Why CGNAT outweighs the benefits of buying IPv4?

NFWARE BLOG
10/07/2020

The scarcity of IPv4 addresses, the most widespread IP protocol, has finally come. Now like never before operators pay a lot of attention to cost optimization. Indeed, IP-addresses are also sold in the secondary market, where it is very difficult to control the price increase.

The price is rising because IPv4 addresses are very limited in supply, while IPv6 is not yet market-ready

Three years ago, the cost of one IPv4 address was approximately $10. Now, based on the offers of brokers, the price can be from $20 to $25. Last year alone, the cost of a single address has risen by 35%. At the same time, there is a technical limitation that does not allow you to buy less than 256 IPv4 addresses.

Thus, the minimum size network will already cost a lot. As a result, telecom operators incur significant costs.

It is also important to note that the value of IPv4 addresses depends on:
  • How clean the block is (that it does not contain blacklisted addresses)
  • The region
  • The block size and the current market demand
According to Heficed

What does it mean for service providers that see
growth in terms of subscribers?

Let's take the example of a small telecom operator with 1024 new subscribers in 2020:

  • In that case, the telecom operator can spend up to $25 000

In another example, the telecom operator needs to expand the network by adding up to 10 240 new subscribers.

  • The telecom operator spending may reach up to $250 000

In the third example, the telecom operator decides that he will add about 40 000 new subscribers.:

  • This will lead to an additional cost of $1 000 000 million worth of spend

What does it mean for entrepreneurs who start
their internet service providers' business?

In case you want to build a new ISP from scratch you should be ready to pay a minimum of around $5 000- $9 000 just for IPv4 addresses.

Also, if your business will grow steadily and you add about 5120 subscribers after one year you will pay about $125 000.

It is much more cost-effective to invest in Carrier-Grade NAT

CGNAT allows several users to safely use the same IP address, thereby reducing the number of unique addresses that the provider owns. The operator gets the opportunity to scale the bandwidth of his network as needed, in just a few hours. This in turn allows the operator to significantly save the capital costs of expanding the network.

This in turn allows the operator to significantly save the capital
costs of expanding the network

Also, it is very beneficial in terms of savings for those who just want to build the ISP business. It is essential to note that CGNAT cost is based on 3 aspects are critical for the CGNAT price formation:

  1. Software product
  2. Hardware
  3. Technical support

How much CGNAT can save?

Let's assume you decided to consider the CGNAT solution. The first thing you need is to calculate the economic feasibility of CGNAT for your company.

When you buy CGNAT the cost of one IP address for your one subscriber decreases by 20 times. Therefore, It will cost from $0.50 to $1 dollar per IP address. For example, an operator wants to add an additional 1024 subscribers to his network. It will cost up to $5000 and not $25 000 as it was before.

It is also important to take into account that in some cases you have to carry out the required investments in hardware and infrastructure that start from $2 000. The good news is that they are made only once.
New Subscribers
Cost with CGNAT
Cost without CGNAT (purchasing IP-addresses)
1024
From $1000
From $25 000
5120
From $5000
From $125 000
10 240
From $10 000
From $250 000
"Cost with CGNAT" does not include investments in hardware and infrastructure that are calculated on
a case-by-case basis.

How NFWare can help?

NFWare vCGNAT allows operators to extend the use of the IPv4 address space, serving a growing number of concurrent connections and facilitating smooth migration to IPv6 addressing. it provides high reliability and performance up to 240 gigabits per second.

NFWare has successfully helped a lot of clients worldwide to expand the subscriber base without the need for additional IPv4 address space, to decrease the CAPEX and to achieve guaranteed high-quality service for their subscribers.
Are you looking for a CGNAT solution?
We can help! NFWare Virtual CGNAT is an acclaimed solution that enables over 100 ISPs to effectively address the IPv4 shortage issue. Kindly provide your email address, and we will get in touch with you to provide further information!
Learn more about NFWare Virtual CGNAT
Our industry-leading high-performance solution for ISPs that efficiently solves the IPv4 exhaustion problem
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