The connection between the network of a service provider and its customers is made by a private high performance circuit, leased by a common carrier. It is rented out on yearly basis; it usually transfers data or voice, or both.
These lines are usually needed for internet access and are used privately between two customer websites. A leased line is always active, which is more convenient than a dial-up connection. In the same way, unlike broadband, a leased line is not shared; it delivers dedicated and guaranteed bandwidth straight to the internet backbone.
Such lines are preferably used by companies that need excellent quality internet service, which is accessible 24/7, so as to run critical programs and applications for companies that need fast and upstream speeds and the remote workers who are accessing office based applications and programs.
With a leased line, you can fully use the Internet bandwidth all the time, and you do not have to share it with 20 or 50 other companies, as you may do with an ADSL. They can even connect the user company to a CSS network and the internet as well, so as to generate more efficiency in the working staff.
Companies that use such lines are mostly multi-national and require connection to the internet at all times. Having leased lines is also logical for them, because with leased lines they can stay connected to their other counterparts across the country. Accessing data from one office to the other is easier this way.
The trend is changing fast, as medium-sized businesses or growing businesses are also using such lines for internet and data transfer. In a study done in 2006, only 3% of the small businesses (a business that has up to 50 employees) used suclines. In the same study, the statistics showed that 30% of the medium-sized businesses had such lines. In recent studies, the statistics are pretty much the same.
The graph for the medium-sized companies, which use such lines, has not changed mostly due to economic reasons. The companies that have had economic growth are the ones that renew the contracts for the leased lines. Others are seen to opt for cheaper alternatives. The multi-nationals or big companies that are experiencing good business use such lines. It helps them in staying connected to the world, and it is easier for them to transfer data from one office to the other, or just to access it.
For such large companies, leased lines are a cheaper and hassle free way to stay connected to the world. All their employees are connected through one line; otherwise, having a dial-up connection would have been problematic. The connection from the internet would suffer if a call had to be made. A lot of phone lines would be needed to give connection to all the employees. Basically, even though leased lines are expensive, in the long run, they are cheaper and easier to use for both medium-sized growing businesses and large scale companies.
