Internet Data Usage Jumps 120%: Netflix Accounts for 1/3

Somebody's making a nice buck out of this.

We wonder who?

Netflix accounts for one-third of bandwidth use in North America and is considering putting itself up for sale. YouTube grabs 20% of the downstream traffic on mobile networks in Europe and is reportedly unprofitable. And Asia allegedly dwarfs both of those old-school continents in usage, but still cant crack the global leadership circle in any category other than cheap labor.

Meanwhile, the telephone companies - the telcos - are reporting excellent financials. What's going on here?

Content was supposed to be king. But it looks like he or she who owns the pipes collects the coin. Every time someone clicks on a map or the weather or watches a TV show or movie, the figurative cash register goes 'KA-Ching!'

We appear determined to use our phones as much as possible. They have become the intermediaries between our desires and our ability to effectuate those hopes and dreams. Whether in entertainment or tasks more prosaic, our appetite appears unslakable.

However, as the data show, the benefits are not evenly distributed. Netflix, the perennial digital damsel in distress can not seem to cash in on this trend for which it is so obviously both a progenitor and a beneficiary. We suspect this is a question of trust. Harking back to the earliest days of the movies in the first part of the 20th century, people liked their filmed entertainment cheap. That's how the moguls got fannies in seats and that's how people became addicted. By trying to cash in to greedily - and way too obviously - Netflix destroyed the relationship it had built with customers. And there is a lesson there for every entrepreneur - and her board - from a story made into a movie, about killing the goose that laid the golden egg. JL

Hayley Tsukayama reports in the Washington Post:

Internet data usage in the U.S. has continued to rise, jumping 120 percent in the past year. That’s according to a study from Sandvine, an analysis firm that releases an annual report on the world’s data networks.

The report also underscored a rise in online video viewing, reporting that traffic to Netflix makes up approximately one-third of the bandwidth use in North America. Other streaming services, such as Hulu or Amazon, make up just over 1 percent of traffic each, Techradar reported
Meanwhile, YouTube represented more than one-fifth of all the downstream traffic on mobile networks in Europe.

Despite all the streaming video in North America and Europe, both were outstripped by Internet usage in Asia. According to the study, people there consumed 659 MB of data per month, up 10 percent over the same period last year.

The firm expects that, even with high-speed LTE networks launching and expanding across the world, wireless networks will still face congestion problems as mobile device use increases — particularly on tablets.

“In order to be effective, traffic and congestion management practices for newly- launched LTE networks must be implemented at day zero to maximize subscriber quality of experience (QoE) and ensure a great, high-speed experience for all subscribers,” the report said.

Looking ahead, Sandvine predicted that real-time entertainment will be one of the biggest areas of growth when it comes to data consumption — and that the 2014 World Cup will be the “most streamed event in Internet history.”