The
US Internet Industry Association (USIIA) has warned that the
current internet infrastructure may be reaching
capacity.
The USIIA says huge rises in data growth, fuelled by
online video and increasingly popular Web 2.0 applications,
means the backbone infrastructure of the web could be reaching
breaking point.
As a result, says the industry body, network investment is now a
“national priority."
A
USIIA report
on the problem has been published just days after
Virgin Media confirmed that it has begun implementing capacity
restrictions for around 5% of its broadband users to manage
bandwidth during peak times.
Geoff Bennett, director of product marketing at optical
networking firm Infinera, said, “The findings of this research
should come as no surprise to operators, businesses, or any
internet user who has suffered unexpected site crashes.
“It is an undeniable fact that growing demand for video, IPTV
and other bandwidth-guzzling applications is placing an
overwhelming level of strain on internet backbones,” said
Bennett.
Bennett said UK internet service providers should do their bit
to increase capacity, rather than “impose authoritarian usage
restrictions on their users."
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US Internet Industry Association
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