Access to a public switched multi-megabit data service offering

Switched Multi-megabit Data Service (SMDS) is a service concept resulting from work at Bell Communications Research. SMDS is a public, packet switched data service that provides LAN-like performance and features over a metropolitan or wide area. It is targeted at the rapidly emerging need for high performance LAN interconnection and deployment is expected in 1991. To meet the early time objectives of SMDS, it was necessary to define the Subscriber-Network Interface (SNI) and to specify the associated SMDS Interface Protocols (SIP) to facilitate the availability of both customer premises equipment (CPE) and network equipment. The interface and associated protocols are based on the connectionless part of the IEEE P802.6 DQDB MAN MAC proposed standard.