infoTECH Feature

July 05, 2011

Flash Networks Releases Forecast for Future Mobile Internet Traffic Trends

Flash Networks (News - Alert), a provider of intelligent mobile Internet solutions, claimed that its study about the future trends of top bandwidth consuming applications and peak hours around the globe revealed that HD multimedia streaming and prolonged browsing sessions are straining network resources. It will only lead to increased penetration of the mobile Internet.

In North America alone, the Flash Networks study elaborated that the Internet is not mostly used for traditional browsing but for streaming music and videos. The North American market will soon see 50 percent of the mobile traffic dominated by video and it will be 56 percent in Asia, the largest contributor to network traffic.

The study showed that North America traffic builds gradually throughout the day beginning at 7:00 AM, with peak hours from 9:00 PM to 11:00 PM. When video viewing is at its peak, failure to apply network optimization will only result 20 percent of the browsing attempts to be interrupted. This only demonstrates how excessive video traffic impacts user quality of experience. In North America, close to five percent of mobile sessions involve users viewing over 30 minutes of streaming video at a time. In Asia, this number is stated to be slightly lower but the positive trend is consistent.

Analysts have implied that it is not a surprise that video is dominating network traffic. Operators should look beyond big trends and study the factors that help them understand traffic mixes. Without understanding how users access videos and the fluctuations in traffic, operators can never hope to effectively monetize or optimize the user experience, making the most of their network asset. 

Officials with Flash Networks asserted that today, mobile operators are being judged based on the speed of their browsing while at the same time richer high-definition content and longer browsing sessions are increasing the likelihood of degrading the user experience. Operators can create a competitive differentiator by optimizing data using sophisticated techniques such as busy hour management, while ensuring a superior user experience with more cost-efficient capacity utilization.

Nathesh is a contributing editor for TMCnet. To read more of Nathesh's articles, please visit his columnist page.
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