Most security strategies are built to keep attackers out. Firewalls, email filters, and endpoint tools all assume the danger sits on the other side of the wall. But a growing share of risk starts somewhere far more ordinary: an employee trying to get their work done a little faster. Picture a sales rep who pastes…
I spend my time with leaders across healthcare, financial services, retail, energy, and manufacturing, and one strategic question continually emerges: how do we secure, manage, and empower a workforce that no longer operates within four walls? My answer starts at the endpoint. Every laptop, tablet, sensor, and vehicle is a point where security, control, cost,…
For years, enterprise IT teams evaluated SASE the way they evaluated most network technology: count the acronyms, tally features against a competitor’s list, and pick whoever’s list ran longer. SD-WAN, check. ZTNA, check. CASB, check. That approach no longer holds up. The zero trust principles underneath SASE assume continuous verification across identity, device, network, application,…
A clear pattern is emerging across large enterprises: companies are actively moving away from Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) programs, and AI notetakers are a primary driver behind the shift. It’s a trend analysts and mobility leaders are increasingly validating, and it is reshaping how IT teams think about laptop procurement in particular. Here is…
Enterprise network disaster recovery planning is the practice of preparing your organization to quickly restore connectivity in the event of a system failure or cyberattack. Every enterprise network eventually fails, whether from a carrier outage, a severed fiber line, a cyberattack, or a natural disaster. When it does, the cost is measured in minutes: lost…
Selecting a managed network services provider is a strategic investment in your organization’s ongoing performance and resilience. As enterprises continue to adopt Software-Defined Wide Area Networks (SD-WAN), hybrid cloud architectures, and IoT-enabled devices, the once simple corporate network is becoming the foundation for nearly every business function from internal collaboration to customer experience. If a provider turns…
Healthcare connectivity is no longer a back-office concern. Telehealth visits, connected medical devices, electronic health records, and patient contact centers all depend on a network that simply cannot go down. At the same time, the infrastructure many hospitals, health systems, and outpatient clinics still rely upon run on copper POTS lines, single-carrier internet circuits, and…
Several articles in Channel Dive have indicated Lumen may be shifting its focus away from the voice market — reportedly ending new voice sales (Channel Dive), altering commission on voice renewals, and thinning the partner teams that used to support that base (Channel Dive). For channel agents, that is not a footnote. If these reports…
Enterprise networks go down for any number of reasons, from flooding and wildfires to hurricanes and regional outages. When this happens, waiting for service restoration is not a plan. Starlink gives enterprises a satellite path back online, one that can fully replace a downed circuit immediately, or stand up connectivity in minutes at a site that never had a terrestrial option to begin with. When connectivity…
For federal agencies, your network is the engine behind critical mission operations, powering secure cloud applications, connecting your teams wherever they work, and maintaining continuity through any scenario. The stronger that foundation, the more your organization can accomplish its mission. Resilience is what holds that foundation steady. It comes from a network designed so that…
For every enterprise business the network is at the core of productivity, but building and maintaining that infrastructure in-house is expensive, time-consuming, and pulls focus away from the work that actually grows the business. As networks become more complex, keeping pace with performance, security, and compliance can quickly consume valuable resources that could be better…
AT&T’s permanent copper shutdown started June 30, 2026, and the analog phone lines behind campus fire panels, elevator phones, and blue-light emergency stations are now starting to be switched off. Universities that still run safety systems over plain old telephone service (POTS) should begin the process of migrating those lines to digital service before students…
Walk into almost any commercial building in America, and you will find critical systems quietly running on a technology that is being phased out from under them. The fire alarm panel. The elevator’s emergency phone. The fax machine in the back office that the billing team still cannot live without. The burglar alarm. An older…
Managed network services are outsourced solutions where a third-party provider monitors, manages, and secures your network to ensure performance, uptime, and security. Managing your network infrastructure can be challenging and resource-intensive. A managed network services provider simplifies these challenges by handling various aspects of your business’s network operations, from routine maintenance to advanced security. This…
IT Team Burden CIOs, IT teams, and procurement departments are overwhelmed by the management, support, and deployment of laptop devices for an increasingly mobile workforce. With 23% of the American workforce participating in remote and hybrid work in 2025, that burden is only growing stronger. Supplying laptops is only the tip of the iceberg. Keeping…
What Is the “Copper Sunset”? The copper sunset refers to the rapid retirement of traditional copper-wire networks that deliver analog voice service. Instead of continuing to support copper-based analog lines, carriers are discontinuing these services and pushing customers toward: Major Carriers Announce Plain Old Telephone Service (POTS) Lines Are Going Away Now Large carriers are…
Utilities Expense Management (UEM) is the process of centrally managing an organization’s utility costs, such as electricity, gas, water, and waste, to improve visibility and reduce costs. For organizations with complex, multi-location operations, UEM plays a critical role as energy costs rise and billing becomes more fragmented. Many enterprises and government agencies manage hundreds, or…
Traditional network security models are breaking down in the face of hybrid workforces, cloud application adoption, and distributed user bases. These shifts create blind spots that hardware-based firewalls and VPNs can’t address. Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) solves this challenge with a cloud-native architecture that unifies networking and security to deliver secure access from anywhere….
Throughout 2025, MetTel leaders shared insights on the biggest shifts in connectivity, digital transformation, and enterprise mobility. From healthcare innovation to SASE and managed mobility, these conversations highlight how MetTel simplifies complexity and empowers organizations to modernize their networks with confidence. Below are some of our favorite interviews from the past year. Jake Aronow on…
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is redefining the way businesses operate. But beyond the flashy headlines about AI replacing human intelligence, deepfakes, and digital mining, another battle is quietly taking place: the cybersecurity of our manufacturing and industrial backbone. As manufacturers implement automation, AI, and IoT in manufacturing, they also expose their networks to new and evolving…
Networks for retail customers have grown complicated. With point-of-sale (POS) systems, inventory management, customer Wi-Fi, security cameras, and online order processing, the average location juggles dozens of network-dependent operations. Network downtime or a security lapse can grind operations to a halt, stopping transactions, disrupting inventory systems, and even compromising customer trust. As retailers expand omnichannel…
Contact Center as a Service (CCaaS) is a cloud-based solution that helps you manage customer interactions across multiple channels without maintaining expensive on-site infrastructure. It’s a shift from traditional contact center models to cloud-powered solutions that offer greater flexibility and cost-effectiveness. The CCaaS market’s projected growth to $17.12 billion by 2030 reflects businesses’ prioritization of…
Fleet management telematics combines GPS tracking and onboard diagnostics to gather actionable data from your vehicles. This technology provides real-time insights into your fleet operations, helping you optimize driver performance, reduce fuel costs, and enhance safety. Choosing the right telematics fleet management system that includes carrier agnostic connectivity and complete lifecycle support can transform your…
Mobile devices have transformed business productivity by enabling employees to access company resources from anywhere. This flexibility has become standard in modern business operations. However, this expanded access creates unique security challenges that traditional security measures were not designed to address. Mobile Threat Defense (MTD) has emerged as a specialized security approach that protects the…
Savvy business leaders know that network and security go hand-in-hand. Protecting modern businesses from cyberthreats has become more challenging than ever, as the frequency and sophistication of the attacks continue to grow. According to Cybersecurity Ventures, the projected damage from cybercrime will hit $10.5 trillion annually by 2025. Networks today are becoming more sophisticated and…
A Zero Trust Approach to Meet Today’s Network Security Demands Enterprises strive to establish the highest level of network security while granting employees the access they need to do their jobs. This is especially true with today’s remote and distributed workforces. In pursuit of secure access, organizations are turning to a zero trust security model…
The Internet of Things (IoT) is nothing short of revolutionary. Interconnected devices have opened up a whole new world of possibilities, from self-driving cars to connected buildings and homes. IoT has transformed the way work is done across all industries. In this blog post, we’ll explore how IoT is revolutionizing the manufacturing industry and discuss…
If you’ve purchased a new smartphone or IoT device recently, you may have noticed something different about activating your service—there was no physical SIM card involved. That’s because these devices are using embedded SIM (eSIM) technology, which has rapidly been adopted as an innovative alternative to traditional SIM cards. How do eSIM cards work? Unlike…
Businesses rely upon online systems and networks to stay connected, productive, and secure 24/7. But as the complexity of digital operations grows, so do the risks: cyberthreats, system failures, and even natural disasters. How do businesses ensure their networks can withstand disruptions? This is where resilient networks come into play. Network resilience, meaning the capacity…
MetTel’s SingleSIM Can Change the Way You Work Is your organization struggling to keep your mobile employees connected and productive? In today’s fast-paced business environment, seamless connectivity is crucial, yet many companies face significant challenges in providing reliable mobile access for their employees. The result? Decreased productivity, hindered data collection, and frustrated team members. As…
Business success increasingly relies on the security, performance, and cost-efficiency of its IT infrastructure. This makes having a secure hybrid network a top priority of many organizations. But what is a hybrid network, and what are its unique advantages? A hybrid network leverages multiple types of connectivity technology, such as wired Ethernet and enterprise mobility…
The Internet of Things (IoT) is revolutionizing healthcare delivery at every level. The benefits of IoT in healthcare are far-reaching, positively impacting patients, practitioners, healthcare organizations, and related industries such as cybersecurity and insurance. But what do these IoT telehealth solutions look like in the real world? Let’s look at some of the ways IoT…
Organizations with distributed workforces constantly seek solutions to manage their networks and improve operational performance. Wide-Area Networks (WANs) can be expensive and often pose performance, connectivity, and management challenges. Software-Defined Wide-Area Network (SD-WAN) technology acts as a virtual route planner, selecting ideal network paths, providing multiple route options, and managing network traffic and security. This…
Digital transformations continue to drive many companies to transition to cloud-based services. UCaaS vs. CCaaS has become a hot topic for groups of all kinds. For businesses whose goal is increased productivity, these platforms facilitate faster, more straightforward exchanges between distributed internal teams that serve customers. While adopting UCaaS and CCaaS improves efficiencies and workflows,…
Artificial intelligence (AI) isn’t just a buzzword; it’s reshaping the very fabric of network services. MetTel is thrilled to announce an unprecedented achievement that underscores our commitment to AI-driven innovation: we’ve been recognized as a Leader in the Gartner Magic Quadrant for Managed Network Services for the fifth consecutive year. This distinction makes us the first and only…
The emergence of new cyber threats that bypass perimeter-focused security controls calls for a robust cloud-managed firewall solution. As many organizations grapple with keeping their networks free from intrusions, Firewall as a Service is a much-needed game changer. Besides keeping your network safe from infiltration, FWaaS offers other benefits, like providing a scalable network and…
The enormous demand for faster and ubiquitous connectivity has prompted the use of satellites well beyond their initial military and scientific applications. Integrating satellite technology into existing infrastructure propels businesses toward scalable network and connectivity solutions. LEO satellites are quickly bridging the gap between urban and remote area connectivity and slow and fast networks. This…
Reducing costs and improving operations are key to business success, and managing a fleet business is no different. Keeping track of vehicles, fuel usage, dispatch, route optimization, and driver behavior can be time-consuming and challenging. While manual processes were once effective, they have quickly become outdated. Fleet management telematics has emerged as a modern solution,…
Extra Space Storage Modernizes Their Network As local exchange carriers are decommissioning service and raising rates for local telephone service, organizations are feeling pressure to move away from copper / POTS (Plain Old Telephone Service) voice infrastructure and support. Extra Space Storage (NYSE: EXR) felt this pressure and turned the retirement of their copper wire…
As enterprises expand, so does their need for an unwavering network that supports every aspect of their business. From data transactions to customer communications, network reliability is a non-negotiable element of operational strategy. With the cost of network downtime extending beyond short-term disruption to impact productivity, profitability, and brand trust, the stakes have never been…
Disasters or unforeseen crises pose a serious threat to business operations and can prevent organizations from meeting the needs of their customers and hitting their revenue targets, while also potentially causing damage to their brands. The best way to avoid being caught off guard and to enhance organizational resilience is to develop a business continuity…
Modern networks have come a long way from the traditional on-premise, single-location architectures. Today, businesses are getting into hybrid and cloud setups. These contemporary network models offer unparalleled flexibility, scalability, and cost-efficiency, enabling organizations to seamlessly integrate multiple locations, data centers, and cloud services into a cohesive and agile network infrastructure. Unfortunately, this poses a…
An Exploration of the Myths Surrounding POTS Replacement Continued Copper Retirement You probably know by now that Plain Old Telephone Service (POTS) is being phased out. The FCC initiated the phase-out of copper POTS lines due to their various disadvantages and challenges. This transition was propelled by regulatory changes, notably FCC Order 15-97, which allowed…
Government agencies know they need to move to SD-WAN (software-defined wide area network), but many are reluctant to take the leap. MPLS (multiprotocol label switching) is a proven technology and has been in place for 25 years, so moving away from it seems like a daunting task. MPLS is carrier-grade and reliable. However, it is…
The Internet of Things (IoT) is at the heart of positive disruptions across all industries, and the transportation and logistics sector is no exception. This interconnected network of “things” includes devices, appliances, and other innovative technologies. Over time, it has emerged as a driving force behind major advancements, overcoming the many challenges companies in transport…
The pace and magnitude at which the world is experiencing natural disasters have caused many to become more vigilant about disaster preparedness. Many are asking themselves, What is my disaster plan for my family, myself, my community, my business? A key component of a disaster preparedness plan is maintaining network connectivity and the ability to communicate….
Smart city initiatives are a way for communities to respond to challenges of sustainability and efficiency. With the world’s population expected to reach 8.5 billion by 2030 and 55% of the population currently living in urban areas, cities are facing unprecedented pressures. Smart cities have implemented tech in innovative ways to overcome these challenges. What do smart city…
Hurricane Ian, a Category 5 Storm We have become accustomed to hearing about natural disasters on a regular basis. And some of us have had the unfortunate experience of living through one or more of these events. The pace and magnitude at which we’re experiencing natural disasters has caused many to become more vigilant about…
As remote and hybrid work continue to be the norm, employees are increasingly using their laptops and smartphones to communicate and work. This offers tremendous benefits in terms of flexibility and productivity, but it also introduces complex challenges in managing, supporting, and securing these devices. How do you ensure seamless connectivity, maintain cost-effectiveness, and support…
Companies must integrate technology into their operations to continue to grow. But how do these companies stay on top of the latest innovations and weave them into their business model? They use a powerful tool called a digital transformation strategy. In this article, we’ll discuss why you need a digital transformation strategy and look at…
The Internet of Things (IoT) is helping to drive the next phase of digital transformation. It has great potential to redefine how we live and work. From streamlining operations in industries to providing unprecedented convenience in homes, the applications of IoT are vast and transformative. However, realizing the benefits of this technological wave is not…
Wireline Decommissioning & POTS Replacement – Current State About 10 years ago I asked my parents to upgrade their internet service from DSL to the local carrier fiber-based service. My mom was all in because it meant better video calls with her grandkids. My dad was dubious. He was concerned because he heard that once…
As urban areas continue to evolve and adapt to the demands of a rapidly changing world, the concept of smart cities has emerged as a transformative force. With the integration of advanced technologies and data-driven solutions, there is an opportunity for cities to become more efficient and sustainable than ever before. In this blog post,…
If there’s one word that could sum up how business leaders are feeling about this year it would have to be “uncertainty.” Business leaders are looking at a landscape with tremendous risk, including inflation, cybersecurity, shifting geopolitical dynamics and the looming threat of recession. But each new challenge also presents an opportunity for growth, with…
While we’ve all heard the hype about 5G for many years now, many businesses have yet to experience any benefits. So is 5G just another overhyped technology? The truth is, the promise of 5G is enormous, but all the benefits won’t be immediately realized today. Partners in the 5G revolution As the first step toward…
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