Connect-World Magazine - Connect-World North America I (2014)

In this issue

A recently published study by a major network equipment vendor claims that worldwide cloud traffic - 1.2 zettabytes in 2012, will grow to 5.3 zettabytes by 2017. Global data centre traffic during the same period will reach the astounding total of 7.7 zettabytes by 2017.

One zettabyte is incomprehensible; it’s a hundred trillion - also incomprehensible - hours of music. Nevertheless, we will soon have to build, control, fill and pay for, multi-zettabyte networks and everything will have to work seamlessly and securely - everywhere.

Even more difficult, in a very few years we have to multiply everything by seven and do everything more efficiently, more cost-efficiently and with higher quality and security than we can dream of today.

All traffic will grow, but traffic in the cloud and data center traffic is likely, by far, to grow the most. The Internet of things, the Internet of Everything, social networks, high-definition video and many other uses will each play their part in the explosion. The growth in traffic will take place everywhere in the world, but will probably accelerate most in developing regions.

The solutions will certainly include technologies not yet invented or in public view and others just starting to grow, het-nets, software defined networks, and many others.