Networks
Oct 16, 2024

Mapping African Network Geography at AfPIF 2024 [Presentation Download]

Another year, another African Peering and Interconnection Forum (AfPIF) keynote presentation for Senior Research Manager Patrick Christian.

His 2024 African Network Geography Update explored global network trends, as well as African bandwidth trends, interconnection hub trends, and end-user demand. There was a special focus on Kinshasa, where this year’s AfPIF conference was held.

What are the best-connected hubs in Africa? Where are new and planned submarine cables landing? Is intra-African bandwidth gaining traction?
Oct 8, 2024

IP Transit Price Erosion: Significant Regional Differences Remain

Trends in the IP transit market generally follow regional trends of the transport market.

And while some have suggested that price erosion may slow as a result of recent inflation and supply chain constraints (as it has in the wavelength market), we have not seen this trend make its way into the IP transit market.

Oct 4, 2024

The Intersection of Technology, Big Science, and Global Submarine Network Connectivity

We often overlook how critical submarine cable networks are in the advancement of scientific innovation. Their seamless connectivity enables data-intensive collaboration across research and education institutions around the world.

Next week, our Senior Research Manager Jon Hjembo and Ciena’s Brian Lavallée will dive into this topic through a live webinar: Big data. Big science. Big networks.
Oct 1, 2024

International Internet Bandwidth Connected To Africa Has Almost Quadrupled Since 2020

Global internet bandwidth rose by 22% in 2024, continuing its slow but steady decline over the past few years. Total international bandwidth now stands at 1,479 Tbps, representing a 4-year CAGR of 25%.

Clearly, the pace of growth has been slowing recently. However, it varies across regions.

New IP Networks research tells us that Africa has once again experienced the most rapid growth of international internet bandwidth, growing at a compound annual rate of 41% between 2020 and 2024.
Sep 26, 2024

Once a Builder of the Internet, Now an Adviser to Future Builders

Sylvie LaPerrière, one of TeleGeography's esteemed partners, is a known tech leader in the digital infrastructure community.

You might specifically know of her work as a team lead for Google's subsea cable Equiano along the Western Coast of Africa. Or perhaps you know her as a renowned internet governance advocate and interconnection strategist. 

We're so glad to welcome her decades of expertise to TeleGeography's Preferred Partners program. (This network of telecom professionals is like a telecom A-team ready to apply TG data to new and unique research projects. We're thrilled to take on new opportunities with them.)

Sylvie was kind enough to speak with our team about her take on the industry, advocating for women in telecom, and setting up her own consulting shop. Read our conversation below.
Sep 9, 2024

How Many Submarine Cables Are There, Anyway?

TeleGeography’s Submarine Cable Map recently hit a new milestone: depicting over 600 cable systems.

As of September 2024, that’s a whopping 532 in-service systems, with another 77 planned.

The number of cable systems we study is constantly increasing. This is due to massive investment in this infrastructure—both along major routes and to small islands—as well as our ongoing efforts to track global systems in more detail. 

The number of in-service systems is greater now than in any other year within the last two decades.
Sep 5, 2024

Hey, Who’s Using the Bandwidth?

To many people, the concepts of global network infrastructure and bandwidth markets are difficult to grasp. But to those who follow this sector, it's one of the most fundamental building blocks of the global economy.

You’ve likely heard that worldwide bandwidth demand is steadily increasing. A natural follow-up question: why? Who’s generating all of this demand?
Aug 22, 2024

A Whole Different Kind of Subsea Cable

A quiet August? Not for sharing tech and telecom stories around the TeleGeography office.

Take a peek at what we've been reading over the last month, from thought pieces on macroeconomic forces impacting enterprise networks to mulling over subsea energy interconnectors, as one does. 
Jul 17, 2024

That's Great, It Starts With an Earthquake

We started collecting our monthly dose of telecom reading recommendations when it occurred to us: this reading list is somewhat despairing.

Earthquake-based cable outages, infrastructure security concerns—a headline that literally includes the words "solar catastrophe." We don't mean to bring the room down with our July picks, but maybe have something lighter queued up for later.
Jun 27, 2024

A (Refreshed) List of Content Providers' Submarine Cable Holdings

For the last eight years, we've posted submarine cables owned by content providers over here. (Shout-out to the readers who had this one bookmarked.)

When we first published this list in 2017, we had 20 cables listed. Fast-forward to today, and our list has grown to 59—a sizable markup.

With such an uptick in content provider cables to track, we figured it was worth starting a fresh new list for you to bookmark.

 

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