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SD-WAN gains traction in the digital business environment with preferences for reliable, secure, and hybrid access revealing how IT leaders find an ROI sweet spot

DALLAS, TX – May 26, 2021 – Masergy, the software-defined network and cloud platform for the digital enterprise, today released the results of a new research study assessing where businesses are in their journey to SD-WAN and Secure Access Service Edge (SASE). The results include new potential peaks in adoption and highlight the importance of reliability, security, and a growing preference for hybrid access. Findings from the research offer new insights into SD-WAN return on investment (ROI).

Altman Solon, the world’s largest strategy consulting firm focused exclusively on the telecommunications, media, and technology sectors, conducted the research on behalf of Masergy surveying more than 300 IT decision makers (ITDMs) in U.S. headquartered businesses across more than 20 industries. Key findings from the survey include:

• SD-WAN is gaining traction in the digital business environment: SD-WAN adoption is expected to rise to 92% of companies and 64% of sites by 2026 with most adopting it for efficiency (38%), cost savings (38%), and agility (34%).
• Performance and security matter most: Solution reliability (~50%) and security (~60%) are top priorities for selecting an SD-WAN provider.
• SASE is not yet understood: Despite the hype, 50%+ of ITDMs don’t have a good understanding of its impact and business implications.
• Majority of companies will use hybrid SD-WAN: ~58% expect to use a hybrid access model (a mix of both public and private access) over the next five years. Both private-only access users (63%) and public-only access users (55%) are considering a shift to hybrid access. Among respondents using a public-only or internet-only approach to SD-WAN, 50% said they would incorporate more private access because performance is insufficient for their critical applications.
• Companies are relying on SD-WAN service providers: Today only 23% use a do-it-yourself solution, and 77% use a fully managed or co-managed solution.
• Private connectivity is here to stay: Private connectivity will continue to play a prominent role in backing up SD-WAN architectures.

“This study affirms that IT leaders understand the value of SD-WAN connectivity and are leaning into hybrid access models that strike the right balance between price and performance for a ROI ‘sweet spot’,” said Terry Traina, CTO at Masergy. “This is consistent with our experience at Masergy — the appetite for agnostic SD-WAN service continues to skyrocket as companies address changing environments including flexible remote work options. Masergy’s offering allows clients to mix and match access types, including cost-effective broadband and high-performance private connectivity to Masergy’s software-defined network which offers industry-leading service level agreements. The result is highly reliable connectivity to meet the needs of every remote user, application, and office location.”

“The survey confirms what everyone is noticing anecdotally. There’s still a lot of confusion about SASE,” said Traina. “Conceptually SASE makes sense, but turning its framework into a tactical plan can be challenging for IT leaders. This is where Masergy can help companies of all sizes design a pragmatic approach, mapping SASE against their broader network and security strategies and using a blend of both cloud and on-premise security features to build a solution that makes sense given their business needs and priorities.”

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About Masergy

Masergy is the software-defined network and cloud platform for the digital enterprise. Recognized as the pioneer in software-defined networking, Masergy enables unrivaled, secure application performance across the network and the cloud with Managed SD-WAN, UCaaS, CCaaS and Managed Security solutions. Industry leading SLAs coupled with an unparalleled customer experience enable global enterprises to achieve business outcomes with certainty. Learn more at https://www.masergy.com/.