Global Internet News from Silverfoil Computers

Internet Traffic to Reach 15 Tbytes a Second by 2008, Says Probe

March 30, 2004 (HONG KONG) -- International Internet traffic will grow at rapid rates over the next five years, doubling every year. A new study from Probe Group, "Global Internet Traffic 2004," forecasts international and domestic Internet traffic through the year 2008.

Peak international Internet traffic will surpass 15 terabytes per second by 2008. "As broadband Internet penetration increases, and wireless data usage grows, internet traffic will

experience a new surge in demand," commented Victor Schnee, CEO of Probe Group. "We expect the highest growth rates to come in 2005 and 2006."

IP transit revenues will also show strong growth. "Including the US, Europe and Asia, transit revenue will reach US$7 billion by 2007," Schnee continued. "Transit services are becoming more attractive as prices erode. Service providers are offering them to customers as the most effective way to guarantee a high level of service."

As broadband grows, service providers will see the rise in applications that deliver multimedia content. "Peer-to-peer applications, video-on-demand and multimedia streaming will be the leading applications driving traffic," Schnee said. "In the wireless sector, mobile gaming will be the leading data application."

Enterprise applications also play a part in driving traffic growth. "More use of collaborative communication tools in business will increase peer-to-peer and streaming video traffic," Schnee said.

(NE Asia Online Editorial Dept)