2020PandemicNetworkPerformance

ABROADBANDINTERNETTECHNICALADVISORYGROUP

TECHNICALWORKINGGROUPREPORT

AUniformAgreementReport

Issued:

04/05/2021

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AbouttheBITAG

TheBroadbandInternetTechnicalAdvisoryGroup(BITAG)isanon-profit,multi-stakeholderorganizationfocusedonbringingtogetherengineersandtechnologistsinaTechnicalWorkingGroup(TWG)todevelopconsensusonhowtheInternetoperatesincludingbroadbandnetworkmanagementpracticesandotherrelatedtechnicalissuesthatcanaffectusers’Internetexperience,includingtheimpacttoandfromapplications,contentanddevicesthatutilizetheInternet.

TheBITAG’smissionincludes:(a)educatingpolicymakersonsuchtechnicalissues;(b)addressingspecifictechnicalmattersinanefforttominimizerelatedpolicydisputes;and(c)servingasasoundingboardfornewideasandnetworkmanagementpractices.SpecificTWGfunctionsalsomayinclude:(i)identifying“bestpractices”bybroadbandprovidersandotherentities;(ii)interpretingandapplying“safeharbor”practices;(iii)otherwiseprovidingtechnicalguidancetoindustryandtothepublic;and/or(iv)issuingadvisoryopinionsonthetechnicalissuesgermanetotheTWG’smissionthatmayunderliedisputesconcerningbroadbandnetworkmanagementpractices.

TheBITAGTechnicalWorkingGroupanditsindividualCommitteesmakedecisionsthroughaconsensusprocess,withthecorrespondinglevelsofagreementrepresentedonthecoverofeachreport.EachTWGRepresentativeworkstowardsachievingconsensusaroundrecommendationstheirrespectiveorganizationssupport,althoughevenatthehighestlevelofagreement,BITAGconsensusdoesnotrequirethatallTWGmemberorganizationsagreewitheachandeverysentenceofadocument.TheChairofeachTWGCommitteedeterminesifconsensushasbeenreached.InthecasethereisdisagreementwithinaCommitteeastowhetherthereisconsensus,BITAGhasavotingprocesswithwhichvariouslevelsofagreementmaybemoreformallyachievedandindicated.FormoreinformationpleaseseetheBITAGTechnicalWorkingGroupManual,availableontheBITAGwebsiteatwww.bitag.org.

BITAGTWGreportsfocusprimarilyontechnicalissues,especiallythosewiththepotentialtobeconstruedasanti-competitive,discriminatory,orotherwisemotivatedbynon-technicalfactors.Whilethereportsmaytouchonabroadrangeofquestionsassociatedwithaparticularnetworkmanagementpractice,thereportsarenotintendedtoaddressoranalyzeinacomprehensivefashiontheeconomic,legal,regulatoryorpublicpolicyissuesthatthepracticemayraise.BITAGwelcomespubliccomment.Pleasefeelfreetosubmitcommentsinwritingviaemailatcomments@bitag.org.

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ExecutiveSummary

TheglobalCOVID-19pandemicemergedinthefirstfewmonthsof2020[1].Asworkandschoolshiftedtothehomeformillionsofpeople,residentialInternetservicesfacedanunprecedenteddemandspike.Despitetheseextraordinarychanges,theInternethasperformedwell:fromuserapplicationstocontentdistributioninfrastructuretoalltypesofInternetaccessnetworks,theInternetprovedresilientandreliable.ThisislikelyduetoacombinationofthenatureofthedesignoftheInternetitself,openandinteroperablestandards,competenttechnicalexecutionandoperationalexecution,networkcapacityupgradesduringthepandemic,andsignificantlong-terminvestmentsacrosstheentireInternetecosystem[2].

ThisreportisfocusedontheUSanddetailshowincreaseddemandaffectedvariouspartsoftheInternetecosystem,andhowdifferentorganizationsrespondedtothesechanges.ManyreportshaveexaminedparticularpartsoftheInternetecosystem,suchasInternetexchangepointsandacontentdeliverynetworksindepth.Thisreportsynthesizesaholisticview,explaininghowtheecosystemasawhole-includingInternetServiceProviders(ISPs),transitproviders,applicationproviders,contentproviders,campusnetworks,andothers-respondedtothesechanges.

Overall,theavailabledatasuggeststhattheInternethasperformedwellduringthepandemic,andcontinuestodoso,despiteunparalleledandrapidchangesintrafficdemands.Althoughindividualend-usersmayhaveexperiencedisolatedissues,wefoundnodataorreportsthatsuggestthattheInternetdidnotperformtomeettheneedsoftheend-users(e.g.,slowpageloads,excessivevideobuffering,videoconferencingsessionsaborting,etc.).ThisresilienceisevidentacrossmanypartsoftheInternetecosystem,fromISPstocontentdeliverynetworksandapplications,andisatestamenttotheimportanceofcontinuedinvestmentinrobustInternetinfrastructureinallpartsoftheecosystem,includingaccess,transit,andcontentdelivery.

Thereporthighlightsthefollowingfindings:

• ISPssawsignificantgrowthinbothdownstreamandupstreamtraffic,increasingatleast30%andasmuchas40%duringpeakbusinesshoursandasmuchas60%insomemarkets.

• Theobservedincreaseintrafficvolumewasnotsimplyaconsequenceofashiftfromorganizationalnetworkstoresidentialones.Theshiftcausedlocalinformationresourcesonorganizationalsitestobecomeremoteones,accessibleonlythroughtheInternet.Therefore,netInternettrafficincreased.

• Videoconferencingtraffic,whilerepresentativeofasmalloverallpercentageoftraffic,increasedsubstantially.Somenetworkssawmorethan300%increaseintheamountofvideoconferencingtrafficfromFebruarytoOctober2020.

• Applicationsincludinggaming,webaccessandvideostreamingalsosawsubstantialincreases.

• EnterpriseandcampusnetworkssawanincreaseintheuseofVPNservices,leadinginsomecasestoVPNcapacityproblems.However,theincreaseinVPNusage,particularlytocampusnetworks,waslessthanexpected,partiallybecausemanyofapplicationsarenowhostedinthecloudandcanbeaccesseddirectlyratherthanexclusivelythroughaprivatenetwork.

• Transitnetworks,contentdeliverynetworks,andInternetexchangepointssawtrafficvolumesincreaseby20-50%.

• Trafficoverdirectinterconnectionpointsalsoincreasedsignificantly.Theextentoftheincreaseintrafficdemandvariedacrosspeers,withgrowthpatternsrangingfrommodesttomorethananorderofmagnitudeormore.

• Trafficratiosbetweendownstreamandupstreamtrafficalsoshiftedasaresultofgreaterupstreamconsumption,althoughtrafficratiosremainedstronglyasymmetric,withdownstreamtrafficcontinuingtofaroutpaceupstreamtraffic.

• Theextentofgrowthintrafficdemandtendedtovarybytheapplicationorserviceofthecorrespondingpeer.Asageneralpattern,ISPsaugmentedcapacitytokeeppacewiththisincreaseindemand.

• Thegrowthintrafficvariedwidelybyapplication,interconnectpeer,andgeographicregion.

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• Therewasasignificantincreaseinthepurchaseofnewconsumerdevices,includingtabletsandlaptops,insomecases(e.g.,webcams)outpacingsupplyofthesedevices.

• Someproviderssawmodestandtemporarydecreasesindownstreamtrafficspeeds,especiallyduringearlierpartsof2020.Overallmediandownloadspeedsdecreasedbylessthan5%,whileremainingaboveadvertisedspeeds.Latencyalsoincreasedmodestlyandtemporarilyforcertainproviders.

• HomeWi-Finetworks,inparticularthosewithcustomersuppliedhomegatewaysand/orWi-Fiaccesspoints,experiencedperformancechallengesoftenduetothecombinedeffectsofincreasedtrafficdemand,alargernumberofconnecteddevices,andoutdateddevicesandhomenetworkequipment.

Whilethereportaimstobeascomprehensiveaspossibleinitsviewoftrafficdemandchanges,certainaspectsdoremaindifficulttocharacterize.WecautionthatthisreportdoesnotshedlightoneveryaspectofInternetbehavioranduserexperienceduringthepandemic.Inparticular,thereportfocusesondirectlyobservablemetricsandcharacteristics,suchastrafficdemand(utilization),aswellasnetworkperformancemetricssuchasthroughputandlatency,whichcantypicallybedirectlymeasured.Otherimportantmetrics,suchasuserqualityofexperienceforspecificapplications,aremoredifficulttomeasureandcharacterize,particularlyatscale.Muchofthatdataissimplynotreadilyavailable.Inmanycases,forclarityofpresentation,wehavepresenteddistributionsofstatistics,asopposedtoindividualmeasurements.Wheneverpossible,wehavepresentedtheresultsasdistributionsthatshowthefullrangeofperformanceeffectsforwhichdataisavailable,optingforpercentiles,medians,andcompletedistributionsasopposedtoaverages(whichcanobscureoutliers).

Inlightoftheaboveobservations,thereportoffersseveralrecommendations:

• Endusersshouldexaminetheirhomenetworkwhenexperiencingperformanceissues,particularlytheirdevicesandhomeWi-Fiequipment,andconsultwithvariousonlineresourcesthatcontainhelpfulguidanceonhowtoimprovethenetworkperformanceexperiencedintheirhome.

• HomeWi-Fiequipmentthatuses802.11b(orolder)shouldberetired,andusersshouldbeencouragedtoupgradetoWi-Fi6whenitbecomeswidelyavailable.

• Iftheyarenotalreadydoingso,operatorsofcampusandenterprisenetworksshouldconsiderenablingcloud-basedapplicationstouseSingle-SignOn(SSO)toallowdirect,secureaccesstoapplicationswithoutrequiringtheuseofaVPN.

• Networkoperatorsshouldcontinuetoprovisionnetworkinfrastructurewithenoughexcesscapacitytoprepareandaccountforfuturepossiblesystemic“shocks”andrapidchangesintrafficdemandpatterns.

• Finally,InternetstakeholdersshouldcontinuewithopencommunicationandcollaborationforthecontinuedsuccessoftheInternetastheInternetecosystemworkedtogethereffectivelyandquicklytomeetthemassiveincreaseindemandforInternetaccessandInternetapplications.Thisenabledmanymillionsofpeopletoworkandlearnfromhome,keptsocietyinformed,keptpeopleconnectedtofamily,friendsandlovedones,andfacilitatedaccesstootherimportantservicesduringchallengingthistime[3].

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TableofContents

1 Introduction.....................................................................................................................................................................1 2 TheCOVID-19PandemicSignificantlyChangedInternetUsage....................................................................2 3 COVID-19Impacts&ResponsesfromtheInternetEcosystem.......................................................................2 4 Observations.................................................................................................................................................................14 5 Conclusion......................................................................................................................................................................24 6 Recommendations......................................................................................................................................................24 7 References.....................................................................................................................................................................26 8 Acronyms.......................................................................................................................................................................33 9 DocumentContributorsandReviewers..............................................................................................................35

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1 Introduction

Inlate2019,theWorldHealthOrganization(WHO)identifiedtheemergenceoftheSevereAcuteRespiratorySyndromeCoronavirus2(SARS-COV-2)whichcausestheCoronavirusDisease2019(COVID-19).Inthefirstfewmonthsof2020,aglobalCOVID-19pandemicemerged[1],whicheventuallyledtoasignificantportionofthepopulationtoquarantineorotherwiseremainathome.Sucheventsarealsoreferredtoaslockdowns,shutdowns,orshelter-in-placeorders,andinthisreport,weusetheterm“shelter-in-place”torefertotheseevents.

Somestudiesestimateduptohalftheworkforceshiftedtheirworkactivitiesonline[4],andmostschoolsshiftedtoonlineformats[5].ThiscausedasignificantchangeinInternetusageaspeoplemovedtoworkingand/orstudyingfromhomeandmoregenerallyspendingmuchmoretimeathomethanusual.Societybroadlyembracedinterpersonalvideocommunicationsandothertoolstosupportthisnewhome-centricwayoflife.Theentireend-to-endInternetecosystemrespondedtothemanytechnicalchallengesthatemergedfromthisincreaseindemand.

ThepurposeofthisreportistodescribewhatchangedinusageordemandasobservedacrossdifferentpartsoftheInternetecosystem,andwhatstepsdifferentorganizationstookinresponsetosupporttheincreaseindemand[2].Existingreportstypicallycovertheexperiencesofindividualorganizationsorofasmalltradegroupofsimilarorganizations[6],butthisreportseekstotellthebroaderarcofthestoryacrosstheentireInternetecosystem,fromhomenetworkstoISPs,transitproviders,applicationproviders,contentproviders,andothers.ThisreportfocusesprimarilyonthetimeperiodfromlateFebruary2020whenthefirstshelter-in-placeorderswerebeingissuedtoJune2020whenmanyoftheshelter-in-placeorderswerebeingliftedorrelaxedbutisnotlimitedtothattimewindowastherewerestillsomeeventsofinterestinthesecondhalfof2020.

Webelieveitisimportanttopaintthebiggerpictureandtodosobeforethemanyday-to-dayoperationalexperiencesarelostinourcollectivememoryaswenaturallymoveontosolvefuturechallenges.Thisreportshouldbeofinteresttoawiderangeofreaders,frompolicymakersandregulators,tolawmakers,academicresearchers,networkengineers,historians,andmanyothers.

ThereportbeginswithabriefsummaryofthemajorchangesobservedacrosstheInternetecosystem.Itthenexaminestheimpactsandresponsesbyeachmajorpartoftheecosystem,startingfromtheenduser’shomenetworkandworkingoutfromtheISPprovidingaccesstotheInternetallthewaytoapplicationsandcontentattheotherend.Weclosewithsummaryobservationsandrecommendations.

Inthisreport,weattempttopresentvariousmetricsusingaggregaterepresentationstoreflectthecharacteristicsofdatathatoftenhavemillionsofsamples(e.g.,throughput,latency,orotherperformancemeasurementsacrosstimeandalargenumberofusers)1.BITAGacknowledgesaggregatescansometimesobscuretheeffectsofcertainfactors,suchasthecongestionexperiencedbyanindividualsubscriber,agroupofsubscribersinaparticularservicetierorregion,oragroupofsubscribersusingaparticularaccesstechnology.Insomecases,theeffectsaresignificant;inothers,nosignificanteffectshavebeenobserved.Thatdoesnotmeanthatthesefactorsdonotexhibitsignificanteffects,itonlymeansthatnostudyhasyetidentifiedsignificanteffectsfromthosefactors.Forexample,wediscussinthereportsomeperformanceeffectsthatarevisibleinthe“tail”observationperiodsofcertaindistributionsofcertainISPs.Whenpossible,wehaveattemptedtoshowaggregatestatisticsthatreflecttherelevantorinterestingeffects.Itshouldalsobenoted,notallorganizationssharedthesamemeasurementsandwhensharingthesamemeasurementmaynothaveusedthesameunitnorovertheexacttimeperiodsandthusitisnotalwayspossibletocomparetheresponseofdifferentorganizationsbysimplycomparingthemeasurements.Forexample,someorganizationssharedpercentageofpeakutilizationwhileotherssharedgrowthindataconsumption.

1Datasourcesvaryfromindependentmeasurementsystemstoself-reportedinternalcompanysources.BITAGdidnotindependentlyvalidateeachandeverysourcethathasbeencited,relyinginsteadoneachcompanytounderstandtheircriticalkeyperformanceindicators,onacademicjournalsorconferencesthatmayhavepeerreviewedpapers,onthelongexperienceofwell-knownmeasurementplatforms,andsoon.Thatbeingthecase,theBITAGdoesbelievethatmanyofthesesourcestendtoagreeorcorrelateintermsofthehigh-leveltimelineofhowtheInternethaschangedasaresultofCOVID-19.Ofcourse,giventhediversityofdevices,users,networksandapplications,thegeneralfindingsexplainedhereinwillnotapplytoeverypossibleindividualsituationorexperience.Inmanycases,thedatasetswerelyonarepublicandwehaveincludedpointerstothosedatasetsandouranalysisofthosepublicdatasets.

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2 TheCOVID-19PandemicSignificantlyChangedInternetUsage

ThechangesnotedabovecausedadramaticshiftinInternetusage[7].Atahighlevel,thetypicaldiurnalpatternofpeakandoff-peaktimesshiftedasthepeaksstartedearlierinthedayandlastedlongerintotheevening.Thenumberofpeopleanddevicesconnectedtoandsimultaneouslyusingthenetworkincreased.Finally,thetypesofapplicationsshiftedasmostusersembracedconferencingapplicationssuchasZoom,MicrosoftTeams,andCiscoWebEx.

NokiaDeepfieldreported[8]thatmostserviceprovidernetworkssaw30-60%growthintrafficinthefirstfourweeksoftheshelter-in-placeorders[9],ashifttoearlierstarttimesforpeakstreamingvideohours,arise[10]invideoconferencing(350-700%forsomeservices),tremendousincreaseinweekendtraffic,andmorethan30%increaseintheupstreamtraffic[11].

OpenVault,aprovideroftechnologysolutionsandindustryanalyticsforbroadbandproviders,reportedthatdailyconsumptionduringlocalbusinesshours(9amto5pm)grewbynearly42%(4.45GB/dayto6.35GB/day)inthedownstreamandjustover82%(0.215GB/dayto0.392GB/day)intheupstream[12].Peakhoursdownstreamconsumptiongrew21%andtheupstreampeakhoursgrew35%.Manyreportedobservingashiftindiurnalpatterns,notingthattheirdownstreampeakmovedfrom9PMtobetween7PMand8PM,whiletheupstreampeakshiftedfrom9PMtobetween8AMand6PM[13][14][15].

3 COVID-19Impacts&ResponsesfromtheInternetEcosystem

WenextlookedattheimpactsandresponsesbyeachmajorpartoftheInternetecosystemstartingfromtheenduser’shomenetworkandworkingoutfromthefirst-hopnetworks(ISPs,enterprisenetworks,campusnetworks)totheapplicationsandcontentattheotherendasshowninthefigurebelow.

Figure1.SimplifiedEnd-to-EndInternetEcosystem

3.1 COVID-19ImpactsandUSPreparation

IntheUnitedStates(US),governmentorganizationsrecognizedthepotentialimpactofshiftingamajorityofthenon-essentialworkforceandstudentpopulationtohome.TopreparemillionsofAmericansforthischange,twoagenciesseparatelytookactiontosupporttelecommunicationsaspartofcriticalinfrastructure:theFederalCommunications

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Commission(FCC)andtheCybersecurity&InfrastructureSecurityAgency(CISA).ThesupportfromtheFCCandCISAtokeepconsumersonthenetworkfacilitatedthecommunicationsindustryresponseactivities[16].

TheFCCpostedtipsandguidelinestoitswebsite[17]toguideconsumersthroughservicelevelnetworkoptimization.Consumerswereadvisedtoreviewbroadbandplans,executeconnectionspeedtests,andexploreoptionsintendedtomaximizetheperformanceofthehome-basednetwork.TheFCCencouragednetworkoperatorstopledgetosupportresidentialandsmallbusinesscustomersbysigningthe“KeepAmericansConnectedPledge”[18],whichwasactivefromMarch13,2020throughJune30,2020.Morethan800companiesandassociationssignedthepledgetowaivelatefeesincurredbyresidentialorsmallbusinesscustomersduetoeconomiccircumstancesoftheshelter-in-placeorders,andnotterminateresidentsorsmallbusinessescustomersfornon-paymentduetothepandemic.Inaddition,companiessupportingthepledgeopenedadditionalWi-Fihotspotstousers,andinsomecases,datalimitcapswerelifted.CISAdeclaredtelecommunicationsworkersasessentialinMarchof2020[19],allowingcompaniestoprovidehumanresourcestosupportmaintainingandhardeningthenetworkduringthestay-at-homewindows.Duringthestay-at-homeperiodswhenbroadbandbecameanecessarypartofdailylife,networkoperatorskeptcustomersconnectedandhadtheavailablehumanresourcesavailabletokeepnetworksoperationalandoperatingatahighlevelofcustomersatisfaction[20].

TheactionsoftheFCCandCISAtosupporttelecommunicationswouldnothavebeenasefficientnoraseffectivewithoutPresidentialPolicyDirective21:CriticalInfrastructureSecurityandResilience(PPD-21)from2013.PPD-21[21]resultedintheDepartmentofHomelandSecurityincludingtheCommunicationsSectorasoneoftheCriticalInfrastructureSectors.Underthepolicy,Sectormembersandpolicymakersweredirectedtoprotectessentialservicesinorderto“strengthenandmaintainsecure,functioning,andresilientcriticalinfrastructure.”Theimpactofapolicysupportingnationalinfrastructureprovidedafoundationforinfrastructureownerstomanageoperationsandriskduringlockdownswithappropriatedirectionandresourcestofocusoncontinuityofservices.

3.2 UserDevices

Astheshifttoworkingandlearningfromhomeoccurred,manyusersrealizedthattheirexistingpersonallyowneddeviceswereineffectiveorthattheyneededadditionaldevicestomeetrequirementsoffull-timeremoteworkorschool.Insomecases,deviceslackedcamerasforvideoconferencing,orthosecameraswereverylowresolution.Inothercases,thedeviceshadveryslowprocessors,insufficientmemoryandstorage,ordidnotsupportnewerWi-FistandardsandsohadslowLANaccessspeeds.Someemployees,suchascallcenteragents,shiftedforthefirsttimefromcallcenterstoworkingfromhomeandneededasecure,managedpersonalcomputertoperformtheirduties.Asaresult,consumerspurchasedasignificantnumberofdevicestosupportthisshifttoremoteworkandlearning.

FromMarchthroughMay2020,thisdramaticincreaseinconsumerdemandfortabletsandlaptopsappearedtooutpacesupply[25].Vendorsreportedrecoveryinfall2020,withshipmentsincreasinginthelastquarterof2020comparedtothefirstpriormonths[26].Whilethedemandremainedhightowardstheendof2020,itappearsdevicemanufacturersarestartingtoturnthecorneramidstrecordsales[27].

Itisalsonotablethatintheshifttoonlinelearning,challengesemergedrelatedtoalackofInternetconnectivitythatcouldnotbecorrectedbydevices.Insomecases,alackofconnectivitywascompoundedbyalackofdigitalliteracyandaccesstoandtrainingontheuseofcomputers,withimpacttolower-incomehouseholdsmorepronounced[29].Manycompanieshaveestablishedorexpandedprogramstoaddressconnectivityissues[34]butthesocialandtechnicalissuesarecomplex,oftenvaryfromonecommunitytothenext,andwilltakesignificantcollectiveefforttosolve.

3.3 TheHomeNetwork

Theshifttoworkingandstudyingfromhome,aswellasthepurchaseofmanynewdevicesintendedforconnectiontothehomelocalareanetwork(LAN),placedasignificantburdenonthetypicalhomeLAN.Oneofthenewer,moresignificanttrafficdemandsonhomenetworkshasbeenreal-timevideoconferencing.Collectively,theadditionalloadhasposedchallengeswitholderhomeLANequipmentsuppliedbycustomersthatonlysupportsolderandlowerperformingversionsofWi-Fi,suchas802.11nanditspredecessors.

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Thesechallengeshaveledmanyhomeuserstoimproveperformancesimplybyupgradingtheirhomegatewayand/orWi-FiaccesspointstothelatestgenerationofWi-Fi[35][36].ManyhomeshavealsoexperiencedgapsinWi-Ficoverageandhavesolvedthis2eitherbyrepositioningtheirWi-Fiaccesspointtoamorecentrallocationinthehome,byaddingWi-Fiextenderstothenetwork(alsoreferredtoasWi-Fimeshnetworking),orbyrunningEthernetcablestodistantbutrelativelyfixeddevices,suchasahomeofficePCorprinter.

Inthepastfewyears,newWi-FimeshtechnologyhasbecomeavailablethatperformsmuchbetterthanearlierversionsofWi-Fiextenders[37].Consumershaverecentlyrushedtopurchaseandinstallthisnewtechnology[38][39]asawaytosignificantlyimprovebothrangeandperformance,makingWi-Fimeshamainstreamtechnology.Thelatestgenerationdevicestendtofallintotwocategories:Wi-FimeshnetworktechnologythatusesWi-Fitobackhaultrafficwirelesslytothehomegateway,orhigherperformingWi-FimeshaccesspointsthatuseEthernettobackhaulthetrafficoverawiredconnection.Consumersmaychooseasolutiondependingonfactorssuchastheabilitytoinstallnewwiring,price,thesizeofthehome,typesofdevices,andmobilityofusersinhome.Unfortunately,theverylatestgenerationofWi-Fi–version6e,capableofusingnewerfrequencybands,isnotyetwidelyavailable.ThenewbandsstandtoincreaseWi-Fibandwidthdramaticallyinthenearfuture.

3.4 First-HopNetworks

3.4.1 ISPNetworks

ISPs,whichprovideaccesstotheInternettoendusers,showedsignificantincreasesintrafficinthefirstweeksoftheshelter-in-placeordersbothintermsofvolumeofdatatransferredandpeakusage.

Largecableoperatorsreporteddownstreamtrafficgrowing20%andupstreamtrafficgrowing35%[14],whilesmallercableoperatorsreporteddownstreamgrowing27%andupstreamgrowing36%[7]duringtheshelter-in-placeorders.Mobileoperatorsreporteddataincreasingby9%atthebeginningoftheshelter-in-placeorders,thentrendingupthroughJulyforanetincreaseof28.4.%[40].Overthesameperiod,voicetrafficgrowthincreasedby12%andpeakedat24%onMarch23,2020.Wirelineoperatorsreportedthatmeantraffichasincreased12%asJuly2020,withthepeakgrowthof27%occurringonApril16,2020.

ThefixedwirelessISPs,asreportedbyPreseem,observedthatduringthefirstweekoftheshelter-in-placeordersinCalifornia,Internetconsumptionwentupbymorethan40%duringthepeakbusinesshours(10am-2pm);andwasupby5-13%duringotherpartsoftheday.PreseemalsoobservedwasthattheaverageInternetusagewasupbymorethan17%overalland34%duringbusinesshours(9am-5pm)[41].

Asstatesbeganreopeninginlatespringof2020,operatorsreportedsmallerchangesinusage.ByJulydownstreamusagewasupanetof1.7%and31%upstream[14],thoughoveralltrafficratiosremainedhighlyasymmetric.Cableandwirelineoperatorsreportedthattheirtransittrafficdidnotgrowbyameasurableamount[7],andcorenetworkcapacitywassufficienttomeetdemand[42].Itisworthnotingthatforthemobilewirelessnetworksthatdatausagestartedtotrendupinthelatespringastheshelter-in-placerestrictionswereeasedorlifted.

Aswewillexploreinthesubsectionsbelow,ISPsreactedtothesuddendemandincreasebyrapidlyaddingextraordinaryamountsofnewcapacityandpledgingtoKeepAmericansConnected[30].AspartoftheFCC’sKeepAmericansConnectedinitiative,ISPspledgedto:1)nottoterminateservicebecauseofinabilitytopayduetodisruptionscausedbythecoronaviruspandemic,2)waivelatefees,and3)opentheirWi-FihotspotstoanyAmericanwhoneededthem.ManyISPswentaboveandbeyondbyproviding60daysoffreebroadbandservicetonewhouseholds,suspendingdatausagelimits,andupgradingserviceplansforexistingcustomersamongotherthings[43][44][45][46][47].

Somealsoaddednewqualityofexperienceteststovalidatetheenduserexperience,suchasthepercentofadvertisedspeedthatwasconsistentlydelivered.

2ISPshaveandcontinuetoeducatetheircustomersonhowtooptimizetheirWi-Finetworks.Seehttps://www.cox.com/residential/internet/guides/improving-wifi/extend-wifi-range.html,https://www.xfinity.com/support/articles/improve-your-wireless-home-network,https://www.verizon.com/support/residential/internet/equipment/network-extender,https://www.att.com/help/internet/optimize-your-connection/.

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3.4.1.1 AT&T

AT&TisaproviderofmobilephoneserviceandbroadbandInternetserviceintheUS.Intheearlyweeksoftheshelter-in-placeorders,AT&Treportedthatitscorenetwork(business,homebroadband,andwireless)usagepeakedonMarch29,2020ataround30%abovethepreshelter-in-placebaseline.InthefirstweekofApril,AT&Treportedthatitscorenetworktrafficwasup24%,wirelessvoiceminutesup23%,consumerhomevoicecallingminutesup33%,andWi-Ficallingminutesup80%[48].

AT&T’sdatashowedWi-Ficallingnearlydoubledduringanaverageday.Thedataalsoshowedthatthenumberofminutesofaudioandvideoconferencingwentup500%[49].

Sixmonthsintothepandemic,AT&Treportedthecorenetworktrafficremainedup20%,mobilevoiceminutesup40%,andmobiledatavolumehadslightlydecreased.AT&TattributedthedecreaseinmobiledatavolumetothefactthatmostsubscribersareconnectingtotheInternetusingtheirhomeWi-Fithroughouttheday.Asofearly2021,AT&T’snetworkiscarryinganaverageof393PBofdataperdaycomparedtoapre-pandemicdailyaverageof335PB[50].

3.4.1.2 CharterCommunications

CharterCommunications,Inc.isabroadbandconnectivitycompanyandcableoperatorservingcustomersthroughitsSpectrumbrand.Overanadvancedcommunicationsnetwork,thecompanyoffersafullrangeofstate-of-the-artresidentialandbusinessservicesincludingSpectrumInternet®,TV,MobileandVoice.Charterhasinvested$40billionoverthelastfiveyearsinnewtechnologyandnetworkupgrades.Thisincludesinvestmentsinitsfiberbackbone,andcustomer-facingprojectslikeCharter’srecentconversiontoall-digital,whichfreedupcapacityinitshybrid-fiber-coaxialnetwork.Theseinvestmentsensurethatevenintimesofcrisisitcandeliverexactlywhatitscustomersneed–reliablehigh-speedinternetwithenoughcapacitytosupporteventhemosthigh-bandwidthactivities,suchasHDvideostreamingandmulti-playergamingonnumerousdevices.Chartermonitorsitsnetworkconstantlysothatitcanaddcapacityinareaswhereitseesthepotentialfornetworkcongestion,ortoprovideadditionalsupportforcriticalservices,suchasfirstresponders,hospitalsandgovernmentagencies.Charterhastensofthousandsoffront-lineemployeesonthegroundmonitoringandmaintainingitsphysicalnetworkinfrastructureandcompletingover10,000dailyjobstoensureitsnetworkcontinuestoperformwell.

In2020,Charterreportedthatpeakdemandonitsnetworkincreasednearly20%ondownstreamtrafficand32%onupstreamtraffic.CharterreportedthatinmanyhouseholdsInternettrafficdoubledandeventripledfrompre-pandemiclevelwithpeakdemandcontinuingtobeduringprimetimeTV-viewinghours,8-9PM.Charteralsoreportedseeingashiftinmobilephonetrafficcomingoffcellularnetworksandmovingtoitsin-homeWi-Finetworks.Throughallofthis,Charter’snetworkcontinuedtoperformwellonthedownstreamandupstreamsinceitwasbuilttoexceedmaximumcapacityduringpeakeveningusage,andevenwiththeincreasednetworkactivityinthedaytime–especiallyinareaswithlargerCOVID-19closures–levelsremainedwellbelowcapacityandtypicalpeakeveningusageinmostmarkets[51].

AsthecountryhasbattledCOVID-19,Charterconnectednearly450,000studentsandteacherstoreliable,high-speedbroadbandserviceforfreefortwomonths,keptnearly700,000customersconnectedwhentheyfacedeconomichardship,gavesmallbusinessesamonthoffreeservice,andforgave$85millionincustomers’overduebalanceswhentheyhadahardtimepayingbillsduetoCOVID-relatedhardship.Moreover,CharterbelievesthatnoAmericanshouldbekeptfromaccessingtheinternetecosystembecauseofaninabilitytoaffordserviceorequipmentorduetofearoralackofdigitalliteracy.Charterhaslongbeencommittedtohelpingtoclosethesegaps.Tomakebroadbandmoreaccessibleforlow-incomelearnersandseniors,thecompanyoffersSpectrumInternetAssist,ahigh-speed,low-costbroadbandserviceforqualifiedcustomers.Toincreaseadoptionandaccesstotechnology,thecompanyoffersphilanthropicsupporttocommunityorganizationsandhasdoubleditsyearlycommitmenttotheSpectrumDigitalEducationGrantprogram,whichprovidescomputers,digitaleducationclasses,andtechnologylabsforthousandsacrossthecountry[52].

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3.4.1.3 Comcast

ComcastCable3isaUS-basedproviderofInternet,video,andphonetoresidentialandbusinesscustomersundertheXfinitybrand.Italsoprovideswireless,security,andautomationservicestoresidentialandcommercialcustomers.

Sincetheonsetofthepandemic,Comcast’sInternettrafficrapidlyincreasedbyasmuchas60%insomemarkets.In-homeWi-Fiuseincreased37%amongXfinityMobilecustomers,whowouldtypicallyhaveusedLTEoutsideofthehome.ComcastalsoobserveddecreasedmobilityascustomersremainedathomeontheirWi-Finetwork,leadingtoa30%declineinLTEusage,150%declineindataroaming,andmorethan50%dropininternationalroaming.LTEhassincereturnedtoitsMarch2020level,butdataroamingandinternationalroamingremainsbelownormal.Incontrast,voiceusageminutesandSMSmessagesincreasedsignificantlyandremainabovepre-COVIDlevels.

Intermsofdownstreamandupstreamgrowth,ComcastobservedaninitialsurgebetweenMarchandMay2020,thenatypicalseasonalslowdowninlatespringandsummer,followedbyasecondsurgeinSeptemberandOctober2020asmanyschoolsresumedonlineclasses.FromlateFebruarytoOctober2020,Comcastnotesthattheaveragedownstreampeakgrewbynearly13%whileupstreamgrewby36%.Inaddition,itisnotablethatwhileupstreamgrowthhasoutpaceddownstreamgrowth,astronglyasymmetricusagepatternremainstypicalforresidentialusers.

Comcastengineersandtechniciansaddedfiber,otherformsofconnectivity,andperformedsoftwareupgradesoroptimizationtosupportadditionalnetworkcapacity.Pre-pandemic,betweenFebruary1-March14,2020,thecompanyperformedanaverageof350networkimprovementsperweek.Followingtheonsetofthepandemic,betweenMarch21–September5,2020,thecompanyperformedanaverageof771networkimprovementsperweek,peakingatover1,800inasingleweekandrunningconsistentlyat1,000+over7weeks.Thus,thenormalvolumeofcapacityaugmentationworkincreasedbetween120%and414%andwasat185%fornearlytwoconsecutivemonths.

Buttheaccessnetwork,whilecritical,wasonlyonepartofthenetworkwherecapacitywasrapidlyadded.Asthepandemicdeveloped,trafficacrosstheComcastfiberbackbonegrewbyathirdinthefirst6weeksafterlockdown,reachingthresholdsbyApril2020thathadn’tbeenexpectedforayear.Inresponse,betweenMarchandSeptember2020,over500improvementsweremadetothecorenetwork,addingover146Tbpsincapacityandcompressingayearofnetworkgrowthintoaseven-monthperiod.

Asaresultofpre-COVIDcapacityinvestmentandthenetworkaugmentationactionsabove,Comcastreportedthatcustomernetworkperformanceremainedconsistentduringshelter-in-placeorders.Inadditiontoutilizingstandardcapacitymetricstoensurequalityofperformance,Comcastbeganrunningautomatedspeedtestsfromcablemodemgatewaydevicesandnowconductsroughly700,000speedtestsacrossthenetworkeachdaytoprovideadditionalassurancesofahighqualityofexperience(QoE)forcustomers.Nationalaveragespeedstocustomers(bothdownstreamandupstream)havegenerallyremainedbetween110%and115%ofadvertisedspeedssinceMarch1,2020,usingthisnetworkperformancemeasurementsystemthatwasauditedbyNetForecast[53][54].NoneoftheComcastlocalregionsexperiencedanyweeksbelow105%ofadvertisedspeeds,andmanyremainedconsistentlyabove115%.Lookingspecificallyatthegigabitserviceoffering(1Gbps/35Mbps)thepercentofadvertisedspeeddeliveredishigherthanatthetimeoftheonsetofthepandemic(115%).

3.4.1.4 LumenTechnologies

LumenTechnologies,formerlyCenturyLink,isaUS-basedcompanyofferinganenterprisetechnologyplatformintegratingnetworkassets,cloudconnectivity,securitysolutions,andvoiceandcollaborationtools.Asanetworkingcompany,itoperatesmilesoffiberworldwide,andprovidesCDN,IP,voice,andedgecomputeservicesamongothers.Lumenisacriticalinfrastructureprovider4andpreparesregularlyforsituationslikethispandemic.Thenetworkisdesignedtoberesilientandsupportsignificantchangesintraffic.

LumenTechnologiesreportedthatwebtrafficrose35%overtheearlycourseofthepandemic[55].Broadbanddailypeaktrafficincreasedbyover20%inmid-March.Customerupstreamtrafficincreasedatfasterratesthandownstreamin2020.Aftertheinitialincrease,demandleveledoffandhasfollowedmoretypicalseasonalpatterns.

3FormoredetailsonComcastnetworkperformanceduring2020seehttps://corporate.comcast.com/press/releases/comcast-2020-network-performance-data

4Seehttps://www.cisa.gov/communications-sectorformoreinformationonthecommunicationssectoranditsroleincriticalinfrastructure.

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Thisovernightincreaseisinthelowrangeofannualincreasesinsubscriberbandwidthdemandoverthepastfewyears.Dailybroadbandpeaktrafficforsomevideostreamingservicesincreasedby30%.Dailybroadbandsubscribercombineduploadanddownloadvolumes,ingigabytes,increasedbyabout40%whenstayathomeordersbegan,buthavesinceleveledoff.Theratioofbroadbanddownstreamtoupstreammonthlygigabytesdecreasedfrom16:1tounder14:1astheuseofteleconferencingincreased.

Broadbanddiurnaltrafficpatternsalsochangedquickly.Theweekdayhourlytrafficpatternsnowlooklikethoseontheweekendoronweekdaysduringthesummer.Dailypeakusagecontinuedtooccurintheeveningsandtrafficlevelsweresustainedathigherlevelsduringtheday.Muchofthedemandincreasesinvolumeoccurredoff-peak,duringtheday,whenexcesscapacitywasavailable.Tomaintainhighperformanceonthenetwork,teamsofLumenengineersworkedinreal-timetooptimizetrafficflowsgloballybyactivatinghostcircuits,upgradingcapacity,revisingdatalimits,strategicallyplanningpatchreleases,utilizingoverflowroutingandrebalancingtrafficasnecessary.

Lumencontinuestoincreaseinvestmentinperformancemonitoringandoptimizationtoolstoidentifywherefasteraccessconnectionspeedsmaybeoffered.TomeetincreasedtrafficdemandsinApril2020,Lumenappliedthesetoolstoincreaseavailableconnectionbandwidthby10percentforover360kcustomers.

Lumeninstalledhigh-speedconnectivitytothehospitalshipU.S.NavalShipMercywithin48hoursafteritarrivedattheportofLosAngelesinMarch2020.TheshipprovidedcriticalmedicalservicestopatientswhohadnotcontractedtheCOVID-19virus.Lumenwaivedinstallationfeesandthecostof12monthsofserviceforthe1gigabitethernetcircuitconnectingtheshiptotheDefenseInformationSystemsAgency’sshore-basedinfrastructure.Lumenalsodonatedhigh-speedconnectivityandwaivedfeesforfieldhospitalsinSeattle,OregonandArgentina.

3.4.1.5 Sonic

Sonic,asmallISPinnorthernCaliforniathatusestheAT&Tnetworkaswellasitsownfibernetwork,reportedthattheirpeakhourtrafficwasupbyasmuchas25%inMarch2020[56]whencomparedto2019patterns.

3.4.1.6 T-Mobile

T-MobileisaUSmobilewirelessoperatorofferingvoice,text,anddataservicesonnationwide4Gand5Gnetworks.

Inthefirstweeksofthepandemicshelter-in-placeorders,T-Mobilereporteda26%increaseintexting,a38%increaseinmobilehot-spotusage,anda45%increaseingamingtraffic.T-Mobilealsoreportedadecreaseinmobility,with86%oftheirNewYorkCitysubscribersand77%ofSanFranciscoBayAreasubscribersconnectingtocellsitesintheirprimarylocation,withsimilarpatternsobservedacrossthecountry[57].

3.4.1.7 Verizon

VerizonisaUS-basednetworkoperatorthatoffersvoice,data,andvideoserviceswithbothfiber-basedInternetsubscribersandmobilewirelesssubscribers.

VerizonreportedduringtheMarch24,2020weekoftheshelter-in-placeordersintheUSthatmobilehandoffsweredown27%,whilecalldurationswereup33%.Duringthesecondweek,Verizonreportedthatitsnetworkhandledmorethan218terabytesofdata[58].

AtthebeginningofApril,Verizonreportedthatnationallymobilehandoffsweredown29%fromatypicalday,withmetroareasinthenortheastreportingmobilehandoffsdown37-53%.Datausagewasincreasedwithgamingup102%,VPNdataup40%,videoup33%,andwebtrafficup24%.

VerizonreportedthatattheendofApril,usagestartedtodeclinefromearlierpeaksinthemonth.

3.4.2 EnterpriseNetworks

ThesuddenshifttoworkfromhomeposedchallengesforsomeenterprisenetworksusingVirtualPrivateNetwork(VPN)[59]solutions.Theprimaryissueappearedtobethatduringtheinitialpandemicperiod,centralizedVPNcapacitywascompletelyinsufficient.EnterprisenetworkadministratorswererequiredtoadapttremendouschangestothecoretechnicalrequirementsformostcompanyVPNs[60][61]inordertomeetthechallenges.

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Initially,manyVPNsweredeployedtosupportasmallsubsetofaworkforceworkingremotely.ManyenterprisesdeployedVPNsinanerawhenmostapplicationswerehostedonpremisebehindthefirewall,sothatusingaVPNwastheonlywaytoaccessmanyapplications.

Overthepastseveralyears,manyenterpriseapplicationsshiftedtothepubliccloud,supportingaccessovertheInternet,dependingonaccesscontrols.Inadaptingtoremoteworkforcesupport,EnterprisenetworkadministratorshavebeenabletoreducedemandonVPNsbyremovingIPaddressaccesscontrollists(ACLs)frompubliccloudservicesandimplementingfederatedSingleSignOn(SSO)technologyandMulti-FactorAuthentication(MFA).Thechangesenableenterpriseuserstohavesecureaccesstocloud-basedenterpriseapplicationswithoutunnecessarilyroutingthattrafficthroughapotentiallyconstrainedcentralizedVPNconnection.

3.4.3 CampusNetworks

Manycampusnetworksusecloud-basedlearningplatformsaswellasVPNsoftwarethatallowsforremoteaccesstocampusresourcesfromhomenetworks.Ascampuspopulationsshiftedfromon-campuslearningtoremotelearning,trafficpatternsreflectedcorrespondingreductionsintrafficvolumesoncampus.Belowweoutlinestatisticsfromoneuniversitynetwork,TheUniversityofChicago.

Aftershelter-in-placeorders,theUniversityofChicago’scampusnetworkobservedanincreaseintheVPNsessionsasbothstudentsandfacultyusedVPNsessionstoaccessedcampusresourcesthroughtheVPN.InanticipationofthepotentiallyincreaseddemandforVPNservicestoaccesscampusresources,campusITstaffsignificantlyincreasedthenumberofVPNlicensesoncampus.Insomewhatofasurprise,however,thenumberofVPNsessionsdidnotincreaseassignificantlyasexpected.Inhindsight,thelackofasignificantuptickinVPNsessionscanbeexplainedbytheincreasingrelianceofeducationalinstitutionsonsoftwarethatisprimarilyhostedinthecloud,notonthecampusitself.Examplesofthesecloud-hostedplatformsthatsawincreaseduseincludeZoom,Canvas(alearningmanagementsystem),Panopto(softwareforproducinganddistributingasynchronousvideolectures),GitHub,andGradescope(cloud-basedgradingsoftware).VPNsessionsandtrafficwereprimarilyreservedtoaccesscertainoncampusresources,suchasthelibraryandspecificcomputingresources,butasVPNsareregularlyusedforthesepurposesinanycase,theincreaseinVPNusagewasnotassignificantasexpected.

ThenetworkalsosawashiftintrafficonitstransitlinkswithtrafficontheCogentlinkdecreasingwhiletrafficontheLumenTechnologieslinkincreasingwhiletheshelter-in-placeorderwasineffect.Interestingly,theUniversityofChicago’strafficvolumesforInternet2andcommodityInternetalsochanged.

3.5 TransitNetworks

Overall,theTier1transitproviders’networksdidwellwithnomajordisruptionsduetosuddentrafficgrowth.Noction,usingitsTier1NetworkPerformanceMonitoringService,lookedatpacketlossandlatencyforaselectgroupofTier1networkproviders(Cogent,GTT,Lumen,NTT,Telia,XO,Zayo,andHurricaneElectric)fortheperiodofFebruary23toMarch23,2020,tobetterunderstandtheimpactofthesuddentrafficgrowth.Theirdatashowedanincreaseinaveragepacketlossandlatencyfortheselectgroupofprovidersintheearlyweeksoftheshelter-in-placeorders,butbothmetricsremainedsteadyintheweeksthatfollowed[62].Twootherlargetransitproviders,AT&TandTelia,reportedtrafficgrowing20-50%.

3.5.1 AT&T

AT&Treportedthattheircoretrafficgrewbyasmuchas22%duetotheshelter-in-placeorders[63].AT&Talsoreportedthatduringtheshelter-in-placeorderstheirnetworkwascarryinganextra71PBoftrafficperdayforatotalof426PB/dayoftraffic.ItshouldalsobenotedthatAT&T’snetworkiscarryingoverseventimesasmuchtrafficasitwasbackin2014whenitcarriedonly56PB/day[49].

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3.5.2 Telia

TeliaisaSwedishmultinationaltelecommunicationscompanythatrunsaninternationalIPbackbonenetworkwhichisrankednumber3intheworldbyautonomoussystemconnections.5Thecompanyreportedthattheirpeakutilizationgrewbyroughly35%duringtheshelter-in-placeorders.Itreportedseeinga20-50%increaseintrafficwiththelargeincreasesoccurringduringthemorninghoursandthepeaktraffichoursstilloccurringintheevening.Videoconferencingtrafficgrewbyasmuch450%withpeakgrowthofvideoconferencingoccurringinthemorninghours.

3.6 NetworkInterconnectionPoints

Interconnectionarrangementsthatgovernnetworkconnectionsbetweennetworksrangefrominformaltoformal,frompaidtransittosettlementfreeinterconnectionandpaidinterconnection,flexibletoadapttothedynamicanddiversenatureoftheInternetanddifferentnetworksaroundtheworld.Itappearsthatnetworkoperatorsworkedcooperativelyandquicklytocutthroughanyredtapeandaddnewcapacityasquicklyaspossibleinresponsetodramaticincreasesintraffic,asdiscussedbelow.MostInternetexchangesexperiencedtrafficgrowthof20-30%,whiletheKenyanExchangepointexperiencedtrafficgrowthinexcessof200%.

3.6.1 InternetExchangePoints(IXPs)

AsreportedbyPacketClearingHouse(PCH)InternetexchangetrafficintheUSgrew25%[63].InternetexchangesinEuropereportedsimilargrowthwiththeAMX-IXinAmsterdamandtheINEXinDublinreporting12%and20%growth,respectively.TheLINXinLondonhitamaximumpeakof5TbpsonMarch26,2020.Internetexchangegrewelsewhereasdescribedbelow.

3.6.1.1 BelgianInternetExchange(BNIX)

TheBelgianInternetExchange(BNIX),managedbyBelnet,reportedatrafficincreaseofabout30%duringthefirstweeksoftheshelter-in-placeorders[64].Trafficjumpedfromadailyaverageof~300Gbpstocloseto350Gbps.

3.6.1.2 CanadianInternetExchanges(VANIX,MBIX,TORIX,YYCIX)

ThefourleadingIXPsinCanada(Vancouver,Manitoba,Toronto,andCalgary),sharedtheimpactoftheshelter-in-placeordersontrafficacrosstheIXPs.TheIXPsreportedseeinga20-30%increaseintrafficduringtheworkdayanda12%increaseintheevenings[65].

3.6.1.3 KenyaInternetExchangePoint(KIXP)

TheKenyaInternetExchangePoint,usedby68companiesintheregion,sawagreaterthan200%increaseintraffic[66].Beforetheshelter-in-placeorders,trafficontheKIXPwasaround7.5Gbpsandjumpedto22GbpsinearlyMarchwithspikesashighas57Gbps.Themassivespikewasattributedtoincreasedvideostreamingandvideoconferencing.

3.6.2 DirectInterconnection

NetworkoperatorsuseacombinationofintermediaryInternettransit,publicInternetexchanges,anddirectnetwork-to-networkinterconnectiontoprovideInternetconnectivity.Networkoperatorsoftenchoosedirectinterconnectionsforavarietyofeconomicandperformancereasons.

3.6.2.1 Comcast’sInterconnections

TheinterconnectionsbetweentheComcastInternetaccessnetworkandothernetworksalsoexperiencedextraordinarygrowthduringthistime.In2019,settlementfreeinterconnectioncapacity,representingaportionofComcast’sinterconnection,grewby15%.ButasthepandemicemergedbetweenJanuaryandAugust2020,therewas

5Seehttps://asrank.caida.org/asns

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anoverall37%increaseincapacityfromthe2019level.LookingatallinterconnectiontraffictypesbetweenMarchandOctober2020,individualinterconnectpartnertrafficgrowthvariedwidely,withonepartnergrowing115%,andothersby245%and3,900%.Duringthistimehundredsofadditional100Glinkswereadded,withmostaugmentationoccurringinMarchtoMay2020.

3.6.2.2 InterconnectionMeasurementProject(IMP)

Similarly,theInterconnectionMeasurementProject(IMP)collects,aggregates,andanalyzesdatafromasetofUSISPsandtheirneighboringpartnersforasetofprivateinterconnectionlinks.InanotherpaperpresentedattheIABworkshop,IMPresearchersreportedthatISPsdidexperienceasignificantincreaseinutilizationontheirdirectinterconnectionlinks[67].Theoveralldiurnalpatternsdidnotchange,buttheoverallvolumeoftrafficdidincreaseonthelinkswithsomeshowinganincreaseinupstreamutilizationbytwoorthreeordersofmagnitude.Researchersattributethegrowthintheupstreamtraffictousersworkingfromhomeandconnectingtoservicesthatwouldcausemoretraffictotransversethepeerlinkintheupstreamdirection.Muchofthetrafficgrowthisattributabletovideostreamingandvideoconferencing.Asapercentageoftheoveralltrafficvideoconferencinggrewfrom1%ofthetrafficto4%,whilevideostreaming’sshareoftheoveralltrafficdeclinedfrom67%to63%whilestillgrowingoverall.

TheIMPresearchersalsostudiedtheinterconnectcapacityfortwoISPsintheIMPandobservedthatbothaggressivelyaddedtwotimesthenormalcapacityrateattheirinterconnectstohelpbringtheutilizationratestopre-COVID-19levels.

3.6.2.3 MITComputerScienceandArtificialIntelligenceLaboratory(CSAIL)

AttheSeptember2020InternetArchitectureBoard(IAB)COVID-19ImpactsWorkshop2020,researchersatMITCSAILprovidedanupdateonalongitudinalstudytheyhavebeenperformingonthemeasurementofcongestiononISPinterconnectionlinks.Intheirupdate,theylookedatthechangeinlatencyusingtheTimeSeriesLatencyProbes(TSLP)[68]onlinksorlinkaggregationgroups(LAGs)forAT&T,Comcast,Cox,andVerizonconnectingtotheirpeers.TheTLSPsystemusesamethodthatinvolvessendingpairsofpacketswithcarefullycraftedtime-to-lives(TTLs)toeachinterconnectionlink.OneofthepacketstriggersaTTLexpiredfromtherouteronthenearsideofthelinkandtheotherfromtherouteronthefarsideofthelink.Probepacketsexperienceincreaseddelayastheysitinthequeueifthelinkisexperiencingcongestion.Usingthistechnique,itispossibletoinferfromcongestiononahop-by-hopbasisbylookingatthechangeindelay.Usingthismethod,theresearchersnotedobservedincreasedoverallcongestioninbothearly2017and2018.Fortheperiodofspring2020theydidnotobserveaconsistentpatternofincreasinglatencyfortheLAGsfromComcast,Cox,AT&T,orVerizon[69].

3.7 ContentDeliveryNetworks

Anumberofthegamingplatforms,suchasMicrosoftandSony,routinelypushoutverylargesoftwareupdates.Asoftwareupdateforamoderngamecangeneratetrafficroughlyequivalentto30,000webpages.Inregionswheredemandwascreatingbottlenecks,Akamaiworkedwithitscustomerstoreducegamingdownloadsatpeaktimesandshiftingthedownloadstofinishduringoff-peaktimes[70].

AsCOVID-19tookholdinSeattle,WashingtoninearlyMarch,Cloudflarenotedthatitstraffictothecitywasup40%duringtheweekofMarch5-12ascomparedtoJanuary2-7.InItaly,whichwasalsohardhitearlyonduringthepandemic,Cloudflarestatedthattrafficgrewbymorethan30%whencomparingtheweeksinJanuaryandMarch.InlookingatthedomainsbeingaccessedbyItalianusersduringthatweekinMarch,itfoundthatonlinechatsystemswereup1.3-3xthenormalusage,videostreamingroughlydoubled,onlinegamingwasupabout20%,andnewsandinformationwebsitesincreased30-60%.InSouthKorea,Cloudflarefoundthattrafficincreasedbyonlyabout5%comparingtheweeksinJanuaryandMarch[71].

FastlyalsolookedattrafficchangesonitsnetworkduringFebruaryandMarch.InJapan,France,andSpain,Fastlyreportedtrafficchangesbetween30-40%,whileintheUnitedKingdom,itwasupnearly80%andnearly100%inItaly.IntheUnitedStates,Fastlyreportedthattrafficgrewalmost38%inMichigan,nearly45%inNewYorkandNewJersey,andover46%inCalifornia[72].

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3.8 CloudProviders&BackendInfrastructure

WiththemovetoworkingfromhomeandemployeesusingVPNs,itwasobservedbyRIPE6thattrafficonopenpublicandISPsDNSresolverswentdownasemployeesshiftedtousingtheiremployer’sDNS.RIPEobservedthatbeforetheshelter-in-placeorders,thatforoneofthelargestconsumerISPsintheUS,usersoftheISP’sDNSservicedipsabout5%onweekdayscomparedtoweekendswhiletheuseofGoogle’sDNSserviceis3-4%higheronweekdayscomparedtoweekends.Oncetheshelter-in-placeordersbegan,bothservicestrendedtowardstheweekendusagelevelindicatingthatmanyemployeeswereeitherusingasplit-VPNornotusingVPNatallwhileworkingfromhome[73][74].

3.9 EndUserApplicationProviders

Applicationprovidersreportedincreasedusageduringtheshelter-in-placeordersforseveraltypesofapplications[75].Verizonreportedtraffictrendsshowinggamingup102%[76],videostreamingupbetween33-58%[76][77],andVPNusageup52%[76].Nokia[77]reportedthatvideoconferencingwasup350%and,onsomenetworks,ashighas700%.Socialmediausejumpedby50%to1000%insomecountries[78][79],andsocialmessagingwentupbetween6-27%[77].

3.9.1 VideoConferencing

Videoconferencingwasonecategoryofapplicationsthatexperiencedtremendousgrowthinpopularity.Ciscoreportedthattheuseofitsvideoconferencingapplication,WebEx,peakedat24xhigherinvolume[80],withthemeetingminutesgrowingfrom6.7billioninFebruaryto21.8billioninApril,thenumberofmeetingsgrowingfrom37millionto96million,andthenumberofparticipantsgrowingfrom161millionto509million[81].

Likewise,anothervideoconferencingapplication,Zoom,alsoexperiencedtremendousgrowth.Inresponsetothecrisis,Zoomintroducedalimitedfreehostingservice[82][83],addinghundredsofthousandsofpayingusersoverthecourseoftheyear[84].InJune2020,Zoomsaidthatdailymeetingparticipantshadgrownfrom10millioninDecember2019to300million[85].ItwasalsoobservedthatZoomswitchedtoamulti-CDNstrategyaspartofscalinguptomeetthedemand[10].

Inadditiontodealingwiththetremendousgrowthintheuseofitsproduct,Zoomwasrespondingtocriticismabouttheweaksecurityinitsproduct.Concernswereraisedbymany,includingtheFBI[86]andtheNewYorkattorneygeneral’soffice,that“Zoom’sexistingsecuritypracticesmightnotbesufficienttoadapttotherecentandsuddensurgeinboththevolumeandsensitivityofdatabeingpassedthroughitsnetwork”[87].InresponsetotheseconcernsZoomworkedquicklytoaddressthecomplaints[88].

3.9.2 VideoStreaming

Thevideostreamingprovidersreportedseeinglimitedissuesinmostmarkets[89].Forthemostpart,theincreasedusageofvideostreamingwaswithintheexistingcapacitiesofvideostreamingplatforms[89].Thevideostreamingprovidersreportedseeingashiftinusagepatternssimilartowhatthenetworkoperatorsreportedwithshelter-in-place,wheretheysawpeakutilizationinthemid-dayandagreaterdistributionofthedemandacrosstheday.GooglereportedthatitsYouTubeservicewasseeingtwiceasmuchtrafficat85%oftheactualpeakcomparedtopreshelter-in-place[89],whileNetflixreportedthebiggestchangewasinthemid-daywiththeeveningtrafficbeingverysimilartobeforeshelter-in-placeorderswereimplemented.

ConcernswereraisedearlyonbyEuropeanregulatorsaboutasuddenincreaseinvideostreamingpotentiallyoverwhelmingsomeoftheEuropeannetworks.InresponsetotheconcernsraisedbyEuropeanregulators,Netflix[90],AmazonPrime,Apple[91],YouTube[92],Facebook[93]andothersallagreedtoscalebackbitratesinEuropeforatleast30daysasaprecautionarymeasure.LaterinMay2020,operatorsbeganworktorestorestreamingquality

6RIPEistheRegionalInternetRegistry(RIR)forEurope,theMiddleEastandpartsofCentralAsia.

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[94].ArecentDecember2020updateoftheNetflixISPSpeedIndex7showsmanyUSISPshaveperformedconsistentlywelloverthelastsixmonthsof2020,withagroupofseventopISPsmeasuredat3.8MbpsofprimetimeNetflixperformance.Finally,lookingataverageperformancebycountry,manycountrieswere5%-10%lowerthanthoseintheUS-includingasFrance,Greece,Hungary,Italy,JapanandTaiwan.

3.9.3 SocialMedia

Facebook,alargeglobalsocialmediacompany,reportedonInternettrafficgrowthandInternetperformanceasseenfromFacebook’sedgenetwork[95].Facebook’sglobalnetwork,whichservesover2.5billionmonthlyactiveusers,iscomprisedofaseriesofPoPsandoff-netcacheserverswithinterconnectionsspreadacrosssixcontinentswithmajorISPsinallregions.BecauseFacebookseesusersfromasignificantportionoftheInternet,itsnetworkservestrafficinexcessof100TbpsatpeakAsawhole,Facebookobserveda38.7%increaseinegresstrafficonitsnetworkwithtrafficgrowing1.41xasmuchforbroadbandand1.24xformobile.

Facebook’sreportfocusedonfourproductcategories:messaging,livestreaming,video,andphoto.Ofthefourproductcategories,thelivestreamingproductswitnessedanexponentialsurgeinpopularity(200-300%growth)whilecontributinglittletooveralltraffic.

FacebookreportedthatNorthAmericaandEuropedidnotshowanysignsofdegradationinvideoquality,whilenetworksinIndia,Sub-SaharanAfrica,andSouthAmericadidwitnesssignsofnetworkstress.Facebookusedanumberofindicatorstoassessvideoqualityincludingthediscrepancybetweenvideotrafficgrowthandvideoengagementgrowth,videoQualityofExperience(QoE)usingametriccalledbadsessionrate(BSR),overflowtotransitandpublicpeering,andround-triptimes.FacebookobservedthatincountrieswithalowvideoQoE,therewasasignificantgapbetweenvideotrafficgrowthandvideoengagementgrowthwithIndiabeingagoodexampleoflowvideoQoEwithvideotrafficgrowing10%whilevideoengagementgrew60%.Facebookobserveda5-25%growthinindirecttrafficflowingthroughtransitandpublicpeeringduringthesecondhalfofMarchandobservedacorrelationbetweenthisgrowthandlowvideoQoE.FacebookalsoobservedastrongcorrelationbetweenanincreaseinroundtriptimesandlowvideoQoE,asitassertsthatanincreaseinroundtriptimeisagoodindicatorofpathcongestion.

Facebooksawthatdegradedvideoqualityalwayscoincidedwithanincreaseinnetworkmetricslikeroundtriptimesandtheamountoftrafficoverflowingtoindirectlinks.Andfinally,FacebookalsonotedthatitcannotpinpointtheexactcausesofnetworkstressasitcouldbecausedbyavarietyoffactorsincludingcongestionofdirectCDNpeeringlinks,overutilizationofCDNservers,andcongestionofISPaccessnetworks,particularlymobilecarriersinemergingmarkets,butthatmeasurestakenbyoperatorsdidallownetworkstorecovertotheirpre-COVID-19performancelevelsrelativelyquickly.

3.9.4 InternetMeasurements

Internetmeasurementplatformscollectperformancedata,usuallywithoutknowledgeoftheadvertisedrateoftheISPconnection.Theseplatformsrelyeitherontestsrunningfromatestprobeonthehomenetworkorfromuser-promptedsoftwareclientsthatcanbedevicenativeorwebbrowserclients.Ifoneoftheseplatformsrecordedanincreaseordecreaseinspeed,unlesstheISPhastoldtheclienttheadvertisedspeed,theplatformsdonotknowifadecreasemeantthatanISPwasstillprovidingmorethantheadvertisedspeed,justslightlylessthanbefore,orwhetherspeedsarenowbelowthoseadvertised.SamKnowsandOoklaaretwoInternetmeasurementcompanies.

SamKnowstestsusecontrolledtestprobesandthetestswillonlyrunwhenthereisnocompetingcrosstrafficonthehomeLANsoastodevelopamoreaccurateviewofcapacity.Ifcrosstrafficwasignored,athroughputtestcouldrunwhilethenetworkwasbeingusedheavilyandtheresultwouldnotshowthecapacityoftheconnectionbutonlytheunusedportionoftheconnection.SamKnows[96]reportedthatduringMarch2020amajorityofwirelinedownloadspeedtestsrecordedaveryslightdeclineinspeedofabout1%withthelargestdropofanyISPbeing3.9%.WhenlookingatrecentFCCMeasuringBroadbandAmerica(MBA)reports,whichusesSamKnowsprobesandcollectstheadvertisedratesfromtheISPfortheannualmeasurementperiod,mostISPsdelivermorethan100%ofadvertised

7Seehttps://ispspeedindex.netflix.netfortheindexandhttps://about.netflix.com/en/news/new-and-improved-isp-speed-indexformoreinformationintheupdatedmethodology

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speeds.Asaresult,thissuggestsISPscontinuedtoover-deliverbutattemporarilylowerlevelsofover-delivery(asdemonstratedforexampleintheindependentlyassessedComcastdata).

Ookla’stestsmayrunonanautomatedbasisfromembeddedLANgear(e.g.,softwareonahomegateway)ormaybepromptedbyend-useractionviaaspeedtestingclient(nativeorweb-browserbased).Giventhatthesetestsdonotcheckforcrosstrafficbeforerunning,andthatclientsarelikelyconnectedoverWi-Fi(whichtendstobeakeyperformancebottleneck),itseemslikelythattheirobserveddeclineswillbeabitgreaterthanforSamKnows.Indeed,Ooklareportedabouta7%decreaseindownloadspeedforwirelinenetworksanda9%decreaseindownloadspeedformobilenetworks[97]inMarch2020,withdownloadspeedsreturningtonormallaterinQ22020.UnlikeSamKnows,Ooklacannotdemonstratethepercentofadvertisedspeedbeingdeliveredtoanenduserbutgiventheirhugevolumeoftestsitisinterestingonarelativebasisovertime.

TheInternetHealthReport(IHR)reportedonmeasuredround-triptime(RTT)asaproxyfornetworkdelays,usingMarch19,2020asalock-downstartdate[98],andobservingfromnetworkstonearbydestinationsontheInternetusingdatafromtheRIPENetworkCoordinatingCenter’s(NCC)Atlasmeasurementplatformnetworkofover10,000measurementprobes.NomeasurablechangeinRTTwasobservedduringtheshelter-in-placeordersbytheIHRformajorUSISPs,whiletheIHRdidobservesomedelaysforFrenchISPsduringtheshelter-in-placeorders.AstudyperformedbyInternetresearcherslookedatthelast-milelatencyusingtraceroutedatafromRIPEAtlasprobeson646differentnetworksgloballyandnotedpriortothepandemiconly7%ofthenetworksexperiencedpersistentlast-milenetworkdelaysbutrecorded55%more(from45to70ASes)afterthepandemicoutbreak[99].

Internetresearchers[100]seekingtocharacterizeISPresponsesduringthestay-at-homewindowanalyzedtheFCC’songoingnationwideperformancestudyofbroadbandserviceintheUS[101],andthedatacollectedbythedistributedmeasurementdevicesknownasWhiteboxes[102]placedinvolunteer’shomesandoperatedbySamKnows.Researchersanalyzedtheseven-daymovingaverageofround-triplatenciesbetweentheWhiteboxesandthetop10mosttargetedserversacrosstheUStorepresenttheoverallperformance.Theyobservedanincreaseintheseven-daymovingaverageround-triplatencybyasmuchas10%,correspondingtoa30xthestandarddeviationamongalltheWhiteboxes,whilenotingthattheyhaveobservedsimilardeviationsandincreasesinlatencyinthepastandattributesomeofittoseasonality.TheresearchersconcludedsomeperformanceeffectsarevisibleduringtheCOVID-19lockdown,butthattheeventanditseffectonnetworkperformancearenotsignificantlydifferentfromotherperformanceaberrationsdemonstratedinpastFCCMBAreports.

TherewerelargeincreasesinthevolumeofconsumerInternettestsperformedonwirelinenetworksduringtheinitialmonthsofthepandemic.Ooklasharedthatitsaw84%moreU.S.wirelinetestsinApril2020(29.5million)comparedtoFebruary2020(16million)ontheirSpeedtestplatformwhilethenumberofmobilenetworktestsremainedrelativelyflat.BasedonanalysisbyOoklaofSpeedtestIntelligence®mediandownloadspeedsforJuly2019–July2020,theU.S.mediandownloadspeeddecreasedby3.3%acrosswirelinenetworksforthesamemonths(onarelativebasis-notreflectiveofoverorunderadvertisedrates),butthepictureisabitdifferentwhenlookingatISPsseparately.

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Figure2.OoklaSpeedtestResults.Source:Ookla

AsFigure2illustrates,someoftheISPsexperiencedaspeeddecreaseinApril.Itisworthnotingthatthemedianspeedsstillremainedabovetheadvertisedspeeds,andperformancereturnedtopre-pandemicpeaksbyJuly.Itshouldalsobenotedthatthemediandownloadspeedsareareflectionofthesubscriber’schoiceinserviceplans.

3.9.5 OnlinePayment

Whilenotparticularlybandwidth-intensive,itisnotablethattheusageofonlinepaymentplatformshasalsoincreased.Thestay-at-homeordersrequiredreducedcontactbetweenmerchantsandcustomers,resultinginincreasesine-commerce,mobilebanking,andagreateruseofcashlesspaymentoptions[103].AsPayPalCEODanSchulmanrelatedona3rdQuarter2020earningscall[104][105],paymentvolumegrewarecord36%duringthequarter,andPayPaltransactionstotaledarecordofover$4billion,up30%fromthatsametimeperiodin2019.PayPaladded15.2millionnewendusersinthe3rdquarter,itssecondhighestafteradding21.3millioninthe2ndquarter.PayPalalsoaddedover1.5millionnewmerchants,morethantwicethepre-COVIDrate.Whilemerchantsweremigratingtocashlessapplicationspriortothestay-at-homeorders,PayPalleadershipbelievesthismarksapermanentshiftinconsumerbehavior.

4 Observations

Asnotedearlierinthisreport,theshift-to-homecausedamassiveincreaseinInternetusageinashortperiodoftime.Insomecases,thisrepresentedafullyear’sworthofgrowthinamatterofafewweeks,posinginterestingcapacitymanagementchallengesacrosstheInternetecosystem.Awidearrayofdifferenttypesofnetworkoperatorssprangintoactiontorapidlyaddcapacity,asdidapplicationplatformsandothersthatexperiencedincrediblegrowth(e.g.,videoconferencing).Networkandapplicationperformancemetricsclearlyshowtheonsetofthisshift,whichgenerallybeginstonormalizeastheInternetecosystemreacted.

Thisalsoendedupexposingperformancelimitationswithlegacyuserdevicesandolderhomenetworks,whicharealsobeingreplacedandupgradedbroadlybyconsumersinresponse.BecauseoftheadaptivenatureofapplicationprotocolsontheInternettoday,applicationshavebeenabletoadaptquitewelltotemporarychangesinthingslikelatencyorcapacity-oneofthethingsthathasenabledthissuddenbehavioralshifttobesosuccessful.

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Thereismuchtechnicallearningthatisoccurring,whichwillcontinuetoleadtooperationalandprotocoladaptationsandwilljustassurelyleadtothedevelopmentofnewapplications,protocols,devices,andotherexcitingchanges.Asanexample,thelearningsfromdisasterplanningandsecurityevaluationsrapidlyimplementedintopracticeduringperiodsofextremeorganizationalstressmayresultinprivateandpublicsectorrecommendationspublishedtoimproveresponsetimesduringfutureevents.

Putsimply,theInternetdidnotcollapseassomewereconcerneditwould[106][107].Rather,ithasbeenasuccessstorythathasenabledtheUnitedStatestotransitiontoworkingandlearningfromhome.IfithadcollapsedtherewouldhavebeennumerousreportsofInternetusershavingtroublegettingonline,slowpageloads,abortedorfailedvideoconferencingsessions,streamingvideoqualityissues,andotherissues.Nordidwefindanydatathatsupportsthattherewerewidespreadissues.

4.1 ShiftinUsagePatterns

InternetusagegrowthwasnotuniformacrosstheUnitedStatesasshowninFigure3withsomeareasexperiencinglargergrowthorgrowthlaterinthespring.

Figure3.DownstreamandUpstreamGrowthSinceMarch1Source:WallStreetJournal[108]

Growthalsodidnotoccuruniformlyacrosstheday.LookingatdiurnaltrafficpatternssuchastheoneshowninFigure4,wecanbegintoseehowchangesinsubscriberbehaviorimpactednetworktraffic.CommScope[109]lookedattheupstreamanddownstreamtrafficacrossthousandsofaggregationpointsinISPnetworksandobservedthatbroadbandusageforbothupstreamanddownstreamstartedearlierinthedayandwentlaterintotheevening.Forthedownstreamthebusyhourwasstillintheeveningandgrew12-25%andthemid-daytrafficgrew25-50%.Thebigandmoreimportantchangeistheshapeoftheupstream,wherethebusyhoursnowstartinthemorningandrununtilaboutmidnight.

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Figure4.TypicaltrafficpatternlasttwoweeksinMarchSource:CommScope[109]

LookingalittlecloserattheupstreamforoneUSISP,asshowninFigure5below,[110]wecanseethattheupstreambusyhoursstartedaround10AMandwentuntilaround10PMeachday,withtheupstreampeakhourshiftingfrom9PMto2PM.Theshiftandgrowthintheupstreamislikelyduetotheshifttoworkingfromhomeandremotelearningusingupstreambandwidthapplicationslikevideoconferencing.

Figure5.ChangeinupstreamtrafficSource:Comcast[110]

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Figure6providesmoreinsightintotheapplicationsthatcontributedtothechangeintheupstreambandwidthgrowth.Ascanbeseeninthefigure,twoofthetopapplicationsthatcontributedtogrowthintheupstreamusagewereApple’sFaceTimeandZoom.

Figure6.ChangeinweeklyaverageupstreamconsumertrafficfortopapplicationsoverthecourseofthepandemicSource:NokiaDeepfield

Forsomeoperators,theshiftinusageresultednotonlyinashiftinthebusyhour(s)butalsoashiftintrafficfromtheirbusinesscustomernetworkstotheresidentialcustomernetworks.

Eventhoughthisdramaticgrowthisinterestingandmakesforgoodpress,itdoesn’tsaymuchabouthowwellnetworks,cloudplatforms,applicationsorotherpartsoftheInternetecosystemperformed.Tounderstandthis,youneedtolookathowthechangesinsubscriberbehaviorimpactedtheperformanceofthenetworksandtheapplicationsdrivingtheusage.

4.2 DownstreamtoUpstreamTrafficRatio

Withtheincreaseinupstreambandwidthusage,thedownstream-to-upstreamtrafficratiodeclinedfrom20:1to16:1andwasstillaheadofwhereitwasin2019accordingtoaCommScopetechnicalreport[111].OpenVaultreportedthatevenafterthestay-at-homeorderstheratioofdownstream-to-upstreamtrafficwasstillasymmetricalwiththeaveragedailyconsumptionduring9amto5pmof6.35GBandtheaverageupstreamusageof0.39GB.ThisisconsistentwiththetrafficgrowthreportedbytheNCTA,ACA,andmanyoftheISPs.Inabsolutenumbers,thevolumeofdownstreamtrafficgrewatagreaterratethantheupstreamtrafficduetofactthatonaveragevideostreamingusesanywherefrom2to10xmoredownstreambandwidththantheaverageupstreambandwidthusedbyvideoconferencing.Evenwiththegrowthintheuseofupstreamintensiveapplicationssuchasvideoconferencing,thedownstream-to-upstreamtrafficratioisstillhighlyasymmetricalandillustratesthatasymmetricalbroadbandfulfilstherequirementsformostresidentialbroadbandusers.

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4.3 VideoStreaming&VideoConferencing

AswasreportedandascanbeseeninFigure7,theapplicationsdrivingtheincreasedusagewerevideobased:bothvideostreamingandvideoconferencing.Partofthegrowthinvideostreamingtrafficcanbeattributedtousersshiftingfromdeviceswithsmallscreenstodeviceswithlargerscreens[112].

Figure7.Shifttolargerscreens.Source:NewYorkTimes[112]

Figure8.Applicationgrowth.Source:NetScout[15]

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Figure9.Applicationgrowth.Source:NetScout[15]

Videostreamingandvideoconferencingweretwoapplicationsthatexperiencedasignificantgrowthinpopularityandthatmeasurablycontributedtotheoverallbandwidthgrowth.Figures8and9giveanideaofhowtheyeachcontributedtothebandwidthgrowth.OtherapplicationslikeVoIPandmessagingalsogrewinpopularitybuthavelowbandwidthrequirementsandthereforedidnotcontributesignificantlytotheoverallbandwidthgrowth.Videostreamingtypicallyrequires3to5Mbpsforhigh-definitionvideo[113][114],andvideoconferencingtypicallyrequiresanywherefrom500Kbpsto2Mbpsforbothupstreamanddownstream[115][116].Knowingthiswecaninferthatupstreamgrowthisduetotheincreasedusageofvideoconferencingandthedownstreamgrowthisprimarilydrivenbyvideostreaming.

4.4 RoundTripTimesandLatency

Pathcongestiontypicallygoeshand-in-handwithincreasedroundtriptimes(RTT)orlatency.Studieshaveshownthatlatencyisoneofthekeymetricsforuserqualityofexperience(QoE)whenusingtheInternet.Thisistrueforwebpageloadtimes[117]aswellforvideo[118].OverallvideoQoEisimpactedlessbytemporarychangesinthroughput,andthiscanbeattributedtothefactthatmodernvideoapplicationsalluseaformofadaptivestreamingtoaccountforvariationsinnetworkconditionsalongtheend-to-endpath.MostuseeithertheDynamicAdaptiveStreamingoverHTTPS(DASH)orHTTPLiveStreaming(HLS)protocolsinconjunctionwithaproprietaryapplicationlayerAdaptiveBitrate(ABR)algorithmandavideoencoder,suchasH.264,thatsupportsvideocompression,inordertodynamicallyadjustthebitrateofthevideostream.Theactualbitratetransmittedand/orreceivedisafunctionofthedevicecapabilities(screenresolution,etc.),networkconditions,anduseractivity.Thisisparticularlytrueforvideoconferencingwhenthevideomaynotbefullscreen,whentheremaynotbealotofactivityonthescreen,orwhentheuserisonmute.

Tobetterunderstandifnetworksexperiencedameasurablechangeinlatency,welookedattheaggregatedaverageRTTtimesfromRIPEAtlastestprobesforthelargerNorthAmericanwirelineandwirelessoperators.

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Figure10.RIPEAtlaswirelineISPsround-trip-time.Source:BITAGandRIPEAtlas8

Figure11.RIPEAtlaswirelessISPsround-trip-time.Source:BITAGandRIPEAtlas

Figure12.RIPEAtlasRTTdistributions.Source:BITAGandRIPEAtlas

8BITAGaggregatedPingandTraceroutemeasurementsfromtheRIPEAtlas(https://atlas.ripe.net).

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Figure13.RIPEAtlasRTTdistributions.Source:BITAGandRIPEAtlas

Figures10,11,12,and13aboveshowtheaggregatedaverageRTTsandtheirdistributionsfromRIPEAtlastestprobesonfirst-hopaccessnetworkstoasetofnearbydestinations(DNSroot-servers)tobetterunderstandifthegrowthinInternetusageresultedinanincreaseinRTTasanindicatorofcongestion.Asshowninthefiguresabove,wecanseethattheaverageRTTdidnotmeasurablychangefrombeforetheshelter-in-placeordersandwhentheywentintoeffectformostofthenetworks.Overall,thelatencymeasuredonthefirst-hopaccessnetworksmeasuredwaslessthan50msandwellbelowthe300msround-triplatencythresholdforvideoconferencing.

WealsolookedatCDNconnectiontimedatagatheredbySamKnowswiththeirWhiteboxesaspartoftheMeasuringBroadbandAmericaprogramonISPnetworkstotheAkamai,Cloudflare,andGoogleCDNs.PublicandprivateCDNsaccountfor90%oftheconsumerinternettraffic[119]withmostCDNsbeingwithinonehopofISPnetworks.TheCDNconnectiontimeisthetotaltimeittooktheWhiteboxtoestablishaconnectiontotheCDN.GiventhatmostCDNsarewithinonehopofISPnetworks,theCDNconnectiontimeprovidesusanotherindicatorofthechangeinlatencyinthefirsthopaccessnetworks.

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Figure14.CDNConnectionTime(ms)acrossallproviders.Source:SamKnows

Figure14showstheaggregatedmedianCDNconnectiontimeforAkamai,Cloudflare,andGoogle.Thefigureshowsthatthemedianconnectiontimehadabouta6%increasestartinginMarch2020.Figure15showstheCDNconnectiontimesonaperCDNbasisandonanhourlybasisforeachCDN.

Figure15.CDNConnectionTime(ms)forAkamai,Cloudflare,andGoogle.Source:SamKnows

WecanseethatwitheachoftheCDNprovidersthattheCDNconnectiontimeincreasedbetween1%and14%withthelargestincreasesoccurringbetween8amand10pm.

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TheincreaseinCDNconnectiontimeisconsistentwiththeobservedchangeintheATLASRTTtimesandwouldindicatethatmostoftheincreaseinCDNconnectiontimecanbeattributedtoincreasedlatencyintheISPnetworks.EventhoughtherewasanincreaseinlatencyintheISPnetworks,onsomemorethanothers,theoveralllatencywasstillbelowtherequiredthreshold(end-to-endlatencytobelessthan150msoranRTToflessthan300ms)forlatencysensitiveapplicationslikevideostreamingandvideoconferencing.ThedatasuggeststhatthegrowthinInternetusagedidnothaveameasurableimpactonapplicationsincludingthevideoqualityofvideostreamingandvideoconferencingapplications.

Internetresearcherspresentedapeer-reviewedpaper[100]atthePassiveandActiveMeasurementConference(PAM)2021thatalsolookedatimpactsofthetrafficshiftstolatencyusingdatafromtheInternetConnectionMeasurementProjectandtheFCCMeasuringBroadbandAmericaproject.Theresearchersobservedmanyofthesameimpacts,inparticulartheincreaseinlatencyforsomeoftheISPsduringMarchandAprilin2020,furthercorroboratingobservationsweobservedintheRIPEAtlasandOokladata.

4.5 HomeDevicesandLocalAreaNetworks

Theuniqueapplicationandtrafficdemandshavestrainedtheperformanceofsomehomedevicesandhomenetworks.Userscanoftenimproveperformancebyupgradingtheirdevices,especiallyinhomewiredandwirelessnetwork.TheperformancegapbetweenWi-FiandEthernetonthehomeLANdemonstratesanunmetcapacityneedinWi-Fi.NowthattheFCChasmadeadditionalunlicensedspectrumavailable(e.g.,5.9GHz)[120]thisshouldhelpeventuallyclosethatgap,aswillpurchaseanduseofWi-Fi6devicesandhomenetworkgear[121].Additionally,featuressuchasActiveQueueManagement9(AQM)canbeusedtoreducelatencycausedbynetworkcongestions.

4.6 OverflowtoTransitandPublicPeering

Lookingatthechangeintrafficvolumesontransitandpublicpeeringlinkscomparedtodirectinterconnectsprovidesanothervantagepointtounderstandhowwellthenetworksareperforming.Facebookconcludedthatitsawnovideoqualityissuesonitsedge-network,asitdidnotobserveanyincreaseinmetricssuchaslatencynoranyincreaseintrafficoverflowingtoindirectlinks[95].ThisisconsistentwiththedatafromtheIMP,MITCSAIL,NCTA,andACAastrafficincreasedsignificantlyonthedirectinterconnectionswhilenotmeasurablyincreasingonthetransitlinks.

ContributingtothisisthefactthatCDNsaccountfor90%ofconsumerInternettraffic,therebyreducingthelengthoftheend-to-endpathforthistrafficasitmusttransitthefirsthopnetworktoorfromaCDN.Thiswastrueevenbeforetheshelter-in-placeorderswereineffectasweobservedthattransitutilizationdidnotchangenearlyasmuchastheaccessnetworkutilization,indicativethatmostofthetrafficforthefirst-hopnetworksstillgoesthrougheitherCDNsorotherdirectinterconnects.ThesamewastrueforvideostreamingasNokiaDeepfieldobservedchangesinthetrafficdistributionofNetflixvideostreaming.Thepercentageratioofon-netcachesandoff-netoverpeeringrouterschangedfrom63:37(on-net:off-nettraffic)beforetheshelter-in-placeordersto46:54aftertheshelter-in-placeorders.Inotherwords,morethan50%ofallNetflixtrafficduringtheshelter-in-placeordersintheobservednetworkwasdeliveredasoff-nettrafficcomparedto37%inpreshelter-in-placeorders.

4.7 TamingTrafficIncreases

Aspartofmanagingthechangesintraffic,itwasobservedthattherewasagreaterlevelofcooperationandcollaborationbetweenmembersoftheInternetecosystem.Agoodexampleofthisiswhenasoftwareupdateformodernvideogameispushedout.

Andfinally,asnotedbytheFCC[122]andothers,thereisagenerallyacleardifferenceinthroughputbetweenEthernetandWi-FionthehomeLAN.CommonEthernetdevicesoperateat100Mbpsor1Gbps,withevenhigherspeed2.5,5,and10Gbpsdevicesemerging.Ethernetdevicesarenotaffectedbyconcurrentusebecausetheydonot

9ActiveQueueManagement(sometimesreferredtoasSmartQueueManagementorQueueDiscipline)cansignificantlyimproveuserexperienceandtheperformanceofcertainapplicationsduringtimesofnetworkcongestion.ThisfeaturecansometimesbeenabledbytheuserbyturningonQualityofService(QoS)features.Forfurtherdiscussionsee:https://www.bufferbloat.net/projects/bloat/wiki/What_can_I_do_about_Bufferbloat/

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relyonsharedmediaapartfromupstreamaggregationlinks.AslongasEthernetspeedsaregreaterthanbroadbandconnections,it’snotabottleneck.

Wi-Fi,ontheotherhand,sharesalimitedinventoryofspectrumbandsandispotentiallyaffectedbyinterferencewithotheruserswithinthehome,theapartmentbuilding,andtheneighborhood.Wi-Fithroughputalsodeclineswithdistance,suchthatdevicesclosetotheirWi-Fiaccesspointscanoperateasmuchasfivetimesfasterthanthosefartheraway.

Underidealconditions,Wi-Finetworksprovideenoughbandwidththattheydon’tbottleneckbroadbandconnections.Thisappliestonetworksusingthe802.11.axstandardon5.9or6GHzspectrumbands;deviceswithclearandshortpathstotheiraccesspoints;anabsenceofinterferencefromotherWi-Finetworks;andsufficientprocessingpowertofillthewirelesspipe.

Intheoptimalscenario,Wi-Fidevicescanachievethroughputinexcessof1Gbps,butinmanyotherscenariosWi-Fispeedscandeclinetolessthan100Mbps.Wi-FinetworksarealsolessconsistentthanEthernetwithrespecttovariationsinthroughputovertimeandmorepronetopacketloss.

5 Conclusion

TheInternetintheUnitedStateshasperformedandcontinuestoperformwellduringthepandemic,inthefaceofextraordinaryandunprecedentedchangesindemandanduse.ThisstrongperformancecoversalloftheconnectedpartsoftheInternet,fromuserapplicationstocontentdistributioninfrastructure,alltypesofInternetaccessnetworks,andeverythinginbetween.ThisislikelyduetoacombinationofthenatureofthedesignoftheInternetitself,openandinteroperablestandards,competenttechnicalandoperationalexecution,andsignificantlong-terminvestmentsacrosstheentireInternetecosystem[2].Infrastructureoperatorsandnetworkoperatorsalsorespondedrapidlytothesuddenincreaseinapplicationandnetworkusagebyquicklyaddingeverythingfromservercapacitytointerconnectioncapacity,andlastmileaccessnetworkcapacityatratesfarbeyondpre-pandemiclevels.

Whileallofthesethingsareextraordinarilypositive,italsoisclearhowimportantreliable,highspeedInternetaccess,digitalliteracy,andaccesstocomputersareforsociety.Ruralandlow-incomehouseholdshavestruggledwiththeseissues[123][124].ISPsquicklyundertookeffortstohelpconnectpeopleatnoorlowcostandprovideddevicesandtraining.SchoolsandlocalgovernmentsalsolaunchedsimilarprogramstoensurestudentsandtheirfamilieshadInternetaccess,devicesandtraining.Applicationprovidersmadeplatformssuchasvideoconferencingfreelyavailableforpeopleduringthiscriticaltime.Finally,itisapparentthatperformanceissuesinsideofhomenetworksrelatedtoinadequatecustomersupplieduserdevicesandWi-Fihavebecomerealproblems.Post-pandemiccommitmenttosolvingtheseproblemswillberequiredtosupportconvertingtheshort-termgainsintolastingimpact.

Thepandemicof2020andtheassociatedshelter-in-placeorderstriggeringmanypeopletoshiftworkingfromhomeand/orlearningfromhomeaswellastherelianceonbroadbandformanyformsofcontactlesssocialinteractions(e.g.,videoconferencing,shopping,take-out,entertainment,etc.)furtherillustratedthatreliablebroadbandhasbecomeanessentialserviceformanyAmericans[3].TheoverallstrongperformanceofUSnetworksascomparedtootherimpactedregionsduringthesetimesillustratesthevalueofprivateinvestment[125]inbroadbandnetworks.

6 Recommendations

Inclosing,BITAGofferstheserecommendationsbasedonobservationsofresponsesoftheInternetecosystemtothetechnicalchallengesofshiftsinusernetworkaccess.TherecommendationscoverkeytechnicaladjustmentsthatcouldbeimplementedacrossallpartsoftheInternetecosystem.Whilesomerecommendationsmaybeimplementedindependently,thesumtotalmayofferbenefitstothewhole.

• Endusersexperiencingperformanceissues,particularlywithvideoconferencingapplicationsshouldconsider(a)upgradingtheirdevice,(b)switchingfromWi-FitoEthernetifpossible,(c)re-positioningtheirWi-Fiaccesspointandconsultingwithonlineresources,includingfromISPs,containinghelpfulguidanceontheseissuestoimprovenetworkperformance,(d)upgradingtheirhomegatewaydeviceand/orWi-FinetworkandpossiblyasbyaddingWi-Fimeshnetworkingtoextendcoverageandimproveperformanceand(e)upgradingthespeedoftheirInternetservice.

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• EndusersshouldreplaceolderWi-Firoutersandaccesspoints,suchasthoseusingthe802.11bstandard,andupgradetoequipmentthatusesWi-Fi6e.

• HomenetworkequipmentvendorsandISPsthatissuetheirownCPEshouldaddWi-Fi6tothenextupdateoftheirdevices(iftheyhavenotalreadydoneso)andwhenpossibleaddsupportforWi-Fi6etoprovideaccesstothe6GHzspectrumreleasedbytheFCCinNovember2020.10

• HomenetworkequipmentvendorsandISPsthatmanageCPEshouldconsidersupportingandenablingfeatureslikeActiveQueueManagement(AQM)innewlyshippingequipmentandinsoftwareupdatestodeployeddevices.

• Enterprisenetworkoperatorsshouldconsiderenablingcloud-basedapplicationstousefederatedSingleSignOn(SSO)authenticationtoallowtheiruserstoaccessapplicationssecurelyovertheInternetwithouthavingtoroutealltrafficthroughanenterpriseVPN.

• Networkoperatorsshouldcontinuetobuildoutnetworkinfrastructurewithlongenoughoutlookstofactorinheadroomthatfacilitatesquickreactiontosuddentrafficandusagechanges.

• TheInternetecosystemshouldcontinuetoexplore,developandrefinemeasurementtoolsthathelpproviderstoassessthequalityofexperiencedeliveredtocustomers.

• Operatorsshouldcontinuetomakeuseofopenstandardsandopentechnologyasameanstodevelopcosteffectivesolutionsforprovidingnetworkservices.

• StakeholdersshouldcontinuewithopencommunicationsandcollaborationforthecontinuedsuccessoftheInternet.

10SeethefollowingforeffortsbyISPs:https://corporate.comcast.com/press/releases/comcast-launches-internet-device-multi-gigabit-speeds-wifi-6,https://www.business.att.com/learn/what-is-wifi-6.html,https://www.verizon.com/about/news/verizon-fios-internet-customers-new-router,https://corporate.charter.com/newsroom/Charter-Becomes-First-US-Broadband-Provider-To-Launch-Next-Generation-Router-Delivering-Faster-WiFi-Speeds,https://www.cox.com/residential/internet/panoramic-whole-house-wifi.html

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[2] C.Timberg,“YourInternetisworking.ThanktheseColdWar-erapioneerswhodesignedittohandlealmostanything”[Online].Available:https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2020/04/06/your-internet-is-working-thank-these-cold-war-era-pioneers-who-designed-it-handle-almost-anything/.[Accessed:29-Nov-2020]

[3] “COVID-19’sImpactontheGlobalTelecommunicationsIndustry,”May2020[Online].Available:https://www.ifc.org/wps/wcm/connect/1d490aec-4d57-4cbf-82b3-d6842eecd9b2/IFC-Covid19-Telecommunications_final_web_2.pdf?MOD=AJPERES&CVID=n9nxogP.[Accessed:11-Nov-2020]

[4] E.Brynjolfsson,J.J.Horton,A.Ozimek,A.Rock,G.Sharma,andH.-Y.TuYe,“NBERWorkingPaperSeries:NetworkPerformanceDuringtheCOVID-19(WorkingPaper27344)”[Online].Available:https://www.nber.org/system/files/working_papers/w27344/w27344.pdf.[Accessed:07-Dec-2020]

[5] “TheCoronavirusSpring:TheHistoricClosingofU.S.Schools(ATimeline)”[Online].Available:https://www.edweek.org/leadership/the-coronavirus-spring-the-historic-closing-of-u-s-schools-a-timeline/2020/07#:~:text=March%2025%3A%20All%20U.S.%20public%20school%20buildings%20are%20closed.[Accessed:17-Dec-2020]

[6] “COVID-19andthetelecommunicationsindustry:Practicalstepsforrespondingtothecoronaviruscrisis”[Online].Available:https://www.pwc.com/us/en/library/covid-19/coronavirus-telecommunication-impact.html.[Accessed:30-Nov-2020]

[7] “NetworkPerformanceDuringtheCOVID-19Crisis.”America’sCommunicationsAssociation[Online].Available:https://acaconnects.org/covid-19/broadband-dashboard/.[Accessed:26-Nov-2020]

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8 Acronyms

Acronym Meaning

100G 100GigabitEthernet

ABR AdaptiveBitrate

ACA America’sCommunicationsAssociation

ACL AccessControlList

AQM ActiveQueueManagement

ASes Independentnetworks(AutonomousSystems)

BITAG BroadbandInternetTechnicalAdvisoryGroup

BNIX BelgianInternetExchange

CDN ContentDeliveryNetwork

CISA Cyber&InfrastructureSecurityAgency

COVID-19 COVID-19CoronavirusDisease2019

CPE Customer-premisesEquipmentorCustomer-providedEquipment

DASH DynamicAdaptiveStreamingoverHTTPS

DNS DomainNameSystem

DS:US DownstreamtoUpstreamratio

FCC FederalCommunicationsCommission

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GB Gigabyte

Gbps Gigabitpersecond

HLS HTTPLiveStreaming

HTTP HypertextTransferProtocol

HTTPS SecureHypertextTransferProtocol

IHR InternetHealthReport

IMP InterconnectionMeasurementProject

IP InternetProtocol

ISP InternetServiceProvider

IXP InternetExchangePoint

KIXP KenyaInternetExchangePoint

LAN LocalAreaNetwork

LTE Long-TermEvolution

MIT MassachusettsInstituteofTechnology

MITCSAIL MIT’sComputerScienceandArtificialIntelligenceLaboratory

NCC NetworkCoordinatingCenter

NCTA TheInternetandTelevisionAssociation

PB Petabyte

PCH PacketClearingHouse

PoP PointofPresence

QoE QualityofExperience

RIPE RegionalInternetRegistry

RTT RoundTripTimes

SARS-COV-2 SevereAcuteRespiratorySyndromeCoronavirus2

SMB SmalltoMidsizeBusiness

SMBWi-Fi SmalltoMidsizeBusinessWi-Fi

SSO SingleSignOn

TSLP TimeSeriesLatencyProbes

TTL TimetoLive

UK UnitedKingdom

US UnitedStatesofAmerica

VoIP VoiceoverInternetProtocol

VPN VirtualPrivateNetwork

WHO WorldHealthOrganization

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9 DocumentContributorsandReviewers

• DavidBelson,Fastly

• RichardBennett

• AmieElcan,LumenTechnologies

• NickFeamster,UniversityofChicago

• CraigLabovitz,NokiaDeepfield

• KateLandow,Dish

• MattLarsen,Vistabeam

• JasonLivingood,Comcast

• AlexPavlovic,NokiaDeepfield

• AlexSalter,SamKnows

• DougSicker,BITAG

• KevinSchneider,Adtran

• BarbaraStark,AT&T

• DougSuttles,Ookla

• MattTooley,NCTA

• GregWhite,CableLabs

• DavidWinner,CharterCommunications

• BillWoodcock,PacketClearinghouse