FROM THE INDUSTRY
from clouds, AI models, IoT arrays and industry partners, enterprise networks need efficient pathways to manage this increased load without bottlenecks. Peering helps reduce the distance and number of intermediate networks that data must travel through, and it’s this reduction in “hops” that minimises latency and allows the full potential of digital business models to be realised. IX densification, for an enterprise network, means adding additional IX locations to the network in areas that are strategically important for the company, bringing network access points closer to end users and businesses. Here, there is no need for companies to be in the very centre of strategic hubs, as long as they are geographically close. By establishing direct interconnection via IXs with a substantial network community, in data centres on the outskirts of major urban centres, as well as in emerging regional hubs, businesses can serve their customers and users with reduced data travel times and fewer interruptions, while nonetheless avoiding contested and therefore expensive spaces in the inner cities. What’s more, a dense IX landscape enhances the potential for creating redundant connectivity, ensuring that if one pathway is compromised, data can seamlessly reroute through an alternative connection. This added resilience supports companies as they expand operations across multiple regions, safeguarding against unexpected slowdowns or disruptions.
According to Transport Networks Research, which has tracked long-haul networks and submarine cables since 1999, demand for bandwidth across the world tripled between 2019 and 2023 to reach a total of 5 petabits per second (Pbps). This demand, coupled with enterprises moving their workloads into the cloud, is so acute that the world is now experiencing what can only be described as a data centre crunch. In the US, for instance, our data reveals there is a total of 11,200 megawatts (MW) of installed data centre capacity, with a further 5,500MW under construction and another 12,600MW planned for construction – that’s more than 160% data centre growth in the US alone in the coming years. But is simply adding capacity enough to sate the demand for the high-speed, low-latency connectivity on which modern applications like AI modelling will depend? The answer, perhaps regrettably, is no. However, there are alternative solutions that data centres, carriers, operators and businesses themselves are now exploring, including the use of peering and the densification of Internet Exchanges (IXs) to improve not just bandwidth, but connectivity as a whole. We’ll talk more about that shortly. For now, suffice to say that building more data centres is only one piece of the puzzle. The push for faster, more reliable network connections also needs to accelerate, to take account of the massively growing volumes of data being sent across the ether. This will require a
strategic approach to network design that positions networks as a progressive business asset rather than a static piece of infrastructure. AI applications, particularly those involving real-time inference, impose unique demands on network infrastructure. AI requires both high bandwidth for training large models and low latency for inference tasks, where immediate response times are critical. Meeting these demands involves establishing direct, high-capacity connections between data centres, cloud services and on-premise infrastructure to eliminate lag and ensure stable, low- latency performance.
IX Peering and Densification
Latency can make or break the effectiveness of real-time applications, and with the rise of AI, IoT and cloud- based services, minimising it has become essential. Peering – creating direct connections between many separate networks via an Internet Exchange (IX) – significantly reduces the time it takes for data to move from point A to point B. This approach enables data to travel along the most efficient path, bypassing slower or congested sections of the public Internet. For companies operating globally or in latency-sensitive sectors like finance, where milliseconds affect trading outcomes, peering offers a reliable way to maintain speed and responsiveness in digital operations. With ever-increasing amounts of data being sent to and
DECEMBER 2024 Volume 46 No.4
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