TeleGeography Research Says International Internet Traffic to Grow 67 Percent in 2003
A study released this week by TeleGeography, a research division of PriMetrica, Inc., forecasts 67 percent growth in international Internet traffic this year. The new findings are the result of the industry’s first systematic research on international Internet traffic, based on primary data collected from major backbone operators during early 2003.
TeleGeography's new research also reveals how "full" today's Internet backbones are. "Traffic on international links averages only 10 to 30 percent of the available Internet bandwidth," according to Alan Mauldin, Senior Research Analyst at PriMetrica. "However, backbone operators must have sufficient capacity available during the Internet's busiest periods so that peak utilization does not reach levels that degrade network performance."
The data also reveal that the growth of international traffic corresponds well to increases in Internet capacity. "New Internet capacity deployments appear to be driven by reason, rather than optimism," says Mauldin. Capacity growth, however, is hardly uniform among providers. While some providers have bulked up their networks in response to traffic demand, others have reduced or eliminated capacity on underutilized links.
| Transoceanic Internet Traffic and Capacity, 2003 - 2006 |
|
| |
|
2003 |
2004 |
2005 |
2006 |
| Trans-Atlantic |
Internet Bandwidth (Gbps) |
388 |
648 |
1,082 |
1,806 |
| |
Peak Internet Traffic (Gbps) |
100 |
167 |
279 |
466 |
| |
Average Internet Traffic (Gbps) |
70 |
117 |
195 |
326 |
| Trans-Pacific |
Internet Bandwidth (Gbps) |
92 |
153 |
256 |
427 |
| |
Peak Internet Traffic (Gbps) |
28 |
47 |
78 |
130 |
| |
Average Internet Traffic (Gbps) |
20 |
33 |
56 |
93 |
 |
From: Global Internet Geography Database and Report
Source: PriMetrica, Inc. |
|
Alan Mauldin
Senior Research Analyst
+1 202 741 0048
amauldin@telegeography.com
|
