Impending Traffic Jam for Mobile Internet

28/10/2009

The number of people using mobile Internet is set to soar over the next few years, but mobile operators aren’t equipped to deal with the surge in demand.

Early mobile Internet was, well, not a lot like the Internet. It was slow and web (or rather “WAP”) pages were simple, clunky and a far cry from the pages viewable on a PC.

But thanks to 3G mobile broadband technologies and the fact that we all must know simply everything that everyone is up to all of the time, mobile Internet is taking off. Fancy fashionable phones like the iPhone with their rich, web-oriented features propel the desire for anywhere-Internet further still.

This is great news for consumers, who can now check Facebook on the train, Spotify music on the move and so much more. Unfortunately, the networks aren’t prepared for the jump in traffic.

Reports published this week suggest that the uptake of mobile Internet is faster than the rate of necessary network upgrades. In other words, it’s only a matter of time before the mobile web grinds to a halt. That is, unless something is done about it.

Network upgrades are costly, and phone providers aren’t making as much money out of data-based packages as they are call-based packages. So the very thing that’s seeing growth simply isn’t bringing in the dough to permit upgrades. Some providers even restrict certain data programs, such as Skype, to conserve bandwidth and also prevent people circumventing their call plans. Critics argue that the impending slowdown is due to lack of planning and foresight on the part of service providers.

Costs for network upgrades will inevitably be passed onto subscribers.

One way providers are looking to in order to ease the strain is by optimising the content that gets sent to phones. This might involve removing unnecessary content from pages that simply aren’t visible to users, but can also entail compressing images, which if done too heavily can reduce their quality.

Mobile operators will have to respond. Whether that’s by being more restrictive with services, using heavyweight compression or through price hikes remains to be seen. There’s no turning back now, though. The public loves mobile Internet… it’s here to stay, but at what cost?

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