The business communications unit of EarthLink Inc., New Edge Networks, became the first telecommunications company to offer a new network service that allows businesses to tag and prioritize data traffic over DSL access using up to five MPLS classes of service.

Following nearly three months of successful testing, after previously announcing plans in January to offer up to five classes of service over DSL, New Edge, on Monday launched its service. Data traffic tagging and prioritization with true classes of service, until now, were available only on more costly T1 lines with MPLS.

New Edge offers its new service directly and through selling partners nationally in most areas where DSL is available.

vice president of marketing for New Edge Networks, Greg Griffiths, said: “This breakthrough service helps small and midsize businesses avoid network congestion problems due to the convergence of communications applications such as VoIP phone calls and other latency-sensitive services over DSL access”. “Network bottlenecks and data traffic congestion bog down application performance and business productivity.”

Small and midsize businesses, to stay competitive, are deploying a myriad of new applications to improve customer service, drive efficiency and enhance profitability. A business is faced with the need to get more bandwidth or better throughput, as applications and data traffic mount.  Because they cannot yet make a business case to step up to the next performance level, which is usually a T1 line with MPLS, many businesses are deferring desirable applications.

New Edge is pricing its new service with a $100 premium over the cost of a fully managed DSL-based private network, which averages about $140 a month, per location. Bandwidth optimization with up to five classes of service over DSL access, improved service level guarantees, and a Cisco router upgrade, included with this price step-up.

The monthly cost, in contrast, for a T1 line can start at about $500, depending on distance and geographic area. With some carriers, MPLS classes of service and T1 network management are added options.

Businesses can hold down, with MPLS class of service over DSL, their monthly communications costs while optimizing use of high-speed, low-cost DSL access commonly used for wide area networks.