Network Service Provider Details

A network service provider (NSP) provides internet backbone access to Internet Service Providers (ISP). These ISPs, in turn, sell internet services to businesses and consumers. Some NSP organizations also perform the role of ISPs, thereby creating a direct line of access with the end-users.

A NSP builds a network of fiber optic cables and core routers that act as the internet's main carriers. These physical cables come together at points called peering points. Regional ISPs can connect to the NSP backbone via these peering points. NSPs form the basis of high-speed Internet infrastructure and services. Their massive network supports a large downstream of ISPs, carriers, and network operators.

Real-World Example of Network Service Provider

AT&T Inc. is one of the biggest network service providers in the world. They are also the world's largest telecommunication company and the second largest provider of mobile telephone services. Headquartered in Texas, AT&T Inc. is ranked 9th in the Fortune 500 list of top corporations in the world.

AT&T was founded by Alexander Graham Bell, Gardiner Greene Hubbard, and Thomas Sanders in 1885 as the Bell Telephone Company. AT&T provides its Fiver connecting network with connections speeds in the range of 1,000 Mbps. They claim to bundle almost 20 times the network speed offered by normal internet cables.

Lumen Technologies, formerly known as Century Link, is an American telecommunications company offering network services and other products like cloud security and services, cloud solution, mobile networking, voice, and managed solutions. Lumen Technologies offers its services in over 100 countries on over six continents.

Significance of Network Service Provider

A NSP offers bandwidth features to ISPs which in turn is responsible for creating a last-mile connectivity infrastructure. Last-mile infrastructure refers to the final leg of a telecommunication network that delivers services to the end-users. NSP provides all the necessary infrastructure to ensure smooth network connectivity at the consumer end. NSP also ensures that they continually build, maintain and expand their network infrastructure to meet growing traffic demands.

A NSP also sells a host of other features to ISPs like web hosting and cloud services. These products, services, and features are white-labeled under the ISP's name and sold to the end customers. A white-labeled product is a product or service created by a company but marketed and sold by another company as their product.

Network Service Provider vs. Internet Service Provider

An Internet Service Provider is an organization that provides internet services to end customers and businesses. They act as the access point for a user to start consuming the internet. On the other hand, a network service provider sits at the top of the worldwide network hierarchy.

When a user connects to the internet using a modem, they establish an authentic connection with the ISP. The ISP then connects to the NSP's backbone, and the end-user starts receiving data from the internet. NSP is responsible for creating the entire infrastructure that makes up the internet.