AT&T has announced that its virtual private local area network service (VPLS) is now available in 14 countries across Europe and Asia­-Pacific in a bid to expand the global reach of its Ethernet portfolio.

 

Called OPT-E-WA, this VPLS service allows businesses to link multiple locations similar to flat Ethernet wide area network that can be extended globally.

 

Company officials said that using the same scalable Ethernet interfaces, OPT-E-WAN features flexibility to mix and match bandwidth and security among locations. This enables network managers to assign network resources across the virtual local area networks (LANs).

 

According to Sanford Brown, vice president for Connectivity and Metro Network Services at AT&T (News - Alert), for global users, OPT-E-WAN offers a new level of choices for establishing virtual LAN or WAN connections, and also complement their existing VPN infrastructure.

 

“Customers are able to add OPT-E-WAN connectivity to support their emerging high bandwidth applications,” added Brown.

 

OPT-E-WAN can be configured regardless of a user’s network arrangement since it uses standard Ethernet interfaces, and when combined with the AT&T's Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) network, global customers will get the “look and feel of the Ethernet they know with the reach that they require.”

 

Currently, the service is available in a total of 15 countries. These countries are United States, Germany,  the United Kingdom, Belgium, France, Netherlands, Sweden, Ireland, Italy, Spain and Switzerland in Europe, and Hong Kong, Australia, Singapore and Japan in Asia-Pacific.

 

Last week, AT&T announced the further expansion of its business and operations in the Middle East and Africa (MEA) region, and announced the appointment of a new sales leader to serve AT&T's global business customers in the region.

 

Also, the company announced that it welcomes the opportunity to work with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and other stakeholders to explore and develop approaches to combat the challenge of reducing greenhouse gas emissions.