The CDN Ecosystem continues to evolve, as innovation driven companies continue to create new features in the areas of security, streaming, and wireless. 2014 was the year of the Cyber Security CDN. 2015 is the year of the RAN (radio access network) based CDN. Fortunately, there are enough start-ups and established players offering RAN based solutions to categorize them into groups. The illustration below represents different groups of companies offering RAN based content delivery / optimization services. The goal of the diagram is to bring clarity to the trends taking shape in our industry. The most obvious fact about RAN, its going to be a monster niche with vast revenue potential that eclipses the security segment.
Today, there are four groups of players, starting with Teclo Networks and ending with Limelight Networks. Teclo is a start-up that works with Mobile Operators of all sizes. Next, we have Rev Software, Twin Prime and Kwicr that provide RAN acceleration / optimization services to enterprises – their key differentiator is their SDK offering. Then there is Akamai and PeerApp. Both entered into a strategic partnership with Saguna Networks, an up-and-coming leader in cloud based RAN, and extended their content delivery capabilities to the RAN. Finally, we have Limelight Networks, and they represent the traditional CDN with basic mobile acceleration services, such as mobile device detection and mobile reporting.
Categories of RAN based Optimization and Delivery
- Pure-play RAN Acceleration: Teclo Networks works will mobile operators and enterprises improving the delivery of content over the wireless last mile
- Advanced Mobile Acceleration: Rev Software, Twin Prime and Kwicr accelerate and/or optimization content delivery over wireless last mile – key differentiator is their mobile app SDK
- Standard Mobile Acceleration: Akamai and PeerApp partnered with Saguna Networks to extend their next-gen content delivery capabilities to the RAN
- Basic Mobile Acceleration: Traditional CDNs with basic features for supporting mobile content delivery
