We recently wrote about how Houthi attacks in the Red Sea are causing headaches for the undersea cable industry.
Since then, the industry has suffered three cable faults in the region.
We recently wrote about how Houthi attacks in the Red Sea are causing headaches for the undersea cable industry.
Since then, the industry has suffered three cable faults in the region.
If you've read over our Submarine Cable Frequently Asked Questions, you know that cable faults are common. On average, there are over 100 each year.
Of course, as a society heavily dependent on these cables, we've gotten quite good at repairing them. But what was the repair process like a few decades ago? How were cables fixed in the era of the Walkman? Time for a trip down memory lane.
We're back with episode three of our five-part podcast special, which explains the nuts and bolts of the internet.
You've come to the right place if you're interested in understanding how those cat videos travel from the source to your phone.
In episode two, we explained how the internet is made of transport networks to carry data over (mostly) fiber optic wires distributed worldwide. And in the episode before that, we discussed how the internet is a network of networks operated by thousands of mostly private companies.
But we haven’t yet covered exactly how and where those networks meet and exchange traffic with each other and access their destinations. So today, it's data center time.
Welcome back to our five-part podcast special that literally explains how the internet you know and love works.
Last week we covered the most basic question: what is the internet?
Today, we tunnel deeper, exploring the physical transport networks behind this seemingly invisible, omnipresent information superhighway.
If you've caught TeleGeography's podcast, you'll know that we endeavor to explain the business behind human connection every week. We've chatted about Wi-Fi, WAN, and everything in between.
We've audaciously called our show TeleGeography Explains the Internet, but we've never properly explained how the internet works and how bits get pushed around the globe—until now.
That's right. We decided it was time to, quite literally, explain the internet.
On TeleGeography Explains the Internet, we often focus on the long-haul, zeroing in on the network portion of telecoms. Today, with the help of Tiago Rodrigues, President and CEO of the Wireless Broadband Alliance (WBA), we’re switching things up a bit.
Drawing upon his vast expertise in Wi-Fi, Tiago steps into the hot seat to outline the key issues in wireless LAN.
By any measure, the global bandwidth market is thriving. International bandwidth demand has nearly doubled from 2020 to 2022, and has now reached 3.8 Pbps.
Meanwhile, the lit capacity on major submarine cable routes continues to soar, keeping pace with demand.
How? Is the network getting faster?
Not quite. Think bigger highway, not faster cars.
Recently, we’ve been closely monitoring the intensifying pressures of insatiable demand and supply constraints in key data center markets.
Supply constraints have come in the form of both short-term and long-term challenges.
In the short term, supply chain disruptions have hindered development timelines. On the long-term side, regulators and utility providers have begun taking a hard look at the data center sector and how to grow it sustainably going forward. In some cases, these entities have severely disrupted development during the interim period.
None of these challenges have been resolved. And as we move through 2023, another major disruptive component has been added to the mix—the accelerated growth of generative Artificial Intelligence (AI).
Wouldn't it be great to be fully retired before your 30th birthday?
Because they are engineered with a minimum design life of 25 years, it's common for the submarine cables that keep our world connected to experience this luxury.
Let’s talk about why, and what happens to cables after they reach retirement age.
Copyright © 2025 TeleGeography.
