Network as a service (NaaS) is a cloud service model that’s designed to allow enterprise IT professionals to be able to order network infrastructure components from a menu of options, have them configured to fit their business needs, and have the whole thing delivered, running and managed in a matter of hours instead of weeks.
Enterprises have been slow to adopt NaaS for a number of reasons, including confusion about exactly what NaaS is, lack of a solid business case, and questions around security, visibility and privacy. But that’s beginning to change. ABI Research predicts that by 2030, more than 90% of enterprises will consume at least 25% of their network services via NaaS.
What is NaaS?
Definitions of NaaS are inconsistent. Is NaaS simply procuring networking gear on a pay-as-you go, subscription basis rather than buying it? Is NaaS just a different way of describing a managed service? Or is NaaS something fundamentally different that addresses a growing challenge for network execs: how to provide network connectivity, resiliency, security, and scalability in a multicloud world?
At a high level, NaaS requires a scalable cloud-native architecture that’s flexible, incorporates a high degree of automation, and makes great use of AI and machine learning (ML) to facilitate self-healing, streamline management, and boost observability.
While the definition of NaaS isn’t cast in stone, here are a few expert characterizations:
- IDC analyst Brandon Butler: “NaaS is a cloud-enabled, usage-based consumption model that allows users to acquire and orchestrate network capabilities without owning, building, or maintaining their own infrastructure. NaaS can provide an alternative consumption model for a broad range of network elements, including wired and wireless LANs, WANs, and VPNs, as well as branch, data center, edge, multicloud, and hybrid-cloud environments. It can be used to deliver new network models such as secure access service edge (SASE). NaaS can allow IT teams to more easily scale up or down, rapidly deploy new services, and optimize the balance between CapEx and OpEx.”
- Neil Anderson, senior director, network solutions, at World Wide Technology: “Instead of buying network equipment, installing it, and operating it, a network-as-a-service provider owns, installs and operates the equipment, and organizations pay a monthly subscription for the network services.”
- Jay Gill, senior director of products and solutions, Pluribus Networks: “Any virtualized network construct that is abstracted from underlying network infrastructure and provided by one entity to another, even within a single company, could be considered NaaS. The foundation of NaaS is network virtualization, which allows the networking constructs a user sees to be abstracted (or decoupled) from the physical network devices and equipment that support them.”
How is NaaS implemented?
There are different delivery models for NaaS, including:
- Subscription hardware: Instead of making an outright purchase (Capex), a business pays a monthly subscription (OpEx) for the hardware but still handles the installation and operation of the equipment.
- Managed service: Subscription-based hardware plus a managed service to operate it.
- Pure NaaS: The provider owns, installs, and operates all equipment, and the business simply pays a monthly fee for the turnkey service.
Who sells NaaS?
The vendor landscape for NaaS can be broken down into multiple categories:
- Networking equipment vendors such as HPE-Aruba, Juniper Networks, Cisco and Dell
- Telecommunication and cloud service providers such as Google, Microsoft, Lumen Technologies and Verizon
- WAN transport and multi-cloud networking vendors such as Alkira, Aviatrix, Graphiant, Megaport, and Perimeter 81
- Startups with campus-focused NaaS such as Nile, Meter, Join Digital, and Ramen Networks
NaaS benefits
Among the benefits of NaaS are:
- IT flexibility: With the ability to scale up or down to meet fluctuating demands on the network, businesses can tailor performance optimization to specific workloads.
- Cost structure: Companies can treat infrastructure as an operational expense on the balance sheet rather than buying, maintaining, and upgrading physical equipment.
- Faster deployments: Organizations can take advantage of the expertise of NaaS partners and vendor specialists to expedite the planning process and smooth refresh cycles.
- Access to new technologies: The NaaS model can give customers a pathway to more frequent equipment refresh and upcycle opportunities, including access to infrastructure like Wi-Fi 6 and 100 Gigabit Ethernet.
The initial selling point for NaaS was that it enabled organizations to shift from a CapEx model to the more cloud-like OpEx, pay-as-you-go, subscription model. Today, network execs today have a fuller understanding of the potential benefits of NaaS, beyond simply a different payment model, said Shamus McGillicuddy, vice president of research at Enterprise Management Associates (EMA).
NaaS can deliver access to new technologies faster and keep enterprises up to date as technologies evolve over time, he said. In addition, NaaS can help mitigate skills gaps for organizations facing a shortage of networking talent. For example, in a retail scenario, an organization can offload deployment and management of its Wi-Fi networks at all of its stores to a NaaS vendor, freeing up IT staffers for higher-level activities, McGillicuddy said.
NaaS challenges
Security remains a challenge in any NaaS implementation because organizations may be reluctant to hand over security controls to a NaaS provider. “How will the customer still be able to do traffic inspection, or be able to feed security analytics tools with NetFlow, etc.? And who is liable for a breach, and how will it be remediated?” Anderson said.
In terms of deployment, migrating to NaaS can be difficult and time consuming for medium-to-large organizations with significant investments in existing remote, branch, campus, and data-center networking and security infrastructure. Multi-vendor environments will further complicate the matter.
And from a cost perspective, NaaS pricing is fluid, so business leaders may find that per-year operational costs are more than they budgeted and there’s a risk of significant fluctuations in monthly bills.
Research firm EMA in its July 2024 report, Network as a Service: Understanding the Cloud Consumption Model in Networking, cited a number of roadblocks to NaaS success. EMA found that respondents would baulk at the following issues before embracing a NaaS solution:
- Higher total cost of over time (OpEx vs. CapEx): cited by 37.6%
- Lack of visibility into service quality: 35.2%
- Security concerns: 32.6%
- Regulatory compliance issues: 26%
- Fear of losing control over change management: 25.6%
- Lack of solutions that meet our business requirements: 21.2%
- Existing relationships with incumbent networking vendors: 20.8%
- Our network engineering team differentiates our business: 20%
- Confusion over how NaaS works: 19.2%
- Culture preferences in IT: 17.2%
NaaS news and developments
Frameworks emerge to help drive adoption
Industry standards can help accelerate the adoption of new technologies. MEF, a nonprofit industry forum, has developed a NaaS framework that combines standardized service definitions, extensive automation frameworks, security certifications, and multi-cloud integration capabilities—all aimed at enabling service providers to deliver what MEF calls a true cloud experience for network services. Read more: MEF envisions easy provisioning and integrated security for NaaS
Rise of campus/LAN NaaS
Until very recently, the most popular use cases for NaaS were on-demand WAN connectivity, multi-cloud connectivity, SD-WAN, and SASE. However, campus/LAN NaaS, which includes both wired and wireless networks, has emerged as the breakout star in the overall NaaS market.
Dell’Oro Group analyst Sian Morgan predicts: “In 2025, Campus NaaS revenues will grow over eight times faster than the overall LAN market. Startups offering purpose-built CNaaS technology will gain scale by working with service providers. This will push the growth of the LAN-as-a-Utility service higher than other types of CNaaS.” According to Dell’Oro, the leading players in CNaaS include Nile, Meter, Join Digital, and Ramen Networks, some of which are expanding their offerings in 2025. Read more: Campus NaaS market set for growth with startups leading the charge
NaaS gains security features
NaaS vendors are moving beyond basic connectivity and adding security features, such as zero trust network access (ZTNA). For example, Nile recently announced the addition of new zero-trust capabilities and tapped Microsoft and Palo Alto Networks to bolster its enterprise security services. Alkira expanded its NaaS platform with new ZTNA functionality, including identity and access management, granular policy control, and posture checks. And Graphiant is expanding its NaaS platform to include data assurance capabilities to help organizations comply with regulations.
Source:: Network World