August 21, 2002 -- New data released today by research firm TeleGeography reinforces conventional wisdom on the telecom bandwidth glut, finding that metro-area networks are less overbuilt than long-haul intercity fiber routes.
"This is good news for providers of intra-city networks, who will likely see an end to the chronic oversupply of bandwidth much sooner than long-distance operators," said TeleGeography Director of Research Tim Stronge.
The bad news, according to TeleGeography's "Metropolitan Area Networks 2003," is that supply remains badly out of whack with demand in both the long-haul and metro markets.
"In the top U.S. markets, business Internet connections totaled under 4 Gbps for all forms of Internet access - less than five percent of lit metropolitan fiber, and less than three percent of lit long-haul fiber," the report notes.
Los Angeles fared the best of the three largest bandwidth markets, with its 1.2 Gbps of business Internet usage equaling 10 percent of the 12.3 Gbps of available active metro capacity, and just under 5 percent of the long-haul capacity running through the city.
The disparity is bleaker in Washington, D.C., where business Internet usage - a statistic encompassing last-mile connections through DSL, cable, fiber, and dial-up - amounted to 0.3 Gbps, just 2.7 percent of the lit metro capacity and 1.6 percent of the long-haul capacity.
Those numbers suggest that it will be some time before capacity in either sector is absorbed, even if provider bankruptcies and network cutbacks whittle down the supply.
TeleGeography publishes reports, databases, and maps used by communication companies, consultancies, and financial institutions in over 100 countries.