6837 Charter Proposal 2.pdf

Spectrum Enterprise

Proposal for State Of Nebraska Department of Administrative Services, Office of The CIO

Solicitation#: 6837 Z1

Proposal #2

Presented To:

Dianna Gi l l i land Procurement Contrac ts Of f icer 1526 K St reet , Sui te 130 L inco ln, Nebraska 68508 d ianna.g i l l i land@nebraska.gov

Presented By:

Col l in Per ry Stra teg ic Account Manager - Gov ' t /Ed 13545 Barre t t Parkway Sui te 200 Bal lwin , Missour i 63021 (314)-330-4229 co l l in .perry@char ter .com

Charter Communicat ions Operat ing, LLC SPIN: 143050436

Wednesday, January 3, 2023

Dianna Gi l l i land

Procurement Contracts Off icer

1526 K Street, Sui te 130

Lincoln, Nebraska 68508 dianna.gi l l i land@nebraska.gov

Re: Proposal #2

Dear Dianna:

Spectrum Enterpr ise 1 (“Spectrum”) of fers th is Proposal #2 in accordance with Sect ion

I .K. of the State of Nebraska Master Agreement Revision #5, t i t led “Proposal

Correct ions and Mult ip le Proposals ,” for your considerat ion for the s i tes speci f ied in the at tached pr ic ing appendices. Spectrum’s Proposal #1 addresses serv ice locat ions to which Spectrum can provide services direct ly , wi thout the use of a th ird -party service provider (such locat ions, “Type I Serv ice Locat ions”) . This Proposal #2 addresses service locat ions for which a th ird-party serv ice provider is involved in the provis ion of Spectrum’s serv ices (such locat ions, “Type I I Service Locat ions”) .

Spectrum has structured i ts proposals in this manner so that Nebraska can accept

Proposal #1, Proposal #2, or both.

Thank you for the opportuni ty to respond to your Request for Proposal (“RFP”) . Col l in

Perry is leading Spectrum’s ef for t . Please do not hesitate to contact Col l in at (314)-

330-4229 or col l in.perry@charter.com.

Sincerely, Nicholas Seelman

Vice President, Deal Capture and Compl iance Management

1 Spec t rum Ente rp r i se i s a commerc ia l b rand o f Char te r Commun ica t i ons , Inc . The lega l en t i t y submi t t i ng th is p roposa l i s Char te r Commun ica t i ons Opera t i ng , LLC, a subs id ia ry o f Char te r

Communica t ions , Inc .

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Terms of Offer

Terms and Abbreviations

Executive Summary

Fiber Internet Access Product Brief

Fiber Internet Access Technical Specifications

Ethernet Services Product Brief

Ethernet Private Line Overview

Ethernet Virtual Private Line Overview

Ethernet Services Technical Specifications

Spectrum Service Proposal

Form A Contractor Proposal Point of Contact

Request For Proposal For Contractual Services Form

TERMS OF OFFER

This proposal a lone shal l not be cons idered an acceptance of an offer by State Of Nebraska Depar tment of Adminis trat ive Serv ices, Of f ice of The CIO (“Customer”) or otherwise be suf f ic ient to create a b inding contract between State Of Nebraska Department of Adminis trat ive Serv ices, Off ice of The CIO and Spectrum. Such contract shal l be deemed entered into once the par t ies execute the appropr iate contract document(s) .

Spectrum’s b id is based upon serv ices being del ivered under the terms of the State of Nebraska Request for Proposal For Contractual Serv ices, Sol ic i ta t ion Number 6837 Z1 wi th a Release Date of November 16, 2023, and State of Nebraska Master Agreement Rev is ion #5 For High-Speed Transpor t Serv ices For Network Nebraska RFPs 2020- 2023 ( inc luding the documents referenced there in as forming part of the contract) , but subject to the l imi ted qual i f icat ions ident i f ied in Spectrum’s proposal (co l lec t ive ly , the Agreement) .

In the event only a por t ion of Spectrum’s proposal is accepted, Spectrum reserves the r ight to fur ther negot iate the terms of such part ia l acceptance pr ior to f ina l b id award acceptance by Spectrum.

In the event of a bid award to Spectrum by State of Nebraska Department of Administrat ive Serv ices, Off ice of The CIO based on this proposal , i f the fu l l Agreement is not executed by the appl icable Federal Communicat ions Commiss ion (“FCC”) submiss ion deadl ine due to delays in negot iat ion, and the part ies have not terminated such negot iat ions, then for purposes of FCC ru les and re lated Universal Serv ice Adminis trat ive Company (“USAC”) requirements, an agreement incorporat ing the terms of the Agreement, and the b id locat ions, serv ices, bandwidth capac i t ies , and pr ic ing conta ined in th is proposal wi l l be deemed to ex ist .

The terms of th is proposal are conf ident ia l and should not be d isc losed d irect ly or ind irect ly to any th ird par ty, except as may be required by law.

The qual i f icat ions s tated herein apply to a l l par ts, prov is ions, and documents of the RFP and Spectrum’s response, regardless of whether an expl ic i t except ion or qual i f icat ion is taken thereto by Spectrum.

TERMS AND ABBREVIATIONS

Technology evolves at a rapid pace and Spectrum stays on the cut t ing edge of that evolut ion. The terms used to descr ibe spec if ic technologies or serv ices are somet imes cumbersome and become abbrev iated for co l loquia l use. We have prov ided a l is t o f the terms used throughout th is proposal and their corresponding abbrev iat ions for your convenience. Capita l ized terms used but not def ined herein shal l have the meanings ass igned in the Agreement .

GENERAL TERMS ABBREVIATION

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY IT

SERVICE PROPOSAL TERMS ABBREVIATION

MONTHLY RECURRING CHARGE MRC

ONE-TIME CHARGE OTC

QUANTITY QTY

INTERNET PROTOCOL IP

ETHERNET SERVICES TERMS ABBREVIATION

CUSTOMER PREMISE EQUIPMENT CPE

ETHERNET PRIVATE LINE EPL

ETHERNET PRIVATE LOCAL AREA NETWORK EP-LAN

ETHERNET VIRTUAL PRIVATE LINE EVPL

METRO ETHERNET FORUM MEF

USER-TO-NETWORK INTERFACE UNI

WIDE AREA NETWORK WAN

FIA TERMS ABBREVIATION

FIBER INTERNET ACCESS FIA

LOCAL AREA NETWORK LAN

ENTERPRISE AND STRATEGIC MARKETS NETWORK

OPERATIONS CENTER ESM NOC

SERVICE LEVEL AGREEMENT SLA

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Spectrum is p leased to provide this response i l lus trat ing our abi l i ty to provide State of Nebraska Depar tment of Adminis trat ive Serv ices, Of f ice of The CIO with network solut ions. We take pr ide in being an innovat ive resource for businesses, schools and communit ies . Our rel iab le and economical serv ice is a natura l f i t w i th your miss ion.

Bring Advanced and Affordable Technology to Your Schools and Libraries Advanced network solut ions and comput ing technologies in the c lassroom have become v ita l to educat ion. Unfortunate ly , today ’s chal lenging economic env ironment has put educat ion and technology budgets under tremendous pressure. I t is a chal lenge for schools to get access to technologies that help dr ive greater student achievements .

The Federal Government created the E-Rate program to help fund communicat ions serv ices for schools and l ibrar ies. This program of fers 20-90 percent off s tandard reta i l rates on qual i f ied communicat ions serv ices to e l ig ib le schools, l ibrar ies, and their d istr ic ts. Technology and educat ion have converged, and your communicat ions needs are growing rapidly .

Spectrum’s Solut ion Since 1998, Spectrum has worked wi th thousands of E-Rate accounts. Our exper ience in th is area wil l prov ide E-Rate spec ia l is ts who understand:

ru les and regulat ions to part ic ipate in the program b i l l ing and s tandard discounts

Federal ly funded E-Rate d iscounts have made today ’s technology more affordable.

To achieve th is, Spectrum wi l l connect to three major aggregat ion points using EVPL and EPL technologies as i l lus trated in the d iagrams below. This wi l l suppor t the over 300 f iber Ethernet c ircu its , e i ther di rec t ly handed of f to Network Nebraska equipment at the aggregat ion points or sub-aggregated at Educat ional Serv ice Units .

The object ive of Spectrum's solut ion is to prov ide cost-effect ive, scalable, and f lex ible h igh-speed Ethernet data transport serv ices that meet the current and future te lecommunicat ions requirements of Network Nebraska and i ts e l ig ib le ent i t ies .

For Appendix A and C, Spectrum is propos ing EVPL as requested by the State of Nebraska. This connect iv i ty wi l l pass through Spectrum's network and terminate at the selec ted aggregat ion locat ions us ing point- to-mul t ipo int (EVPL) connect iv i ty .

Spectrum's solut ion wi l l ensure scalabi l i ty to suppor t a l l c ircu its transmitt ing at fu l l duplex at the subscr ibed bandwidth without oversubscr ipt ion.

For Appendix B, Spectrum's solut ion wi l l provide dedicated point- to-point (EPL) c ircui ts separate f rom Appendix A and C ent i t ies .

For Appendix D, Spectrum's Enterpr ise F iber Internet Access (FIA) wi l l de l iver dedicated symmetr ica l connect iv i ty with h igh-bandwidth upload and download capabi l i t ies . FIA operates on Spectrum's f iber-r ich network , prov id ing a cont inuous l ink between the local area network (LAN) and the in ternet . The serv ice is proact ively monitored 24/7/365 to ensure avai lab i l i ty , and i t of fers symmetr ica l bandwidth speeds of up to 100 Gbps.

Get Powerful Services with the Financial Benefits of E-Rate Research shows that technology use is a top-f ive indicator of better d isc ipl ine, better at tendance, and increases in col lege enrol lment. Educat ional organizat ions are leveraging E-Rate by par tner ing wi th Spectrum to reduce cost and implement technology for greater student achievement.

Unsurpassed Expertise and Customer Support A network of spec ial ly tra ined, industry exper ts support Spectrum. We have around-the-c lock, U.S. based bus iness support centers and knowledgeable, local ly based technic ians who are spec i f ica l ly tra ined to help wi th your unique needs. Our dedicated work ethic , shared knowledge, and propr ietary systems al low us to ensure that the solut ions we are proposing wi l l match your spec i f ic and d iscrete needs.

When you col laborate wi th Spectrum for network solut ions, we ass ign a dedicated account team who wil l support your serv ices:

Account Execut ive : a dedicated, local market expert who is avai lab le for your consultat ion needs.

Sales Engineering : t ra ined technical experts who customize des igns based on your needs.

E-Rate Specialists: exper ienced with E-Rate ru les and regulat ions and are b i l l ing and s tandard discounts exper ts.

Project Management : customer focused experts who manage your bui ld and communicate wi th you every step of the way.

Account Manager: your point of contact; respons ible for prov id ing you wi th accurate b i l l ing and consul tat ion on future growth needs.

Enterprise Network Operat ions Center : 24/7 fac i l i t ies that cont inuous ly monitor the network .

Customers have di rec t access to our Government Subs id ized Programs (“GSP”) department which special izes in government funded programs for e l ig ible customers .

To suppor t E-Rate program par t ic ipat ion, Spectrum:

Prov ides to the Customer an FCC Form 471 Funding Recommendation Let ter af ter the FCC Form 470 and awarded Agreement rev iew.

Rev iews FCC Form 471 for poss ib le errors and omiss ions and d ist r ibutes to the Customer accompanying Receipt Acknowledgement Let ter ( “RAL”) Modif icat ion recommendat ion necessary to max imize e l ig ible funding.

Monitors Serv ice Prov ider Invoic ing ( “SPI”) invoice submiss ions and SPI d iscount appl icat ion (FCC Form 474) .

Wi l l be avai lable to address program quest ions or concerns v ia email .

Continuity Plan As your incumbent provider , Spectrum has developed this proposal based on our exper ience and unders tanding of your requirements . By choos ing once again to col laborate wi th Spectrum, you wi l l be choos ing a vendor with the proven infrastruc ture and exper ienced team current ly in p lace to suppor t the prov is ion of serv ices under the E-Rate program. Spectrum’s object ive is to cont inue our par tnership wi th you while cont inuing to focus on respons iveness, t ransparency, and cont inuity of serv ices. With that focus we have developed our response to the RFP, and Spectrum is exc i ted to have the oppor tunity to expand our re lat ionship with State of Nebraska Depar tment of Adminis trat ive Serv ices, Off ice of the CIO.

PRODUCT BRIEF

Count on the reliability, bandwidth and speed of a dedicated internet connection.

Today’s organizations depend on high-performing internet solutions to keep critical applications running and business operating. A dependable internet connection ensures high performance for your network resources, allowing you to better serve employees and customers.

Spectrum Enterprise Fiber Internet Access (FIA) is a dedicated service that offers reliable connectivity nationwide with performance and support you can count on. Delivering scalable internet access, we offer 99.99 percent service availability all the way to the equipment at your location.

Fiber Internet Access

Product highlights

• Superior performance: Improves business productivity through a high-performing internet service that ensures reliable connectivity.

• Scalability and reach: Provides a scalable platform with national reach and dense metro coverage to support current and future bandwidth needs.

• Business continuity: Allows for optional solutions to support internet uptime in the event of a disruption.

• End-to-end support: Provides a single, nationwide contact point for services and support including in-building connections to your equipment.

• Value: Offers cost-effective, straightforward pricing.

Key features

• A dedicated connection that is not shared with others, delivered over a reliable, advanced fiber network.

• Service-level agreement (SLA) guarantees service availability while also assuring low latency, jitter and packet loss all the way into the client suite.

• Symmetrical access that scales up to 100 Gbps.

• 24/7/365 U.S.-based support and local technicians.

• Automatic wireless backup option provides seamless failover and failback functionality with battery backup and unlimited data.

• Multiple physical diversity and redundancy options to help protect your network.

FIA technical specifications

Network

• IP over IEEE 802.3-based, full-duplex, non-circuit switched services.

• Provisioned via our advanced fiber network from the client premises to one of many hub locations throughout the Spectrum Enterprise network footprint.

• Built-in network redundancy provides highly reliable and secure internet access.

• Fiber access circuits are unaffected by electromagnetic interference.

Routing

• Static or border gateway protocol (BGP) traffic routing options.

Internet access demarcation

• Fiber connections to the Spectrum Enterprise network are monitored 24/7/365 via a dedicated network interface device (NID).

• Traffic is securely routed over the Spectrum Enterprise IP network until it is delivered to the internet.

• Demarc extensions included for most buildings in footprint.

Static IP addresses:

• Initial IP block is included.

• Additional IP address space available upon request.

• Support for dual stacking of IPv4 and IPv6.

enterprise.spectrum.com https://enterprise.spectrum.com/ https://enterprise.spectrum.com/

PRODUCT BRIEF FIBER INTERNET ACCESS

About Spectrum Enterprise Spectrum Enterprise, a part of Charter Communications, Inc., is a national provider of scalable, fiber technology solutions serving America’s largest businesses and communications service providers. The broad Spectrum Enterprise portfolio includes networking and managed services solutions: Internet access, Ethernet access and networks, Voice and TV solutions. Spectrum Enterprise’s industry-leading team of experts works closely with clients to achieve greater business success by providing solutions designed to meet their evolving needs. More information about Spectrum Enterprise can be found at enterprise.spectrum.com.

Not all products, pricing and services are available in all areas. Pricing and actual speeds may vary. Restrictions may apply.

Subject to change without notice. ©2021 Charter Communications. All rights reserved.

enterprise.spectrum.com SE-FI-PB001_v7

Learn more enterprise.spectrum.com/Fiber

Optional services

Enhance FIA with a suite of technology services designed to protect, simplify and improve the performance of your network.

• Wireless Internet Backup: Get automatic wireless internet failover and failback service that is managed for you.

• Wireless Internet: Provide primary or secondary internet access over LTE Advanced technology with this all-inclusive wireless internet service.

• Managed Network Edge: Simplify the deployment and management of your network with this modular, all-in-one solution.

Delivered over the Cisco Meraki platform, the solution offers security, routing, SD-WAN, WiFi, switching and cameras.

Achieve flexibility and scalability with connectivity, equipment and network management from a single partner.

• Managed SD-WAN: Achieve greater visibility and control with a complete, virtualized WAN service that allows for application-aware routing while reducing network complexity and cost.

• Managed Router Service: Efficiently route traffic and improve bandwidth use without investing in hardware or day-to-day management.

• Managed Security Services: Protect your network with a fully managed solution that offers a firewall and unified threat management (UTM), intrusion detection and prevention, anti-malware, anti-virus, event log management and more.

• DDoS Protection: Guard against malicious volumetric attacks designed to overload your network with world-class distributed denial of service (DDoS) threat identification and mitigation.

• Managed WiFi: Meet customer demands for reliable connections to the internet with ubiquitous coverage across your facilities and 24/7/365 support.

https://enterprise.spectrum.com/ https://enterprise.spectrum.com/ http://enterprise.spectrum.com/Fiber

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Fiber Internet Access (FIA)

Network Our FIA is IP over IEEE 802.3-based full duplex non-circuit switched services. FIA is provisioned on dedicated, fiber optic facilities from the client’s premise to the Spectrum Enterprise hub site and is terminated at the Ethernet aggregation switch with options up to 100 Gbps. Spectrum Enterprise FIA service has been architected to have multiple routing paths over multiple, redundant network elements in the core network.

The fiber access circuit is not susceptible to electromagnetic interference and is a highly reliable infrastructure.

Internet access demarcation The client is responsible for the LAN infrastructure and configuration, including the physical connection to the router.

Fiber connections to the Spectrum Enterprise network are managed by a dedicated router. All traffic is routed over the Spectrum Enterprise IP network until the traffic is required to travel to the public network.

Routing Routing options are provided through LAN, static routing or Border Gateway Protocol (BGP). BGP routing can be used for dynamic routing of information between different administrative routing domains without passing explicit topology details.

Static IP addresses IP address space is included; more is available in accordance with ARIN IP allocation policies.

Billing and technical support Spectrum Enterprise provides assistance in trouble reporting for any billing, technical or FIA service-related issues.

Network monitoring Spectrum Enterprise monitors all internet routes 24/7 by polling the network devices every 5 minutes. Polling data includes registration failure, port down status and power failure. Real-time alarms are sent directly to the Commercial Network Operations Center. Our tools provide tests that are performed from various locations and keep both external and internal components under constant surveillance.

Site access The client must provide access to its site to Spectrum Enterprise personnel (or approved contractors) for the purposes of installing or maintaining its services.

This includes access to buildings and point of demarcation (switch/router) for service installation and maintenance. For maintenance purposes, the CPE should be located in an area where it can be accessed by Spectrum Enterprise technicians.

If the equipment is not accessible, then the client must provide access for troubleshooting and/or maintenance purposes.

Service-level agreement The Spectrum Enterprise Fiber Internet Access service-level agreement contains parameters that include network availability, latency, packet loss and mean time to restore – key metrics to discover and help prevent downtime.

DDoS Protection Service Spectrum Enterprise has the ability to rapidly respond to volumetric DDoS attacks on an FIA connection. This client-initiated mitigation is designed to reduce disruptive impacts to customers and employees due to malicious attacks.

For businesses with high-bandwidth requirements, Spectrum Enterprise Fiber Internet Access (FIA) offers continuous, protected connectivity between your LAN and the internet.

As an alternative to traditional high-speed data connections, FIA provides symmetrical connectivity for businesses that need high-bandwidth upload capability. Your FIA service runs on our redundant and private end-to-end fiber network.

Your FIA service is proactively monitored 24/7 to verify uptime and availability. Our industry-leading service-level agreements ensure optimal network performance and availability for your mission-critical operations.

enterprise.spectrum.com SE--FI-TS001_v4

About Spectrum Enterprise Spectrum Enterprise, a part of Charter Communications, Inc., is a national provider of scalable, fiber technology solutions serving many of America’s largest businesses and communications service providers. The broad Spectrum Enterprise portfolio includes networking and managed services solutions: Internet access, Ethernet access and networks, Voice and TV solutions. The Spectrum Enterprise team of experts works closely with clients to achieve greater business success by providing solutions designed to meet their evolving needs. For more information, visit enterprise.spectrum.com.

Not all products, pricing and services are available in all areas. Pricing and actual speeds may vary.

Restrictions may apply. Subject to change without notice. ©2021 Charter Communications. All rights reserved.

http://enterprise.spectrum.com https://enterprise.spectrum.com/services/internet-networking.html https://enterprise.spectrum.com/services/internet-networking.html https://enterprise.spectrum.com/services/internet-networking/internet/fiber-internet-access.html https://enterprise.spectrum.com/services/internet-networking/wan/ethernet.html https://enterprise.spectrum.com/services/voice.html https://enterprise.spectrum.com/services/television.html https://enterprise.spectrum.com

PRODUCT BRIEF

Ethernet Services

Public and private cloud services, unified communications and collaboration solutions, network and application security, big data and analytics, mobility and the Internet of Things (IoT) are all accelerating the transformation of wide area networks (WANs). As the WAN evolves, modern networking solutions, such as Ethernet, deliver the enhanced performance and security that enterprises demand.

Organizations are modernizing their networks with new technologies, deploying cloud-first strategies, embracing multi-cloud connectivity and enabling hybrid networking to bring their IT strategy to life.

With speeds up to 100 Gbps, our Ethernet Services provide secure, reliable connectivity to power cloud-based applications. Spectrum Enterprise is a nationwide network partner that can connect your locations throughout the U.S., empowering you to leverage bandwidth-intensive applications and fortify business continuity plans. Backed by an end-to-end service-level agreement (SLA) all the way into your suite, our Ethernet Services simplify your network infrastructure.

Partner with an experienced provider that can put your organization’s network modernization on the fast track.

Committed to your success, our expert network engineers work with you to design a tailored solution. We provide you with a dedicated project manager to oversee a seamless installation with 24/7/365 support, and a client services manager will ensure any issue resolution. Furthermore, our portal gives you the network visibility required to ensure a positive experience for your organization.

Product highlights

Superior performance

Accelerate the capabilities of your mission-critical applications with SLA-backed services and integrate your network with public and private clouds.

Inherently secure

Rely on a private native Ethernet network to connect your locations and use additional VLANs to further isolate traffic.

National reach

Easily add new locations with our dense metro fiber coverage and nationwide reach supported by more than 230,000 fiber-route miles.

Simple management

Reduce IT complexity with end-to-end support from a network partner you can trust to design and manage your high-performing network.

Spectrum Enterprise is recognized as a top U.S. Ethernet services provider by leading industry analyst firms.1

Award-winning Ethernet Services

Transform your network with high-performance Ethernet

YEAR-END

LEADERBOARD

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enterprise.spectrum.com

PRODUCT BRIEF ETHERNET SERVICES

Learn more enterprise.spectrum.com/Ethernet enterprise.spectrum.com SE-NS-PB001_v10

Scalable, secure connections linking your users, locations and the cloud

Spectrum Enterprise Ethernet Services

Private WAN connectivity protects network locations from external threats, like DDoS attacks, while supporting low latency and high-bandwidth applications.

Take your performance further with additional services

Cloud Connect

Extend your network with fast, secure and dependable private Ethernet connections to public cloud service providers.

Fiber Internet Access

Achieve dedicated internet connectivity with symmetrical upload and download speeds and bandwidth up to 100 Gbps.

Managed WiFi

Meet customer demands for reliable connections to the internet with ubiquitous coverage across your facilities and 24/7/365 support.

Managed Router Service

Efficiently route Ethernet, internet and other network traffic with a variety of protocols and improve bandwidth utilization without investing in hardware or day-to-day management.

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Headquarters

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Ethernet Services

1. “Year-End 2021 U.S. Carrier Ethernet Services LEADERBOARD,” December 31, 2021.

Not all products, pricing and services are available in all areas. Pricing and actual speeds may vary. Restrictions may apply.

Subject to change without notice. ©2022 Charter Communications. All rights reserved.

About Spectrum Enterprise Spectrum Enterprise, a part of Charter Communications, Inc., is a national provider of scalable, fiber technology solutions serving many of America’s largest businesses and communications service providers. The broad Spectrum Enterprise portfolio includes networking and managed services solutions: Internet access, Ethernet access and networks, Voice and TV solutions. The Spectrum Enterprise team of experts works closely with clients to achieve greater business success by providing solutions designed to meet their evolving needs. For more information, visit enterprise.spectrum.com.

https://enterprise.spectrum.com https://enterprise.spectrum.com/ethernet https://enterprise.spectrum.com https://www.verticalsystems.com/2022/04/26/ye2021-us-ethernet-leaderboard/ https://enterprise.spectrum.com/services/internet-networking.html https://enterprise.spectrum.com/services/internet-networking.html https://enterprise.spectrum.com/services/internet-networking/internet/fiber-internet-access.html https://enterprise.spectrum.com/services/internet-networking/wan/ethernet.html https://enterprise.spectrum.com/services/voice.html

ETHERNET PRIVATE LINE OVERVIEW

For businesses with two locations, Ethernet Private Line (EPL) is a cost-effective, high-capacity solution. EPL reliably connects Customer Premises Equipment (CPE) with a lower-cost User-to-Network Interface (UNI), making it a smart replacement for traditional TDM private line service.

EPL can instantly and privately transmit mission-critical data at speeds from 10 Mbps to 10 Gbps. And Ethernet Private Line dedicated point-to-point connectivity supports metro and national business applications including online backup, storage area networking, and data center connectivity.

EPL product h igh l ights Privacy: All data travels within the secure domain of a Layer 2, dedicated, high-capacity, point-to-point connection, at native Ethernet speeds.

Availability: Easily link business locations in geographically dispersed areas.

Cost Savings: You can connect your business’s Customer Premises Equipment (CPE) with a lower-cost Ethernet interface.

Standards-Based: Depend on Ethernet Private Line (EPL) with our MEF CE 2.0 Certifications.

ETHERNET VIRTUAL PRIVATE LINE OVERVIEW

For businesses with a headquarters office and branch locations, Ethernet Virtual Private Line (EVPL) provides essential high-speed point-to-multipoint connectivity. EVPL helps multi-location companies streamline network management with configuration options to support your offices.

EVPL provides an Ethernet Virtual Connection (EVC) between three or more locations, similar to Ethernet Private Line service. But it also permits multiplexing multiple services (EVCs) on a single User-to-Network Interface (UNI) at your hub or aggregation site.

EVPL benef i ts Privacy: All data travels within the secure domain of a Layer 2, dedicated, high capacity, point-to-point connection at native Ethernet speeds.

Single Interconnection: A hub aggregates all data traffic on a single network between one central location, or data center, and smaller locations.

Standards-Based: Depend on EVPL with our MEF CE 2.0 Certifications.

Traffic Separation: Maintain discrete pathways when you consolidate previously separate domains for specific applications or departments onto a single network.

Cost Savings: A single handoff reduces network equipment and management costs.

enterprise.spectrum.com

Spectrum Enterprise Ethernet Services deliver Layer 2 (VLAN) connectivity which can support higher layer applications (i.e., IP Layer 3 and above) and other services such as:

• Site-to-site access/transport (Layer 2, Layer 3).

• Internet access.

• Server farm consolidation and virtualization.

• Business continuity/disaster recovery.

• Cloud-based business applications.

• Distributed Storage Area Networks (SAN).

• Voice over IP (VoIP).

• Video and digital imaging distribution (streaming/ interactive).

Service specifications Spectrum Enterprise Ethernet Services are MEF CE 2.0 certified for all eight service types, CoS (Class of Service) and all Performance Tiers (PT). The following section outlines the standards associated with the services that Spectrum Enterprise will market and support as part of their suite of Ethernet Services.

Each of the following service attributes is common to all Spectrum Enterprise Ethernet Services. Each parameter meets or exceeds those outlined by MEF CE 2.0.

• More specific details for each of the services can be found in the Service Types section of this document.

Spectrum Enterprise Ethernet Services provide best-in-class MEF CE 2.0 certified, high-speed Ethernet �Services for business connectivity across the Metro or nationwide.

Our Ethernet includes MEF Carrier Ethernet

2.0 defined E-Line and E-LAN services, providing point-to-point Ethernet Private Line (EPL), point-to-multipoint Ethernet Virtual Private Line (EVPL) and multipoint-to-multipoint Ethernet Private LAN (EP- LAN) service configurations. Each is a carrier-grade Layer-2 transport service where frames/packets are transported and delivered �over Spectrum Enterprise’s advanced optical fiber network, making it possible to meet bandwidth demands with cost effective, scalable alternatives to legacy connectivity solutions such as TDM, SONET, ATM and Frame Relay.

Overview Spectrum Enterprise Ethernet Services are an end-to-end network solution that allows businesses to attach� their LAN to a User-Network Interface (UNI) using a standard copper or fiber Ethernet interface to access �Spectrum Enterprise Ethernet Services.

Our Ethernet Services are available in multiple standard bandwidth tiers up to 100 Gbps and suitable for all businesses including financial, healthcare, education, government, IT, retail, real estate, legal, media and many other verticals.

Ethernet Services

UNI (User-to-Network Interface) All Spectrum Enterprise Ethernet Services utilize a MEF CE 2.0 certified Ethernet Network Interface Device (NID) as the demarcation point between Spectrum Enterprise and the client. The Spectrum Enterprise NID provides bidirectional, full duplex transmission of Ethernet frames using a standard IEEE 802.3 Ethernet (UNI) that also provides the ability to manage and monitor the performance of Ethernet Services.

Spectrum Enterprise supports multiple types of UNIs by which to interconnect clients. Figure 1 outlines the Spectrum Enterprise-supported physical UNIs along with the recommended bandwidths:

UNI mode (speed and duplex) Spectrum Enterprise Ethernet Services allow clients to choose their method of interface speed settings. By default, all Spectrum Enterprise UNIs are set for Auto-Negotiation, which allows for automatic determination of speed between the client Ethernet interface and the UNI.

The chart below outlines the available UNI-Speed and Duplex options:

enterprise.spectrum.com

ETHERNET SERVICES

Figure 1: Spectrum Enterprise-supported physical UNIs

UNI physical interface UNI speed Cable types Supported standard service bandwidths

100BASE-T (FastE) 100 Mbps Category 5e (Cat5e) Category 6 (Cat6) or optical fiber

512 Kbps up to 100 Mbps

1000BASE-T (GigE) 1 Gbps Category 5e (Cat5e) Category 6 (Cat6) or optical fiber

Up to 1 Gbps

1000BASE-SX

100BASE-LX

1000BASE-SR

(1 Gig)

1 Gbps Optical-Fiber

MMF, SMF

Up to 1 Gbps

10GBASE-SR

10GBASE-LR

(10 Gig)

10 Gbps Optical fiber MMF, SMF Up to 10 Gbps

40GBASE-SR4

40GBASE-LR4

(40 Gig)

20 Gbps, 30 Gbps or 40 Gbps

Optical fiber MMF, SMF Up to 40 Gbps

100GBASE-SR10

100GBASE-SR4

100GBASE-LR4

(100 Gig)

20 Gbps, 30 Gbps, 40 Gbps, 50 Gbps, 60 Gbps, 70 Gbps, 80 Gbps, 90 Gbps or 100 Gbps

Optical fiber MMF, SMF Up to 100 Gbps

Maximum number of UNIs Spectrum Enterprise Ethernet Services support a specified number of UNIs (client locations) for each of its service types.

Ethernet Virtual Connection (EVC) Ethernet Virtual Connection (EVC) is a MEF defined Layer 2 bridging architecture that associates two or more UNIs.

Spectrum Enterprise Ethernet Services will provision three EVC types:

enterprise.spectrum.com

ETHERNET SERVICES

Figure 3: Spectrum Enterprise supported UNI quantities

Service type (EVC type) Maximum # of UNIs

EPL (point-to-point) 2

EVPL (point-to-multipoint) 120 (depends on multiplexed UNI speed)

EP-LAN (multipoint-to-multipoint) 120

Figure 2: All Spectrum Enterprise UNI interfaces are set to Full Duplex. This allows the client to transmit data in both directions simultaneously.

UNI physical interface UNI setting options Duplex setting

100BASE-T (FastE) Auto-negotiation or hard coded (100 Mbps) Full Duplex

1000BASE-T (GigE) Auto-negotiation or hard coded (1 Gbps) Full Duplex

1000BASE-SX

100BASE-LX

1000BASE-SR

(1 Gig)

Auto-negotiation or hard coded (1 Gbps) Full Duplex

10GBASE-SR

10GBASE-LR

(10 Gig)

Auto-negotiation or hard coded (10 Gbps) Full Duplex

40GBASE-SR4

40GBASE-LR4

(40 Gig)

Auto-negotiation or hard coded (40 Gbps) Full Duplex

100GBASE-SR10

100GBASE-SR4

100GBASE-LR4

(100 Gig)

Auto-negotiation or hard coded (100 Gbps) Full Duplex

Figure 4: MEF CE 2.0 - Certified topologies for any business

Point-to-point Ethernet Private Line (EPL)

Point-to-multipoint Ethernet Virtual Private Line

(EVPL)

Multipoint-to-multipoint Ethernet Private LAN

(EP-LAN)

enterprise.spectrum.com

ETHERNET SERVICES

MAC addresses Spectrum Enterprise Ethernet Services will support 500 MAC addresses for EP-LAN.

Service Maximum Transmission Unit (MTU) The Service MTU Frame Size is the maximum service frame size (in bytes) allowed to transmit beyond the UNI.

Spectrum Enterprise Ethernet Services offer two options for MTU Frame Size:

• Standard MTU - up to 1544 bytes.*

• Jumbo MTU - up to 9000 bytes.*

The MTU applies to untagged and tagged (802.1Q VLAN) Ethernet frames. *Note: except for PON networks.

Client Edge VLANs (CE-VLAN ID) Spectrum Enterprise Ethernet Services support untagged and tagged (802.1q VLAN) client data traffic. All Spectrum Enterprise Ethernet Services support a maximum of 4095-802.1Q VLANs per service instance.

Client VLAN preservation All Client VLAN IDs and Priority Code Points (PCP - IEEE 802.1p) markings for CoS are transmitted through the UNIs, across the network and received at the destination unaltered by the Spectrum Enterprise Ethernet Service.

• Please note: Spectrum Enterprise reserves the right to reserve one VLAN for network management purposes, in which case that VLAN would not be available for the client’s use.

Class of Service (CoS) Class of Service (CoS) allows for the differentiation of service performance levels for different types of network data traffic. CoS is used to prioritize data traffic within the network, including the designated Ethernet Services.

As part of the MEF CE 2.0 certifications, Spectrum Enterprise Ethernet Services are certified to support multiple CoS.

Our current service offerings provide a single CoS, providing the highest service classification to our clients—free of network congestion and always available. We relay this to clients through our SLAs and defined Performance Tiers, which are defined by the geographic service area.

Clients may define internal CoS, which will be preserved through the Ethernet transport, or clients may elect to utilize Spectrum Enterprise’s Managed Router Services, which have the ability to manage client’s internal CoS.

Service Performance Tiers (PT) Spectrum Enterprise Ethernet Services provide a best-in-class service offering with defined Performance Tiers (PT) to coincide with the client’s geographic service area.

Service type (EVC type) Maximum number of EVCs

EPL (point-to-point) 1

*EVPL (point-to-multipoint) 32 (service multiplexed)

EP-LAN (multipoint-to-multipoint) 1

* Ethernet Virtual Private Line (EVPL) is a Hub and Spoke architecture. The number of EVCs that can be ‘Service Multiplexed’ on a UNI port is determined by the UNI speed and aggregate service bandwidth.

Figure 5: Spectrum Enterprise EVC maximums

EVCs per UNI Each of the Spectrum Enterprise Ethernet Services will support the maximum number of EVCs outlined here:

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS ETHERNET SERVICES

Each of the defined PTs coincide with the Spectrum Enterprise service-level agreements (SLAs) Each PT Tier has a defined objective for Frame Delay (FD), Frame Loss (FL) and Frame Delay Variation (FDV).

Figure 6 provides the service PTs based on service geography:

*Includes all circuits provided by third party service providers, regardless of distance.

Ethernet frame delivery Data frames are differentiated into three categories: Unicast Service Frames, Multicast Service Frames and Broadcast Services Frames, which are based on the destination MAC Address. Frames are categorized at the ingress UNI and must adhere to the following Spectrum Enterprise disposition rules for frame delivery:

• Delivery unconditionally - All frames are delivered to the ingress UNI(s).

• Delivery conditionally - Frames meeting the defined conditions are delivered to the egress UNI(s).

Bandwidth Profiles (BWP) Bandwidth Profiles (BWP) enforce limits on bandwidth utilization according to the defined service-level agreements (SLAs) agreed upon by the client and Spectrum Enterprise. The BWP enforces the defined Committed Information Rate (CIR) agreed upon in the SLA and also specifies how excess data should be handled.

Spectrum Enterprise Ethernet Services use an ingress traffic policing policy to restrict traffic flows to the subscribed CIR. If the transmitted bandwidth exceeds the defined CIR and Committed Burst Size (CBS), the traffic will be subject to be discarded.

Layer 2 Control Protocol (L2CP) processing Spectrum Enterprise Ethernet Services will discard, tunnel/transmit or peer/process certain L2CP service frames at each UNI location. Spectrum Enterprise adheres to the MEF policy for the disposition of L2CP service frames, which is listed below. The default disposition is to discard all client L2CP frames not tunneled/transmitted.

Figure 7: Spectrum Enterprise Ethernet Services adhere to the following rules for handling each type of frame:

Service frame type Frame disposition for EPL Frame disposition for EVPL Frame disposition for

EP-LAN

Unicast Deliver unconditionally Deliver unconditionally Deliver unconditionally

Unknown Unicast Deliver unconditionally Deliver unconditionally Deliver conditionally

Multicast Deliver unconditionally Deliver unconditionally Deliver conditionally

Broadcast Deliver unconditionally Deliver unconditionally Deliver conditionally

Figure 6: SLA targets

Geography Service availability Frame/ packet loss Mean time to restore (“MTTR”) Latency/frame delay (round-trip) Jitter/frame delay variation

Metro End-to-End ≤

99.99% ≤ 0.01%

Priority 1 outages within 4 hours

≤ 10ms ≤ 2 ms

Regional ≤ 25 ms ≤ 4ms

National* ≤ 60ms ≤ 8ms enterprise.spectrum.com

L2 control protocol

Destination MAC address

Ethertype/ subtype

EPL L2CP frame disposition/ action

EVPL L2CP

frame disposition/ action

EPLAN

L2CP frame disposition/ action

STP, RSTP,

MSTP

Pause

01-80-C2-00-00-00 01-80-C2-00-00-01

NA

0x8808

Tunnel Discard

Discard Discard

Tunnel Discard

LACP/LAMP 01-80-C2-00-00-02 0x8809 / 01 / 02 Discard or Peer

(Per UNI) Discard or Peer

(Per UNI) Discard or Peer

(Per UNI)

Link OAM 01-80-C2-00-00-02 0x8809 / 03 Discard or Peer

(Per UNI) Discard or Peer

(Per UNI) Discard or Peer

(Per UNI)

ESMC 01-80-C2-00-00-02 0x8809 / 0A Discard Discard Discard

802.1 X Port

Auth

01-80-C2-00-00-03 01-80-C2-00-00-04 through 01-80-C2-00-00-06

0x88E

NA

Discard

Discard

Discard

Discard

Discard

Discard

E-LMI

01-80-C2-00-00-07 01-80-C2-00-00-08 through 01-80-C2-00-00-0A 01-80-C2-00-00-0B 01-80-C2-00-00-0C

0x88EE

NA

NA

NA

Discard

Discard

Tunnel

Tunnel

Discard

Discard

Discard

Discard

Discard

Discard

Tunnel

Tunnel

MVRP 01-80-C2-00-00-0D NA Tunnel Discard Tunnel

LLDP PTP

Peer Delay

01-80-C2-00-00-0E

01-80-C2-00-00-0F

0x88CC

NA

Discard

Tunnel

Discard

Discard

Discard

Tunnel

GARP, MRP

01-80-C2-00-00-20 through 01-80-C2-00-00-2F

NA Tunnel Tunnel Tunnel

CDP, VTP 01-00-0C-CC-CC-CC NA Tunnel Discard Tunnel

ETHERNET SERVICES

Figure 8: L2CP Frame disposition enterprise.spectrum.com SE-NS-TS001_v3

About Spectrum Enterprise Spectrum Enterprise, a part of Charter Communications, Inc., is a national provider of scalable, fiber technology solutions serving many of America’s largest businesses and communications service providers. The broad Spectrum Enterprise portfolio includes networking and managed services solutions: Internet access, Ethernet access and networks, Voice and TV solutions. The Spectrum Enterprise team of experts works closely with clients to achieve greater business success by providing solutions designed to meet their evolving needs. For more information, visit enterprise.spectrum.com.

Not all products, pricing and services are available in all areas. Pricing and actual speeds may vary.

Restrictions may apply. Subject to change without notice. ©2021 Charter Communications. All rights reserved.

https://enterprise.spectrum.com https://enterprise.spectrum.com/services/internet-networking.html https://enterprise.spectrum.com/services/internet-networking.html https://enterprise.spectrum.com/services/internet-networking/internet/fiber-internet-access.html https://enterprise.spectrum.com/services/internet-networking/wan/ethernet.html https://enterprise.spectrum.com/services/voice.html

SPECTRUM SERVICE PROPOSAL

Spectrum’s proposal, inc luding pr ic ing, is subjec t to the fo l lowing cont ingenc ies:

F inal engineer ing, des ign and s i te v is i ts ; and Acceptance of and enter ing into the Agreement, which shal l govern the contractual relat ionship between the part ies and the prov is ion of the serv ices under such contract .

The Appendixes A, B, C & D shal l be deemed part of and incorporated into Spectrum’s b id response, and is subject to Spectrum’s terms, condi t ions, and qual i f icat ions stated herein.

Pr ic ing is prov ided only for the s i tes shown in the Appendixes A, B, C & D. Pr ic ing for addit ional s i tes shal l be determined upon Spectrum’s receipt of s i te informat ion for the new serv ice locat ion, evaluat ion of the requested serv ices, performance of surveys, and other in format ion that may be required.

Pr ic ing shown in Appendixes A, B, C & D are exc lus ive of taxes, fees and surcharges.

The MRCs and OTCs are subject to taxes, fees and surcharges as descr ibed in Master Serv ice Agreement , Sect ion I I . M, t i t led “Pr ices.”

E-Rate Funding Contingency Customer may submit serv ice orders and the Agreement to the Schools and L ibrar ies Div is ion of the Universal Serv ice Adminis trat ive Company, ( i .e . , the ent i ty appointed by the Federal Communicat ions Commiss ion to adminis ter the Universal Serv ice Program with respect to Schools and L ibrar ies (E-Rate) funding) as part of any appl icat ion seek ing a federal subsidy or funding.

Customer is responsib le for not i fy ing Spectrum of i ts e lect ion of e i ther the Serv ice Prov ider Invoice (SPI) or Bi l led Ent i ty Appl icant Reimbursement (BEAR) discount method by May 15th pr ior to the appl icable funding year . Customer must complete and return an E-Rate Discount Elec t ion Form to Spectrum pr ior to such date, or Customer wi l l be deemed to have chosen the BEAR discount method for the funding year.

Upon Spectrum’s receipt of appropr iate not ice that Customer is an approved E-Rate program part ic ipant for a Serv ice, Spectrum wi l l invoice Customer for the Serv ice in accordance wi th E-Rate guidel ines and/or ru les. I f Spectrum invoices Customer for a Serv ice pursuant to any E-Rate program rates, d iscounts or credi ts in advance of receiv ing such not ice and Customer ’s request for E-Rate program funding is denied, l imi ted or reduced, Spectrum wil l invoice Customer and Customer wi l l pay the d if ference between such invoiced amount(s) and the actual amount of the charges for the Serv ice as descr ibed in the serv ice order . Notwi ths tanding anyth ing herein to the contrary, Customer’s obl igat ions under the serv ice order shal l remain in fu l l force and ef fec t in the event Customer withdraws or is removed from the E-Rate program, receives E-Rate program funding that is less than Customer ’s requested funding amount, or is denied E-Rate program funding for any Serv ice descr ibed in the serv ice order . For the avoidance of doubt , Customer is sole ly respons ib le for a l l charges for serv ices, as descr ibed in the serv ice order, that were ins tal led pr ior to the E-Rate program funding year star t date.

E-Rate Upgrade Path For E-Rate e l ig ib le serv ice locat ions, Customer shal l have the opt ion to add Serv ices or, i f appl icable, increase speed and bandwidth dur ing the order term of the serv ice order , prov ided Spectrum is able to accommodate Customer’s request . Customer wi l l not i fy Spectrum of i ts des ired addi t ional Services or increased speed and bandwidth and shal l be respons ib le for the corresponding increase in MRCs for such addi t ional Serv ices or increased speed and bandwidth, as wel l as construc t ion and ins ta l lat ion costs ( i f appl icable) . Added serv ices may be coterminous wi th the in i t ia l order term of the or iginal serv ice order i f the part ies agree upon appropr iate MRCs and any OTCs to account for the decreased in i t ia l order term for such addi t ional Services. For E-Rate e l ig ible serv ice locat ions, Customer shal l have the opt ion to upgrade Services for a serv ice locat ion to those h igher speeds/bandwidths ref lected in Spectrum’s proposal .

In accordance with E-Rate rules , the contract that Customer f i les wi th USAC shal l contain the upgrade opt ions avai lable to Customer dur ing the Order Term as set for th by Spectrum in th is proposal.

State of Nebraska

REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL FOR CONTRACTUAL SERVICES

SOLICITATION NUMBER RELEASE DATE

6837 Z1 November 16, 2023

PROPOSAL OPENING DATE AND TIME PROCUREMENT CONTACT

January 3, 2024 Dianna Gilliland/Kelly Thomas

PLEASE READ CAREFULLY!

SCOPE OF SERVICE

The State of Nebraska (State), Department of Administrative Services (DAS), Materiel Division, State Purchasing Bureau (SPB), is issuing this Request for Proposal (RFP) Number 6837 Z1 for the purpose of selecting a qualified Bidder(s) to provide high speed transport services to participants of Network Nebraska. A more detailed description can be found in Section II. The resulting contract(s) may not be exclusive contract(s) as the State reserves the right to contract for the same or similar services from other sources now or in the future.

The term of the contract will commence upon execution of the contract by the State through June 30, 2028. The Contract includes the option to renew for four (4) additional one (1) year periods upon mutual agreement of the Parties. The State reserves the right to extend the period of this contract beyond the termination date when mutually agreeable to the Parties.

ALL INFORMATION PERTINENT TO THIS REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL CAN BE FOUND ON THE INTERNET AT:

http://das.nebraska.gov/materiel/purchasing.html.

IMPORTANT NOTICE: Pursuant to Neb. Rev. Stat. § 84-602.04, State contracts in effect as of January 1, 2014, and contracts entered into thereafter, must be posted to a public website. The resulting contract, the solicitation, and the successful contractor’s proposal or response will be posted to a public website managed by DAS, which can be found at http://statecontracts.nebraska.gov.

In addition, and in furtherance of the State’s public records Statute (Neb. Rev. Stat. § 84-712 et seq.), all proposals or responses received regarding this solicitation will be posted to the State Purchasing Bureau public website.

The Master Agreement…