A Growing Need for Bandwidth

Charley Miller, Senior Product Manager, Dedicated Internet, sheds light on continuing trends relating to high bandwidth, what’s driving high bandwidth demands for enterprises, and how Frontier is investing for the future of capacity.

Q: What trends are you seeing in the industry related to high bandwidth demands?

CM: Internet traffic continues to explode. According to Statista, Internet traffic has grown 300% since 2018. We’ve also seen a 497% increase in business Internet traffic from 2016 to 2023, largely driven by the growing reliance on cloud applications and IoT. Based on Statista data, there are currently 15 billion smart connected devices, and that number is expected to double to 30 billion by 2030. We’re also starting to see the mainstream adoption of AI, which adds more Internet traffic to existing connections because many AI tools and applications are cloud-based.

Q: What’s driving customers to need higher bandwidth?

CM: Two key drivers are intensifying bandwidth demands. Organic growth in the form of more employees, customers, and locations is one big driver. We’re also seeing growing usage with increasing cloud adoption, the continued reliance on video conferencing, and the proliferation of data in the cloud. Upgrade activity is lively right now, with many enterprises advancing from 100 Mbps to 200 Mbps-500 Mbps connections. There are also vertical-specific drivers some enterprise customers are facing. In Education for example, the FCC has recommended 1 Mbps of bandwidth per student, forcing many education institutions to re-evaluate their bandwidth strategies.

Q: How is Frontier supporting customers demanding higher bandwidth?

CM: We are continuing to invest heavily in our fiber network with enhancements to expand our capacity. We are now able to offer up to 100 Gbps of speed for Dedicated Internet Access (DIA) and private Ethernet connections. We’re positioning our network for the future and enhancing our customer experience overall. As our customers grow, we are growing with them, so connectivity and bandwidth are accessible to more people and more businesses on our network. Since 2020 we’ve built fiber to over 3 million homes and businesses and have doubled our fiber footprint in less than three years reaching a total of 6.2 million fiber passings.

Q: What are some examples of high-bandwidth connectivity solutions in action?

CM: An existing customer, a large county-wide school district, needed to expand its Internet connection and add capacity to serve its administration, more than 120 schools, and more than 100,000 students. Frontier provided a 100 Gbps Dedicated Internet Access solution. This is just one example of a tangible need for higher bandwidth and an organization’s willingness to invest in it. But there are many other use cases. Regional health entities with one or multiple hospitals, clinics, or offices throughout a county or region require expanded capacity to serve staff and patients. These types of organizations are using private Ethernet connectivity to connect locations for secure data transfer of patient information and X-rays.

Q: Any recommendations for enterprises looking to uplevel their connectivity and bandwidth?

CM: It’s important for every enterprise to position its bandwidth for the future. Usage will grow. That’s a given. Thinking ahead and being prepared will avoid bottlenecks that can affect business operations and customer experience. For any enterprise evaluating AI or a new cloud application, it’s vital to account proactively for how those technical initiatives will impact the network and bandwidth consumption. I always recommend companies review the data coming from their firewalls and monitoring systems to get real insights into usage and how the network is performing. Those insights are vital to pursuing the right bandwidth strategies and choosing effective solutions from flexible, trusted providers.

Q: Any final thoughts?

CM: If you’re considering upleveling your connectivity and expanding your bandwidth capacity, talk to Frontier. With our recent network upgrades, we can meet a diverse array of bandwidth needs and provide the capacity you need to move your business forward. 

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