Is network traffic growth dwindling to a trickle?
Thursday, August 1, 2024 at 1:34PM “Network capacities are sufficient, and with data usage expected to plateau in the coming years, further capacity expansion is not needed. We have reached the end of history for communications.”
Willian Webb, The End of Telecoms History
William Webb has pedigree when it comes to foreseeing telecoms trends.
William Webb
Webb wrote The 5G Myth in 2016, warning that 5G would be a flop.
In the book, he argued that the wireless standard's features would create limited interest and fail to grow revenues for mobile operators.
The next seven years saw the telcos promoting 5G and its capabilities. Now, they admit their considerable investments in 5G have delivered underwhelming returns.
His latest book, The End of Telecoms History, argues that telecoms has reached a maturity that satisfies the link speeds needed and that traffic growth is slowing.
"There will be no end of new applications," says Webb. "But they won't result in material growth in data requirements or in data speeds."
