CDN Expert Staff Blog

Choosing Between Multiple Content Delivery Networks and Load Balancing (Part I) - Bandcon's Content Networking Service

Posted Wed, 12/16/2009 - 05:15 by CDN Expert Staff

This post details Bandcon and their Content Networking service offering. Bandcon uses the load balancing method called switching (refer to my previous blog post Introduction to Choosing Between Multiple CDN’s and CDN Load Balancing for more details on load balancing techniques.)

To provide unequaled access to the best platforms in the industry while offering flexibility, Bandcon has relationships with multiple CDN providers, including Limelight Networks, Level3, Highwinds, Internap, and CDNetworks. Bandcon states they “offer the ultimate in freedom by allowing you to switch CDN providers or select a completely different provider regardless of where you are in the contract”.

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Choosing Between Multiple Content Delivery Networks and Load Balancing - The Introduction

Posted Tue, 12/15/2009 - 05:36 by CDN Expert Staff

This blog post will detail four providers who have products and services focused on choosing between multiple Content Delivery Networks or load balancing between CDN’s.
 
For years, many people with a deep knowledge of the Content Delivery Network industry (i.e. Dan Rayburn at StreamingMedia.com , and Ryan Lawler at Contentinople ) have been wondering when and if there will be a period of consolidation in this market segment.  But even with the acquisition of Panther Express by CDNetworks in early 2009, there are still twenty some odd Content Delivery Networks providers in existence today. 
 
There has to be a reason that all these CDN’s continue to exist and that many new CDN’s continue to crop up every year.  The reason could simply be the continuing growth of the Internet.  As growth of the Internet continues, more and more companies can exist simultaneously as providers in a crowded market.
 
But there are real differences between the CDN providers.

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Web Site Acceleration: All Content Delivery Networks Are Not the Same, Part 2

Posted Mon, 11/02/2009 - 07:24 by CDN Expert Staff

In the first blog post in this series we talked about differing web acceleration architectures and their performance implications. But there’s a lot more to web site acceleration than just the architecture and its delivery. What about all the other aspects included that are needed to make web site acceleration a complete service, such as:

  • How good is their web portal? Do they have good reporting and monitoring?
  • Does the Content Delivery Network provider allow you to enter a support ticket in the portal, through e-mail, as well as by calling Customer Support?
  • Do they have a global network footprint and if so how dense are their end points?

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Web Site Acceleration: All Content Delivery Networks Are Not the Same, Part 1

Posted Fri, 10/30/2009 - 07:12 by CDN Expert Staff

Two of the most common questions I'm asked are: Aren’t all Content Delivery Network providers the same? And isn’t web site acceleration easy so all caching CDNs are the same?

Those two statements couldn’t be further from the truth.

Web site acceleration is a methodology for having content live on the edge of the network, with delivery to end users from that edge. CDNs offering web site acceleration have to be prepared to constantly deliver millions of web objects. This type of demand is extremely taxing and very difficult not only to deliver but also to report on, making it the most difficult service to deliver - quite the opposite of what most customers believe.

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Choosing a Content Delivery Network: Is RISK the most important factor?

Posted Mon, 10/26/2009 - 04:42 by CDN Expert Staff

In all my years of selling Content Delivery Networking (CDN), I’ve heard many first questions from prospects:

  • How many POP’s are in the network?
  • Do you support this or that feature?
  • How much is it for …?
  • Can you tell me what makes your CDN different from this CDN?

    •

and many others. 

While answers to these questions are important, the most important question to ask now is: What level of risk do I take if I choose you as my CDN provider?

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