Internet Traffic Soon to Reach a Zettabyte

We use the internet every day, from checking your emails to watching the latest shows, the internet has become a default part of using a computer for a lot of people. With more and more using the internet, for even more complex reasons, it comes as no surprise that companies are looking at ways to share content with less traffic, such as Netflix re-encoding their library. Even with all these steps, Cisco imagines that for the first time the global internet traffic will reach a zettabyte.

A zettabyte is 909,494,701 terabytes, or if that’s too small you could always think of it as a trillion gigabytes. This estimate comes after Cisco has calculated that the internet traffic has increased fivefold in the last five years, with it set to continue to grow.

Cisco attributes this increase to the popularity of services like Netflix and Amazon Prime video, with video streaming services accounting for roughly 41% of all internet traffic. With more mobile devices connecting every year and phone companies looking to promote cheaper video streaming for your mobiles, watching videos online contributes more than most people think.

With internet speeds set to rise and video streaming, gaming and music services looking to increase their online presence it will come as no surprise that people will be sending and receiving more information over the internet.