The prevalence of video in enterprises is clear. Out of 140 network engineers, IT managers and executives who attended Interop 2012, 83% have deployed some form of video conferencing. Approximately 60% have a combination of video deployments, including desktop video, standard video conferencing and videophones — according to the sixth annual study released by Network Instruments.

While video currently consumes 29% of network bandwidth, respondents predict it will increase to 40% within the next year. In spite of this forecasting, respondents have only reserved 10% of their network capacity for video technologies, the report stated.

So where will enterprises find the bandwidth to offset the difference?

Some will turn to WAN optimization technologies to conserve bandwidth. But WAN optimization alone won’t be able to handle the already-compressed traffic of video; it will, in the very least, tighten up the bandwidth consumption of other applications. Intelligent IT pros will use a combination of video QoS techniques and WAN optimization while adding a little more bandwidth to avoid video conferencing blunders.

Yet, another solution to consider is cloud video, like Gina Narcisi reported in her recent article on putting video in the cloud: “Redirecting [video] traffic off the WAN and onto the cloud is an idea that has vendors torn. Should enterprises select a ‘best of both worlds’ approach — a hybrid video cloud environment?”

Whichever approach is chosen, companies will need to act quickly.

“The rise in video has the potential to squeeze out other critical network traffic and degrade video quality due to the lack of network capacity. Without clear monitoring metrics and tools, it will be extremely difficult for IT to assess and ensure quality user experience,” said Stephen Brown, product marketing manager for Network Instruments.

Such an unheaval has not prevented the Web security and WAN optimization vendor from announcing new advancements and offerings. In addition to being named a leader in Gartner’s 2012 WAN optimization Magic Quadrant, Blue Coat has added the ablity to optimize encrypted Flash video already this year. Like many industry experts and IT vendors, Blue Coat believes video traffic over enterprise WANs will become even more important than in prior years and sees it well-positioned for this trend.

The wide area network (WAN) as we know it is changing, and it’s thanks to the growth of video, big data, mobility and consumerization of IT. As these bandwidth-hogging trends make an impact on corporate WANs, IT is seriously considering the Internet for WAN connectivity. Broadband Internet is where bandwidth is less limited; it’s the most logical connection for cloud computing and SaaS; and it’s more flexible to boot.

To keep up with the evolving workforce, the WAN must be redefined. The new WAN will no longer be made of permanent virtual circuit (PVC)-type connections, like frame relay, which must be reprogrammed and configured with every change. The private WAN as we know it will be replaced by Internet traffic or IP. It will be the only transport flexible enough to keep pace with changing network traffic patterns — which no longer travel soley in the private WAN between branch offices and the data center; traffic will travel between branches and mobile workers, cloud networks and data centers.

“When the majority of our employees were in company locations and didn’t move, those older WAN technologies were fine. Now that we have highly mobile workers, IP is the protocol that fits the workforce best, and IP moreso than the Internet, [because] IP is highly dynamic, flexible and resillient. With Internet and IP technologies, you don’t need to do any reprogramming; it just knows where to go,” said Zeus Kerravala, principal analyst at ZK Research.

And while trading out a leased line for an Internet VPN is more the exception than the norm, enterprises are certainly trending that way for WAN connectivity.