Issue 14 | november 2008
see share evolve

technology update

Financial Reporting

Are you a big kid? Big kids like things that go fast, and preferably things that go faster than the last thing you looked at. We have to confess to understanding and sometimes sharing this approach to life, so were very interested to talk to a number of companies recently about how to measure really, really fast networks.

Last month we wrote about xPI, our tool for clocking networks down to the microsecond level, and this group of companies we spoke to have networks that need just such a tool. They represent a new market in financial information provision - the High Speed Aggregators. In the past, conventional aggregators like Reuters and Bloomberg would provide their customers (banks, for example) with a steady flow of data from the markets. Now, the development of algorithmic ('Automated') trading platforms means that if you can get this data a millisecond before your competition, you win the trade and they don't. Incumbent aggregators take time to upgrade their networks, hence the rise of ultra-low-latency aggregators, including specialists like FixNetix and network and hosting facilities from providers like Equinix and Verizon.

To achieve the lowest possible delay, companies want their servers in the same building as those providing the feeds, preferably in the same room and even in the next rack to get the shortest possible length of wire between the two (although that might be getting just a little over-zealous). For banks and other customers, this is a great service. Rather than having to install (and pay for) potentially dozens of separate feeds from different markets and exchanges to guarantee performance, they can now buy a single pipe from an aggregator and choose what gets delivered down it.

Highlight xPI was designed and developed specifically for this market - mainly because demonstrable, consistent low latency really does matter, but also because like those big kids on 'Top Gear' we all like seeing just how fast something can go.


company news

It's official: complex reporting tools are so last-year

A study carried out last month by Aberdeen Research and sponsored by NetEvidence, revealed that people buying Network Reporting Tools are having a serious problem. Over the last two years, those surveyed said 85 percent of them had devoted effort to collecting more performance information from their network. Sadly, only 41 percent of them had actually realised any benefit in terms of resolving problems quicker, or detecting them before they hurt the network.

That's a sizable gap, so what were that 41 percent doing more effectively? The biggest difference, according to Aberdeen, was that they concentrated on selecting reporting tools and software which provided usable information - not just a mass of figures, but clear reports which showed what was wrong and what to do about it. At NetEvidence we're extremely pleased with this finding. It's just one of a number of key points you'll find in the full report that's downloadable here. The results back our vision that it's time for a new generation of reporting tools - ones which move on from the heavyweight, engineering-focused packages users so often end up with, and instead provide a simpler, faster, business-level view of networks.

What other key points came up? Rolling out new applications is the top task for network managers this year and next, while worrying about the effect of those applications on the network comes a close second. It’s good to know you’re not alone.
Richard Thomas, NetEvidence services director

welcome

...to your new issue of The Monthly Highlight. This regular newsletter is created exclusively for NetEvidence customers, partners and users of our core product, Highlight.

This month, we reveal the results of a survey conducted by Aberdeen Research and sponsored by NetEvidence to bring greater understanding of the potential benefits of a new generation of network reporting tools. We also explain how Performance Insight (PI) and News Insight (NI) can work together to deliver greater understanding of network behaviour, and explain why it's not just big kids who have a need for speed in the financial reporting sector. Elsewhere we catch up on interesting news developments from the past month, then take a break to StumbleUpon some more light-hearted locations on the web.

Enjoy the issue.
Richard Thomas
Managing Director



network news

High-speed access – a flexible friend?

A Westminster eForum on the subject of next-generation broadband was held in London on Thursday 30 of October, at which key players in the UK broadband industry debated the effects of a possible recession on the industry. ZDNetUK reported that some figures, notably Francesco Caio, the former head of Cable & Wireless and currently vice chairman of the investment bank Lehman Brothers, called on the government to roll out high-speed fibre-based broadband access across the country as a means of beating the recession, while others even suggested a recession could boost the broadband market, as consumers spend more time in their homes. "If the economy is in deep recession, the government ought to be looking at ways of stimulating the economy," said Roger Darlington, the former head of the Internet Watch Foundation. "It makes more sense to invest in infrastructure which would serve this country well for decades and stimulate a new period of economic growth." Ofcom disagreed, reinforcing its established view that the market, not the government, should take care of fibre deployment, and that the market isn’t currently strong enough to do so.


Addressing the issue

Internet founding father Vint Cerf believes support for IPv6 will snowball over the next couple of years, providing the Internet with a much needed larger address space and room for future growth. Speaking at the recent Internetdagarna (Internet Days) conference in Stockholm, Cerf said: “This year and the next year are probably the most significant years for the Internet's evolution that I can remember." He also admitted some liability for the current strain on Internet addresses: "My only defence is that decision was made in 1977, at a time when it was uncertain if the Internet would work," Cerf offered, reasonably.

Obama's tech vision

With Barack Obama's presidential election victory so fresh in all our minds, perhaps it's worth remembering his promises for the future of global connectivity? New Scientist reprinted Obama's own words: "I will take a backseat to no one in my commitment to network neutrality. The Internet is the most open network in history. I will prevent network providers from discriminating in ways that limit the freedom of expression on the Internet. Because most Americans only have a choice of only one or two broadband carriers, carriers are tempted to impose a toll charge on content and services, discriminating against websites that are unwilling to pay for equal treatment. This could create a two-tier Internet in which websites with the best relationships with network providers can get the fastest access to consumers, while all competing websites remain in a slower lane. Such a result would threaten innovation, the open tradition and architecture of the Internet, and competition among content and backbone providers. It would also threaten the equality of speech through which the Internet has begun to transform American political and cultural discourse. I will protect the Internet's traditional openness to innovation and creativity and ensure that it remains a platform for free speech and innovation that will benefit consumers and our democracy."
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