Yorkshire pays C&W £10m for IP VPN

Yorkshire Building Society is to pay Cable & Wireless £10m for an internet protocol-based virtual private network (IP VPN) connecting 150 UK sites.

The goal is to move towards a converged voice and data network with the ability to start using applications such as videoconferencing easily, while at the same time reducing costs and increasing general flexibility.

C&W has been contracted to oversee the migration to the new infrastructure and look after legacy kit.

A key part of the deal is quality of service (QoS), maintained by meeting strict service level agreements (SLAs). Such criteria are becoming increasingly common as users seek to make sure they get what they are promised from providers.

Mike McCluskie, Yorkshire network services manager, said the C&W solution will give the building society a competitive advantage while reducing the overall cost of voice and data.