Who Benefits From a Leased Line?

In our previous post, we spoke at length about the various benefits of having a leased line. Leased lines aren’t for every company. However, for those companies that can take advantage of this type of connection, the rewards can be enormous. This post will take a look at the various types of companies that can benefit most from having a leased line. 

Recap: What is a Leased Line? 

In case you haven’t read our previous posts. A leased line is a direct, point-to-point, connection between your business and, typically, your ISP. 

Key features of a leased line are that it is: 

  1. Point to Point 

A leased line is a direct, point-to-point connection. This is typically to connect your office with your internet service provider (ISP). However, being point-to-point, you can use a leased line to connect to a data centre or separate office. Thus providing a way of safely and securely transferring data from one location to another without sending files over the internet. 

  1. Uncontended 

A leased line is yours and yours alone. A typical internet connection is shared between multiple users in the same building or local area. This can cause speeds to slow down during peak hours. This is not the case with leased lines. You can rest assured you will always receive the bandwidth you have paid for. 

  1. Symmetrical 

Leased lines provide “symmetrical connectivity”. Most broadband connections give preference to download speeds vs upload speeds. Leased lines do not suffer from this limitation. Upload speeds are just as blazingly fast as download speeds!  

  1. Unmetered 

Most UK ISPs claim to offer “unlimited bandwidth”. However, in reality, most impose a “fair use” cap. This fair use is generally very generous. However, if you’re a business with significant data requirements, you don’t want your connection throttled for using too much data. Leased lines are truly unmetered. 

Brief: Benefits of a leased line 

This was the topic of our last post, but for those that missed it, here is a brief rundown of some of the major benefits of leased lines. 

As mentioned, leased lines are symmetrical, meaning upload speeds are just as fast as download speeds. This upload speed can be a huge boon for companies that rely on frequent and large data uploads. 

Leased lines, being uncontended, also means that your speed will stay consistently fast, day or night. This reliability is critical for many businesses who simply can’t afford to have a fluctuation in speeds or uncertainty with their connection. 

Finally, being a private connection, you can rely on white-glove service from your provider (hopefully us!) in the rare event that anything should go awry. 

What companies shouldn’t use a leased line

There’s no getting around it, leased lines are more expensive than a traditional broadband connection. Therefore, while it may be tempting to opt for a leased line, and while they are still affordable even for small businesses, we want to make sure you are getting value for money at all times. 

Leased lines may not be for you if: 

  • Your business doesn’t have significant data requirements 
  • A disruption or fluctuation in connection speeds would not impact your business
  • Increased download and upload speeds would make no impact on your profitability

What types of companies benefit most from a leased line connection?

With all that said, leased line connections are fantastic if you have significant data requirements. Especially if you are frequently uploading large files to the cloud. Leased line connections also tend to favour slightly larger businesses that may want to connect dozens or even hundreds of devices to the internet. While possible with a traditional connection, you then run the risk of network throttling or outages based on other users in the vicinity that may be sharing a connection with you. 

A leased line connection is also important to a business that requires certainty that each connected device will receive the same speeds at all times. 

Hotels

A prime use case for a leased line connection would be a hotel or BnB. In fact, we would suggest a leased line is almost a must for hotels past a certain size. A hotel will want to provide the same experience to each guest and cannot afford to have speeds fluctuating during peak hours. 

Schools

Another use case would be schools, and especially boarding schools. As hundreds of devices may be connecting to your wireless access point, you’ll need a leased line to ensure stability and reliability. Especially if your classes regularly require access to online materials. 

Farms

So many farms are now reliant on internet based technology such as IoT devices. Given the remote location of most farms, fast connectivity has become a priority for many. As such, we have seen widespread adoption of leased lines in these areas. 

Other common users of leased lines

On top of these 3 main areas we also commonly see leased lines being used by shopping centres, airports, sports stadiums and just about anywhere that requires a stable connection for multiple devices. All that said, perhaps the most frequent user of all would be the large corporate office. 

Contact us to see if a leased line is right for you

At Prestige, we will always come to the best solution for your business. If you are intrigued by the power of leased lines, but aren’t quite sure if a leased line would be right for your business. Get in touch with one of our friendly team today and we will be more than happy to help find the right connection for your circumstances.

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