COVID-19 accelerated a shift online, highlighting the need for a strong digital transformation strategy. Organizations need modern, forward-thinking cloud-based solutions. Cloud technology offers resiliency, agility, adaptability and scalability - four critical elements for success in today's business world. While it wasn't unheard of to have remote employees before, the workplace has never been this dispersed - three million jobs became permanently remote in Q4 2021 alone. Consumer preferences have also shifted outside of the workplace: more online shopping and digital media consumption and a higher standard for customer service.
As we become increasingly reliant on the cloud, a strong communications infrastructure is crucial for businesses. A critical component of that infrastructure is fiber, which underpins cloud networks and connects the puzzle that is the digital ecosystem in our cloud-driven world.
Before we discuss the crucial role of fiber, let's examine the industry's current state.
The trends: multi-cloud, 5G and edge computing
With the continuing industry shift toward the cloud, enterprises need bandwidth, speed and security to keep up with innovation. Those who don't make the necessary investments in their infrastructure risk falling behind their competitors; in a fast-paced world, it can be nearly impossible to catch up. What are some of the trends to monitor?
Multi-cloud Investments
Cloud is imperative for organizations to embrace the digital-everywhere mindset. The pandemic caused many businesses to hasten their cloud migration plans and forced others to design a cloud strategy from scratch. Now, it's not a matter of whether you're using cloud platforms — it's a matter of how many cloud platforms you're using. As of 2021, 92 percent of enterprises have implemented a multi-cloud strategy, while 82 percent use a hybrid cloud strategy. On average, they use 2.6 public clouds and 2.7 private clouds. Multi-cloud strategies increase ROI, strengthen security, lower latency, and provide overall autonomy over business processes.
5G
Cloud platforms keep hybrid workforces connected and running smoothly, students connected to their instructors, and everyone connected to friends and family. As we become increasingly reliant on digital tools to work, learn and play, there is no time for unreliable networks that leave us disconnected at the most critical moments. The importance of 5G in supporting those platforms cannot be understated: 80 percent of decision-makers say 5G will create new business opportunities.
Edge Computing
To keep our increasingly dispersed society connected, we need bandwidth and low latency to prevent network hiccups. By 2025, an estimated 152,000 IoT devices will connect to the internet every minute, generating more than 73 zettabytes of data. Edge computing represents a necessary shift away from the current network architecture to support that new normal. Instead of transmitting data to large, centralized data centers, edge computing moves networks closer to the devices using them, making those devices faster and more efficient. In a digital-first world, every second saved is a valuable one.
What can communications infrastructure do for you?
In a cloud-first world, security, reliability and performance are table stakes. Organizations monitor the trends to get a lead on the competition, but many still struggle to transition from traditional network infrastructure to the new age. The challenges are myriad, including maintaining control over data, keeping the network running 24/7 and balancing security with customer experience.
That's where communications infrastructure comes in, specifically fiber. Dark and lit fiber have notable benefits for businesses looking to transfer data at high speeds. Fiber helps create a frictionless cloud world: connecting edge-to-core, edge-to-cloud and edge-to-edge. From entertainment to healthcare to transportation, fiber is the backbone of it all. Telehealth, autonomous vehicles, cryptocurrency — exciting innovation can't happen without more bandwidth, more endpoints and lower latency, and thus fiber.
Dark Fiber
Leasing or purchasing dark fiber puts control, resilience and security in your hands because that connection isn't shared with anyone else. Everyone is concerned about protecting sensitive data — from August 2020 to August 2021, more than one-third of organizations experienced a ransomware attack. Lighting your own fiber provides end-to-end transparency and protection, and complete control over the diversity of your network, helping minimize latency and downtime.
The power of your dark fiber network is virtually unlimited, impacted only by the equipment you choose to install and run. Bandwidth demands are constantly changing, and dark fiber connections only require a simple equipment update as needed. A digital world demands agility: dark fiber future-proofs your network for unexpected shifts down the road.
Furthermore, dark fiber is cost-effective. For bandwidth-intensive organizations, dark fiber doesn't present the same financial challenges when additional bandwidth is needed. With lit fiber, businesses often have to pay more to use more data, but on a dark fiber network, a one-time capital expenditure adds more capacity to your existing bandwidth.
Lit Fiber
On the other hand, lit fiber offers a level of speed, convenience and ease of use other data transmission methods don't provide. Because lit fiber is already in use and operated by the provider, there is no barrier to entry. Businesses don't have to purchase, maintain or operate any of the equipment required to manage their fiber network - the service provider handles that entire process. Lit fiber decreases technical and administrative burdens on IT teams, preserving valuable resources.
Fiber is the now and the future
There is no turning back now from a digital-everywhere society. The cloud is the core, and the focus now is on creating elastic networks that connect us to the cloud anytime, anywhere. Though almost every enterprise has adopted a cloud strategy, connection to the cloud is not always smooth sailing. The role of fiber cannot be overlooked in enabling companies to digitize everything and do so without interruption.
Organizations that embrace the power of fiber in creating a frictionless cloud experience are the ones that will win now and in the future.
