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An International Treaty for Bandwidth

May 27, 2009

As the proportion of customers with iPhones grows-5.9 million 3G iPhones were activated in the last three quarters in the US market-7.5% of AT&T's total subscribers-the resulting growth in downloading and Web browsing will strain AT&T's network. A recent analysis by Alcatel-Lucent of North American wireless network use during the midday hour on one day found Web browsing was consuming 32% of data-related airtime, but 69% of bandwidth, while email used 30% of data airtime but only 4% of bandwidth. AT&T will need to add cell towers, and spend more on the back-haul lines that connect the towers to the rest of the network. This constitutes a massive and ongoing capital outlay. Given the established public appeal of all-in-one smart phones, it is a commitment that AT&T is happy to make in the American market, as are others carriers invested in the next generation smart phones.

Bandwidth is expensive. As the Third World becomes increasingly computer integrated, first with laptops and desktops donated by international aid organizations, such as the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, there will be a call to set up a network that will wire these tens of millions of new users to the internet. Who will pay for the network? The expense of running towers and lines into the interior of continents that lack basic services such as electricity and fresh water will be overwhelming, and yet a population without the connection to the outside world provided by the internet cannot reasonably achieve a modern education, and in many cases cannot gain the perspective that promotes political and personal freedom.

Category: Bandwidth Development, International Internet

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