APAC Enterprises Shift To SD Networks For Secure, Resilient Communications

KUALA LUMPUR, July 4 (Bernama) -- Enterprises in Asia Pacific (APAC) are moving toward software-defined networking (SDN) to make communication more secure and resilient as well as speed up business decision-making, according to a new research report published by Information Services Group (ISG), a global technology research and advisory firm.

“Asia Pacific enterprises want to keep growing in the face of new demands to decarbonise and utilise AI in their operations. To carry out digital transformation initiatives, they need rapid, cost-efficient network provisioning,” said ISG Asia Pacific partner and regional leader, Michael Gale in a statement.

The 2024 ISG Provider Lens Network — Software-defined Solutions and Services report for APAC finds that companies in the region (which for this report covers Australia, New Zealand, Southeast Asia and India) are seeking more efficient, secure and flexible networks to address rising business challenges.

Many are still adding expensive traditional network links and need to modernise connectivity for cloud migration, hence demand for SDN is expected to remain strong in the coming years, especially in high-growth emerging markets such as India.

Software-defined wide-area networks (SD-WANs) have been the preferred infrastructure for remote workforces and cloud-connected applications for several years, but as recently as 2021, companies in APAC struggled to negotiate SD-WAN carrier contracts, the report says.

Since then, service providers and carriers have introduced cost-competitive options with plug-and-play setup. Expanded offerings from system integrators and traditional network service providers have helped to drive SD-WAN growth.

The report notes that APAC remains slightly behind the United States and the United Kingdom in adopting fully managed or co-managed SD-WAN services, which can reduce costs and implementation risks while allowing automated monitoring and reporting with single-screen administration.

Yet, compared with these other markets, organisations in APAC have even higher expectations for savings, flexibility and technological advancement through these services.

As companies continue migrating to cloud or multi-cloud environments, software-defined multi-WAN, multivendor network environments also reduce cloud risks by maximising enterprise flexibility, ISG says.

The report also examines other SDN trends in APAC, including the growing adoption of SD-WANs by smaller enterprises and the steady expansion of edge computing that has helped to drive network modernisation.

-- BERNAMA