A recent survey by IDC and Aruba found that Network as a Service (NaaS) is gaining traction as a flexible consumption model for networking.

The survey of 1,101 respondents from 11 countries reveals that organisations recognise the benefits of partnering with NaaS providers for enterprise-grade cloud and edge network access connectivity.

NaaS is a growing trend where enterprises adopt network infrastructure delivered as a service. This can include cloud-based infrastructure-as-a-service (IaaS) network services or WAN network connectivity from ISPs.

The state of the NaaS market

Adoption of Naas is still in its early stages, with about one-third of respondents in the IDC study already using it and another quarter planning to deploy it within the following year.

C-level IT executives are particularly enthusiastic about Naas, with 58% saying they have already deployed it. However, network practitioners are more hesitant, indicating a need for more education on the benefits of Naas.

Larger organisations have been the first to adopt NaaS and are more likely to have deployed both enterprise NaaS and public cloud NaaS.

On the other hand, midsize organisations are showing a growing interest in NaaS and are expected to be the next wave of adoption.

As NaaS models evolve, they are becoming more applicable to various organisations. This indicates that NaaS is moving beyond early adopters and becoming more accessible to midsize companies.

Challenges and concerns

The IDC/Aruba report reveals the four most significant concerns in managing networks today: network security, troubleshooting and quickly resolving issues, ongoing configuration and change management, and lack of analytics.

NaaS adoption is highest in North America but growing in Europe and Asia. In Europe, companies are concerned about outdated infrastructure and staff shortages, which NaaS can help address by providing a trusted partner for network deployment.

The Asia/Pacific region focuses on fast identification and remediation of network performance issues, which NaaS models can assist with through centralised dashboards, visibility, analytics, and automation capabilities.

The study asked respondents to prioritise the critical characteristics of a NaaS offering, and the responses mirror the concerns above.

The top qualities identified include:

  • Enhanced security is achieved through implementing new features and functions, as well as advanced management capabilities.
  • Reliability of the software, services, and hardware provided.
  • Extensive range of services offered and the NaaS vendor’s plans and investment strategies.
  • Competitive pricing and user-friendly interface.
  • Availability of automation tools, a robust technical community, and a positive vendor reputation.

One vendor that satisfies these qualities is Aruba. Aruba empowers NaaS by offering the ability to deploy critical use cases quickly and efficiently, such as hybrid work, connected retail, and hybrid learning. With HPE GreenLake for Aruba, organisations can consume the Aruba ESP (Edge Services Platform), enabling them to create a secure work-from-home environments, optimise office spaces for real-time collaboration, deliver a seamless shopping experience, and support the technology requirements of hybrid learning scenarios.

For more information on Aurba and HPE GreenLake please do not hesitate to contact us.