Encryption has wiped out almost 60 percent of the video and audio optimisation market during the past year, as soaring data usage has contrasted with privacy fears, new research has found.
A report from ABI Research said optimisation had been affected by recent revelations of internet spying, which had driven the industry to embrace end to end encryption.
It warned operators and vendors need to make difficult decisions to protect the performance of networks while also taking advantage of the demands for streaming media.
Joe Hoffman, Managing Director and Vice President at ABI Research, said: “With encryption here to stay, operators need new tools to manage mobile broadband traffic. We expect 85 percent of traffic to be encrypted. But that leaves 15 percent that can be optimised, and that is a significant network load.”
The report found operators face short term challenges in coping with soaring growth in mobile data without the proper tools to manage it. ABI said audio and video mobile broadband traffic doubled during the past year alone.
The researchers said this problem was compounded with the rise in difficult to manage protocols, such as UDP, and inflexible data strategies. Both issues could hinder operators’ wider strategies if they do not find a way to deal with them effectively.
It suggested operators should opt for traffic management solutions from the likes of Ericsson, Huawei and Nokia to keep their networks in check. ABI also cited next generation solutions that work with encrypted streaming media that will become more common in the coming years.
Hoffman added: “Telecom operators should also consider robust and flexible solutions like ‘IP Traffic Manager’ from Openwave Mobility or Sandvine’s ‘Fairshare Traffic Management’ to successfully manage the next-generation traffic.
“While encryption did wound the video and optimization market, it does not mean mortality. After the industry gets through this rough patch, there will still be demand. The exponential growth of that media traffic will make even the residual optimisation attractive to vendors that survive this shakeout.”