How To Pick Your Internet Service Provider provided by pageland.com

Contents Overview Glossary of Terms Selection Criteria Technical Staff Connectivity Issues Technology Build Or Buy Network Center (NOC) Organization "Non-Profit" Customer Base Comparison Shopping Web Hosting Services Conclusion Other Links

"Non-Profit" At this stage of the market's development, some providers are operating from behind questionable non-profit cloaks. Some may be subjecting their sponsoring organizations to questionable legal and/or tax risks by selling commercial services in competition with for-profit corporations. The IRS requires that non-profits keep track of all revenue that is unrelated to their non-profit charter and pay the tax on it just like a for-profit corporation. Why should you care about your provider's tax troubles? It's all about selecting a provider that can supply you with the highest quality, best price performing, reliable Internet and Enterprise WAN network services. Legal or tax problems can provide a major "distraction" to the provider. As these services become more and more an integral component of your successful business, your choice is more critical and all dimensions of your supplier are integral to your decision. There will be a shake out in the Internet service business and only the strong will survive. Is the company rapidly growing and expanding or is it a stagnant anachronism and merely resting on its laurels and remembering the good old days when they were the only provider in the area? How long do you think they will survive in competition with healthy, growing companies? Is the group you're dealing with actually providing the network service or are they fronting, merely acting as a local aggregator for some larger entity? If so, what is the health of the larger provider and why should the larger provider give your connection the same attention that they are giving their directly connected customers? Does the provider have a straightforward internal business model or do they have a series of sub-contracts of sub-contracts and shell games with wholly owned subsidiaries? Why are they adding unnecessary levels of complication and expense, and why should you pay for it?