Is Dark Fiber Right for Your Business?

These days, more and more businesses are making the decision to lay down dark fiber infrastructures to suit their current and future needs. Specifically, a dark fiber connection refers to one where extra fiber-optic cables are installed in the ground with the intent to be used or leased out down the road. These cables remain "dark" or unused until the business needs the additional bandwidth later on, thus saving them the hassle and expense of having additional cable installed when that need arises.

Of course, having dark fiber services installed is an added up-front expense that may not be suitable for all businesses. There are some specific circumstances, however, in which opting for dark fiber bandwidth may be a smart and strategic business decision.

Planning for Scalability

Perhaps the biggest advantage to having a dark fiber connection is the potential for expansion; if you run a business and it experiences rapid growth, this is great news. On the other hand, it can become problematic if your network cannot keep up with increased demand or traffic, reducing efficiency and potentially causing your company's growth to backfire. By having dark fiber cable readily available, a simple upgrade in bandwidth and additional equipment to power the fiber connection is all you need to scale your existing network and confidently handle the additional bandwidth load. In other words, those unused cables provide business owners with added peace of mind in times of rapid expansion when high network bandwidth needs arise.

Manage Latency

For businesses that rely on rapid connections between different data points or data centers, low latency is extremely important. The lower the latency, the less time is required for information to transfer from one point to the next. Thanks to dark fiber speed, businesses with these networks in place can actually set up direct data transport lines (either through a router or another type of network hub). In this sense, it's possible to send files and data directly between data points on a network with hardly any latency. One example of a situation where this may come in handy is on a college campus, where large data files may need to be shared between different buildings on campus.

When Security is Top Priority

Dark fiber cable also offers one of the most secure forms of connection available, since the networks are extremely private and data transmitted is not tracked or recorded by outside entities as it would be on a standard ISP. As a result, businesses that routinely handle and share sensitive information between data points can benefit greatly from a dark fiber connection. This, combined with the unrivaled control and management that businesses have over the operation of their own dark fiber network, makes it an ideal solution for industries where sensitive data is often shared. Some common examples of these industries include (but are not limited to):

• Financial services
• Research
• Defense
• Education

Scalability, low latency, security, and customization are just a few of the most significant reasons to consider a dark fiber network for your business. Looking for dark fiber companies to get you started? Cable ONE Business offers efficient and cost-effective dark fiber network plans, so contact us today to learn more!