FEATURE : NETWORK PEERING
Network peering is a critical , if not an essential tool in Africa ’ s digital business environment and peering through public or private agreements has become a pivotal process through which commerce and enterprises can reduce latency , explains Mahen Naidu at
TelCables South Africa .
Remote peering is reducing IP-Transit costs by directly exchanging traffic with peers and bypassing the need to route through distant networks and other highly congested network pathways . And by accessing larger portions of the international routing tables , businesses can reduce the complexity of their connections without compromising their network performance or reliability .
Business looking to maximise their network efficiencies need to evaluate their current network and assess where most of their data traffic is being sent or received . In some instances , it would make sense to have a direct connection with key business partners .
Benefits of network peering
Improved performance
Peering arrangements shorten the distance that data has to travel , it reduces lag , and speeds up data delivery .
Every day , the world is consuming more data than ever . Out of the more than 8 billion people living on our planet today , 5.35 billion use the Internet . By 2029 , just five years away it is estimated that the number of people with Internet access will rise to 7.9 billion – an increase of 47 %. As a result , the demand for data is virtually doubling every two years .
Network peering is a critical , if not an essential tool in today ’ s global digital business environment . Peering through public or private agreements has become a pivotal and rapidly advancing process through which commerce and enterprises the world over can reduce latency ; improve network performance and help businesses expand or scale their enterprises according to their needs .
Cost savings
By avoiding third-party intermediaries , networks can cut costs for data exchange and local and international IP-Transit .
Reliability
Network congestion is often the cause of slow network traffic and this could cause delays in the transmission of critical data from one business to another .
Business continuity
Peering reroutes network traffic , ensuring uninterrupted service and business continuity . This has become important in areas of geopolitical conflict
Why African enterprises need to consider local peering to optimise data traffic
34 INTELLIGENTCIO AFRICA www . intelligentcio . com