Juniper shows strong vertical network integration for Junos OS

We had a brief yesterday from a senior Juniper executive regarding the company’s software group strategy and we came away impressed. Juniper has a very strong vertical integration framework in its Junos operating system; it can link service-layer software literally down to the chip level in the network.

Juniper has been refining its partner processes to the point where it can add service-layer and network-layer partners quickly, and the Junos SDK strategy is maturing. The company is working to create strong cooperation between the hardware business units and the software group to ensure that the activity is symbiotic. What’s still lacking here is a strong positioning of Juniper’s service/software assets. The company did tell a service story at Mobile World Congress, but it was lost a bit in the shuffle of announcements.