 2016.