The use of Internet resources has been growing exponentially, reinforcing the need for better infrastructure to support this surge.
Even though a slew of complex tech solutions are at the vanguard of a new Internet era, current network architecture is lagging behind, raising the question whether or not the fallback will force current developments to hit the brakes till it can catch up.
So says Vincentas Grinius, CEO at IPXO, an IP resource management platform.
He says Business Insider projects there will be over 41 billion IOT devices by the year 2027, a ‘staggering growth’ in comparison to last year, when there were around 8 billion.
The fast-paced development of the IOT is one of the main driving forces, pushing the network to evolve infrastructure-wise. Heavily-reliant on real-time data, IOT needs significant data speeds to realise its full potential.
“Low latency and high-speed data processing are prerequisites for IOT applications. Since 4G is fairly limited in terms of signal strength, the need for more capacity became one of the triggers driving the 5G development,” adds Grinius.
He says 5G carries the promise of unmatched speed and reliability, able to fuel the growing number of Internet connections. However, considering the disagreements among the main market players and the global pandemic, the 5G rollout is bound to experience delays.
Low latency and high-speed data processing are prerequisites for IOT applications.
Vincentas Grinius, CEO at IPXO
In China, although being the frontrunner in the new wireless, 5G is also not living up to the hype, he says. “Many of the new high-tech towers, transmitting 5G bandwidth, are only operational for half a day. Furthermore, it is estimated that approximately 10 million stations still need to be installed to reach similar coverage as 4G currently has.”
Alongside infrastructure, other integrations are also being built to speed up the Internet. Grinius cites the example of the Noia Network, a software solution that runs on top of the public Internet, enabling to route connections via the best available path.
He adds a caveat: “If the core network remains the same, such integrations alone will have little impact on the overall traffic speed. Further developments will revolve around refining the core architecture, most likely with an emphasis on edge computing. This, in turn, would make similar solutions more viable, but not the other way around.”
IPv6 has also established a sound role in the new Internet era by being a critical factor in supporting the demand for always-on connections, says Grinius. But, in areas where IPv6 is not widely deployed, a transition protocol is needed to ensure back-to-back compatibility between the two protocols.
While there is an abundance of IPv6s, the industry was forced to say goodbye to new IPv4s a while ago, meaning IP leasing could prove to be the key to the problem at hand, he explains.
IP leasing can help acquire the necessary resources to drive further progress and mitigate the transition impact on the companies. “This would provide the means to continue developing infrastructure while maintaining operational affinity between IPv6-driven and older systems, compatible only with IPv4.”
In conclusion, Grinius says the Internet evolution has leap-frogged most expectations, and continues to paint a remarkable technology-driven picture going forward.
“However, as it is with any innovation, how fast this turns into an every-day reality depends on how quickly the infrastructure experts can resolve the current hiccups, hindering the progress.”
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