Report: Video everywhere driving heavy app usage
January 31, 2022
The Global Internet Phenomena Report from network intelligence specialist Sandvine, which aggregates data from more than 160 Tier 1 and Tier 2 fixed and mobile networks worldwide, reveals what the company describes as “unprecedented” trends, including:
- Rapid growth of 1 Terabyte per month ‘heavy app users’, a trend that is expected to accelerate with the transition from 4G to 5G and the explosion of video everywhere across social, gaming, messaging, and immersive experiences;
- First-time ‘tipping of the scales’, with Google, Facebook, Microsoft, Apple, Amazon, and Netflix generating almost 57 per cent of Internet traffic – more than everyone else, combined;
- QUIC [Quick UDP Internet Connection] multiplexed transport, encryption, and privacy protocols such as Apple iCloud Private Relay obscuring network visibility for capacity planning and congestion management;
- Mashups of videos, payments, maps, chat, and other features increasing the need for more sophisticated machine learning techniques to measure and deliver optimal app quality of experience (QoE);
- Global rankings of ‘Top-10 Apps’ in Video, Gaming, Social, Messaging, Enterprise Conferencing, with Google’s YouTube retaining the top spot in global app traffic share at 14.67 per cent followed by Netflix at 9.39 per cent, as well as other downstream/upstream and regional trends (Americas, EMEA, and APAC).
“Our latest Global Internet Phenomena Report shows that people care more about how their favourite apps perform than the underlying networks,” advises Samir Marwaha, Chief Strategy Officer, Sandvine. “This makes it crucial that 5G and Cloud service providers understand, at a granular level, the application quality of experience they are delivering to customers. That’s going to have the greatest impact on their brands and their ability to generate revenue streams within new business models.”
“The top content producers serving more traffic and accounting for a greater share of network load has a big impact, but at least it is a known quantity,” adds Gabriel Brown, Principal Analyst, Mobile Networks and 5G, Heavy Reading. “The other part of the story is the increasing diversity of traffic sources – from new streamers, live sports, gaming, and device updates – and the growth of complex apps that combine multiple traffic types and services in a single customer experience. In combination with the rise of QUIC and iCloud Private Relay, this is challenging operators to better understand where and when traffic originates. Insight into these emerging patterns can help operators manage network capacity and meet customer expectations.”