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Mobile Video Traffic Up 50-60% YoY; 90% of 5G Traffic Will be Video, says Openwave

Mobile Video Traffic Up 50-60% YoY; 90% of 5G Traffic Will be Video, says Openwave Image Credit: Openwave Mobility

Video traffic on mobile networks has grown on average 50-60% year-on-year (YoY) over the past five years, while in many developing markets, the rate is more than twice this, according to research from Openwave Mobility.

The findings are part of the latest Mobile Video Index(MVI), now in its third edition. Along with live data from over 30 mobile operators globally, the latest edition of the MVI also features insight from the Mobile Video Industry Council, an industry group that includes BT, EE, Deutsche Telekom, Telefonica, MTS, Telus, KPN, Orange and Vodafone.

Along with the phenomenal growth in mobile video, the MVI examines mobile data traffic patterns – which are highly irregular, making it almost impossible for operators to plan ahead. For example, the report documents how one of the largest operators in the world has a ratio of peak to average traffic of over three times, while another operator sees 80% of the day’s traffic in just two hours – straining the Radio Access Network (RAN) to the limit and impacting subscriber Quality of Experience (QoE).

Traffic volumes with high resolution videos will grow exponentially with 5G, and forecasts from the Mobile Video Industry Council show that 90% of 5G traffic will be video. In such an environment, QoE becomes a delicate balancing act for operators that have to juggle video picture quality with video delivery quality. The MVI reports on this and provides insight on the effective use of key performance indicators (KPIs) by some operators on aspects such as buffering versus higher resolutions.

Matt Halligan, CTO and Head of Engineering, Openwave Mobility
5G will open the door to even more competition – from new categories of players – and the promise of low latency means AR and VR services will be high on the menu for subscribers. QoE is already hard to manage, and immersive video services are 33x more data intensive than 480p video. So, unless operators have a robust strategy to differentiate their service, they could be sleepwalking into a 5G nightmare.

Author

Ray is a news editor at The Fast Mode, bringing with him more than 10 years of experience in the wireless industry.

For tips and feedback, email Ray at ray.sharma(at)thefastmode.com, or reach him on LinkedIn @raysharma10, Facebook @1RaySharma

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