The Internet has become an essential
tool in the wake of the health crisis caused by the COVID-19 coronavirus.
Shelter-in-place measures in the
region and the closing of schools have led to an increase in the residential
use of Internet services and an increase in telecommuting and e-commerce.
Carlos Martínez, LACNIC CTO,
highlighted the role that the Internet is playing during this health emergency
and as a tool for “virtual social proximity” to counter the physical distancing
measures implemented by the authorities to avoid the spread of the virus.
The Internet can help in multiple
ways. Right now, I believe that the Internet is essential for maintaining the
social distance needed to control the spread of the virus.
Telecommuting will be key to
sustaining economic activity, as will e-commerce and online financial services.
Without these tools, any limitation on people leaving their home would be very
difficult to implement.
E-learning platforms will enable children
and students to continue learning with their teachers, and streaming platforms
and social networks will allow us to make a better use of our time.
Finally, one must not forget the
multiple communication tools that are currently available, including
videoconferencing, instant messaging and others, which will allow us to feel
close to our loved ones despite being physically far away.
Is the connectivity in our region
good enough to help in these situations?
Regional connectivity has greatly improved
in recent years, particularly when looking at the backbones and transit for the
different providers.
However, in the case of access
networks, the situation is quite varied. Operators that have deployed fiber
networks to the home will surely be able to face the increased demand without
major problems. On the other hand, DSL access networks and certain mobile
networks may perhaps suffer a little bit more.
The widespread deployment of mobile
LTE networks in the region is very positive, as the cellular network will allow
covering part of this aggregate demand.
Has an increase in traffic been
observed in the countries of the region during the quarantine?
Different operators and several
Internet exchange points have prepared reports on the status of the Internet.
All of these reports mention a traffic increase of between 25% and 35%.
Has the quality of service been
maintained despite the increased demand of recent days?
So far, I believe that the experience
continues to be very good. There may have been some minor issues here and there
but, in general, the Internet is coping quite well with this very particular
situation.
Does the existence of greater traffic
volumes also increase vulnerabilities? Should we be even more careful?
A major question for the future has
to do with the maintenance of major networks and systems in general. Deployed networks
require maintenance. Cables break, network ports and line cards grow old and
need to be replaced, server discs fail, and power supplies also need to be
replaced.
In a scenario in which significant
restrictions on the movement of individuals and the transport of goods are
common, the aging of the equipment itself may conspire against the proper
functioning of the Internet in the region.
We must keep in mind that very little
of the equipment used by the operators in our region is manufactured locally –
most of it is imported from other regions.
