2010: D-day for the Internet as it hits "full capacity"?

Wed Apr 23, 2008 4:19PM EDT

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Doom-filled warnings arrive from AT&T this week. The company says that without substantial investment in network infrastructure, the Internet will essentially run out of bandwidth in just two short years.

Blame broadband, says AT&T. Decades of dealing with the trickle of bandwidth consumed by voice and dialup modems left AT&T twiddling its thumbs. The massive rise of DSL and cable modem service in the 2000s has had AT&T facing a monstrous increase in the volume of data transmissions. And that's set to increase another 50 times between now and 2015. That's enough, says AT&T, to all but crash the system.

In response, AT&T says it's investing $19 billion to upgrade the backbone of the Internet, the routers, servers, and connections where the bulk of traffic is processed.

Of course, AT&T is using this breathlessness in part to point fingers beyond simple broadband use. Web video (especially high-definition video) is the most commonly mentioned bandwidth hog. AT&T says video alone will eat up 80 percent of traffic in two years vs. just 30 percent now. One wonders how YouTube doesn't collapse under the pressure. Hmmm.

Meanwhile, many are wondering whether this is prelude to AT&T announcing (or not announcing, but doing anyway) a traffic prioritization/shaping system like Comcast has been tinkering with... and which has earned it nothing but scorn. Net neutrality (which would forbid premium pricing for certain Internet applications and destinations) is a topic that continues to be hotly debated on Capitol Hill, and telcos are anxious to kill the idea since they'd love to be able to charge additional money for different kinds of web traffic. If the whole Internet is about to crash, well, that makes AT&T's argument all the more compelling, doesn't it?

Comments on 2010: D-day for the Internet as it hits "full capacity"?

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  • 66 Posted by laughingpig1 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 4:57PM EDT Report Abuse

    I personally don't believe a word of it it's time that AT&T took a flying leap off the nearest pier because they keep raising prices and at same time turn people down for employment when they're qualified for the jobs, then they turn around and lay off 9000 people, I was just at one of thier skyscapers the other day in downtown LA on Hill Street, I think it was at least 60 stories tall, I took a pic of it and it filled up the sky and camera screen, I can't believe how greedy they've gotten it's about time some of the smaller companies teke over where they've left off. laughingpig1@yahoo.com

  • 67 Posted by littlehouseproductions on Thu Sep 3, 2009 6:54PM EDT Report Abuse

    this is all garbage, its just a way to try to force people to pay more for internet, and even more so to restrict access to information and control the means of knowing further. this nation of lambs will never stand up for themselves and the corporations know it

  • 68 Posted by hal_citra on Thu Sep 3, 2009 4:15PM EDT Report Abuse

    I was kinda expecting this to happen, as well as dreading it... oh well... that's more waiting needed done.

  • 69 Posted by surferdan68 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 9:49PM EDT Report Abuse

    gee whiz, do ya think there might be a tiny little bit of self interest in giant telecom corps in raising the specter of internet max capacity? They are desperate to kill net neutrality and cash in on it. Just another example of private fascist interests taking a PUBLIC facility and pillaging it for themselves and their friends.

  • 70 Posted by jlee2027 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 4:36PM EDT Report Abuse

    ----People knew this was going to happen. Why didn't people invest in this more when the first times of trouble were appearing instead of wait till the last minute to try and fix something that will take time?--- Ah, yes, another clueless blame game moron. Can you name one place or time in Human history where things were build BEFORE we needed them?

  • 71 Posted by andrew76534 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 2:53PM EDT Report Abuse

    "Third-generation fiber optics has recently been tested by both NEC and Alcatel that pushes 10 trillion bits per second down one strand of fiber. That%

  • 72 Posted by mshtexas360 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 7:29PM EDT Report Abuse

    yeah you just think if i pay for (or get the govt.) to pay for access to the internet then it must not cost anything for the actual computers, fiber optic cables, routers and computers that make up the internet. no i do not want to pay ridiculous amounts of money for the internet, but if you actually run a business you know you can't do things for free. so sailorman take a business class.

  • 73 Posted by donpatricio@att.net on Thu Sep 3, 2009 3:46PM EDT Report Abuse

    Telephone companies have been jacking up prices and cashing in the money and not investing in infrastructure, there was no one to enforce them.

  • 74 Posted by bmw_bauer on Thu Sep 3, 2009 3:10PM EDT Report Abuse

    Am I the only one who sees through this. If it's such a big issue, why aren't other big internet providers reporting the same problem? I think it's all a scam to have more investors in the Company, Nice Try AT&T

  • 76 Posted by wheaties1504 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 10:44PM EDT Report Abuse

    there internets not going to die, AT&T is just a bunch of retards.

  • 77 Posted by civilwarispro12345 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 3:25PM EDT Report Abuse

    oh my. YOU ALL ARE DUMB!! Don't Believe it! Computers are smarter than people. Remember what they said in 1999 about how computers only go up to 1999 and that when 2000 comes, they will all crash and so everyone will need candles and printed paperwork because everything ran by computers would crash as well?? Y2K!! And what happened?? NOTHING!! The computers weren't stupid-it just rolled to the next year... When the internet "reaches its maximum capacity" the servers and database will simply increase the room by rearanging... Just like when you clean your room and move it around, if you simply pick everything up and put it where it goes, you have more room, yet still have the same amount of junk you did before!!! So, what do I say about this? HOAX!!!

  • 78 Posted by arlen2309 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 2:57PM EDT Report Abuse

    There is way too much money to be lost if this occurs. I highly doubt that this will be the doom that ends it all! LOL

  • 79 Posted by jlee2027 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 4:36PM EDT Report Abuse

    ---Only the US "internet" will crash... The rest of the world is 50 years behind the US already in everything--- Couldn't agree more, thanks

  • 80 Posted by josev_99 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 4:41PM EDT Report Abuse

    This is nothing but trying to control the freedom of speech and expression on the net by the people of the U.S. by the global corporate elites. Both the European Union and the Federal Reserve Banks wants to destroy this country by design and set up their "New World Order" to enslave the population of the U.S. just like China. Checkout "Endgame, A BluePrint for Global Enslavement". Wake up folks. The infowars against the New World Order is on baby. May God bless this country from evil.

  • 81 Posted by shadowbird15@sbcglobal.net on Thu Sep 3, 2009 9:15PM EDT Report Abuse

    This seems like another one of those Self-fulfilled prophecies. People say something bad is going to happen and people freak out. For example when people kept saying the market was going to crash, people freaked out, withdrew all their money from the banks (leaving no funds for the Government to borrow) and the marked eventually crashed. This is most likely another one of those "get-rich-quick" schemes.

  • 82 Posted by mundymanor on Thu Sep 3, 2009 7:30PM EDT Report Abuse

    I couldn't care less. I'm ready to ditch the internet anyway, along with the landline phone. And I won't miss either one.

  • 83 Posted by barkerhealthsj@sbcglobal.net on Thu Sep 3, 2009 3:02PM EDT Report Abuse

    so, that sign "you've reached the end of the internet" isn't just a myth? bah. Sounds to me like corporations, much like the oil industry, are positioning themselves for future profits.

  • 85 Posted by christopher.larsen on Thu Sep 3, 2009 3:25PM EDT Report Abuse

    The oil companies, now the telcom companies... This is just a ploy to effectively (virtually) decrease supply and increase demand for the internet. It's all in your head.. They're playing games.... One thing though, the internet is not a natural resource like oil, so it's preposterous to fathom telcoms increasing prices because of short supply of bandwidth. Do these CEO's think the American public is stupid. Part of the consumer's communication costs (just like in any other industry) goes directly to the providers infrastructure. If it doesn't, then the business is not being run efficiently. Now-a-days, that money is pocketed by the greedy CEOs running these corporations. I will never buy gas from a major supplier, I will only buy gas from Costco. I'll never switch my internet and phone to a major carrier either. If everyone took the same approach, then the American public would be putting Executives in check.

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