Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) has evolved from being a buzzword in the
networking industry to a widely deployed technology in service provider (SP) networks. In
recent years, MPLS has also been adopted by the enterprise and federal market segments.
MPLS is a contemporary solution to address a multitude of problems faced by present-day
networks: speed, scalability, quality of service (QoS) management, and traffic engineering.
Service providers are realizing larger revenues by the implementation of service models
based on the flexibility and value adds provided by MPLS solutions. MPLS also provides
an elegant solution to satisfy the bandwidth management and service requirements for nextgeneration
IP–based backbone networks.