Internet traffic growth could be $150 billion problem
Posted by: Tom Nolle
Internet, Telecom, Video Adapter
A study predicts that the unbridled downloading of content will increase Internet and broadband access traffic to the point where serious slowdowns could occur by 2010, and an investment of nearly $150B would be required to fix the problem. The exact numbers and dates here may require some justification, but the overall problem cited is real. The challenge with the current Internet model is that there is no financial back-pressure against multiplying traffic, which also means that there is no incremental revenue associated with that traffic. The pure over-the-top model risks a separation of “return” from “investment” and that means that even if these numbers are true there may be little or no incentive for the operators to spend the kind of dollars suggested. The suggestion that “something must be done” may be valid, but there has to be a commercial framework created that permits investment or nothing will be done.
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