Data Traffic Increase: What Measures Are Being Taken by Different Institutions to Cope with It?

Alexandria Tunks

If necessary precautions are not taken, this may cause global internet speeds to drop and even general service interruptions. So, how can we cope with the increase in data traffic, and what precautions can we take?

Diagnosing the Problem

According to OECD reports, every country in the world has experienced an unexpected increase in data traffic during the COVID-19 pandemic. We all know the reasons for this: due to the epidemic, we started to spend more time in our homes and use the internet more. The table below shows the average increase in data usage:

Compared to September 2019 data, we can say that there has been an average increase of more than 60% in data traffic, especially in European countries. Think of the Internet as a highway: there is a limit to existing infrastructure. When there are too many vehicles on a highway, traffic slows down. This is also true for the internet: the more we use it, the closer we get to maximum capacity, and after a while, the traffic starts to slow down.

What’s the Solution?

You don’t need to be a technical expert to understand what the solution is. As anyone can guess, the solution is to widen the “highway”. In other words, modernizing the infrastructure to handle more data traffic is the only real solution. COVID-19 made us remember how important this job is. Even without this epidemic, the number of internet users was expected to reach 5.3 billion people in 2023 with the effect of IoT devices. In other words, companies and governments already had some plans to modernize their internet infrastructure but had to put them out early due to the pandemic.

• It is planned to increase the mobile data traffic capacity with 5G technology. 10% of all mobile networks are expected to switch to 5G in 2023. These networks will support approximately 1.4 billion devices compatible with this technology. The average mobile connection speed will increase to 43.9 Mbps, and it will be possible to achieve 575 Mbps speed in networks that completely transition to 5G technology.
• For broadband connections, ISPs and governments work together. The aim here is to get rid of xDSL technology using copper cables and switch to FTTx (fiber optic) technology. xDSL works asymmetrically and uses very old telephone infrastructure. This infrastructure is insufficient to meet the growing need for data traffic and causes many problems. In FTTx technology, however, none of these problems will occur: we will have faster, smoother and wider “highways”.

None of These Will Happen Soon

These plans are nice, but the problem is that none of them offers a solution that we can use right away. Even in 2023, 5G technology will be available in only 10% of the world. Fiber infrastructure developments are progressing very slowly. Big cities are not a problem, but it will take years to bring FTTx technology to rural areas. To be honest, we have no choice but to wait. During this time, workarounds are being developed to cope with the increasing data traffic. For example:

• AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile are collaborating with satellite TV services to use their bandwidth to increase their capacity.
• Ireland is increasing its data connectivity capacity by activating extra radio spectrums in 700 Mhz and 2.6 GHz bands.
• Almost every country in Europe is increasing its IXP (Internet Exchange Point) capacities. Irish INEX, for example, increased its interconnection speed to 100 GB per second by simply increasing the IXPs. Likewise, network operators are trying to make their connections to IXPs faster by increasing the number of ports.
• Most operators are trying to move their services within the country. For example, Canada’s two largest operators actually use IXPs in the United States, causing 64% of the country’s data traffic to run through a different country. This situation causes various problems in terms of both speed and maintenance. Many operators are therefore planning to bring their IXPs within their country of origin.

We will see together whether these short-term solutions will be sufficient to cope with the increasing data traffic until 2023 when real infrastructure changes will begin to occur. But one thing is certain – the world now needs faster internet, and this has become such a serious problem that it can affect the economies of the countries.