Sprint To Double U.S. Ethernet Coverage

Sprint on Tuesday announced plans to more than double coverage of its Ethernet access in the United States while adding service in Argentina and Poland.

The telecommunications company is expanding coverage from 65 U.S. markets at the end of last year to 143 markets by the end of 2012. Sprint also is broadening coverage in certain existing markets.

Introduced five years ago, Ethernet access is geared for businesses and Sprint’s wholesale partners.

Outside the U.S., Sprint currently offers Ethernet in 36 countries including Brazil, Canada, China, India and many European countries.

Depending on the market, Sprint’s Ethernet service provides dedicated and aggregated speeds ranging from 2 Mbps to 1 Gbps. Businesses can choose from 18 aggregated speeds and 16 dedicated speeds.

“Aggregated Ethernet access can provide a cost-effective alternative to traditional TDM access, while Dedicated Ethernet access expands easily to meet specific customer bandwidth needs, offering fixed-rate and fractional (burstable) billing,” Sprint noted in a press release.

Stephanie Greenwood, a spokeswoman for Sprint, said the company doesn’t reveal the number of Ethernet customers or total sales tied to such services. However, she noted customer demand has been robust.

“We knew customer demand would be strong and we had expectations, which have been met,” she said.