If we learned anything from the Mobile World Congress (News - Alert) this week, it’s that data traffic is causing a lot of congestion on mobile networks.

 

But a growing number of telecom experts say there’s a solution available to clear up some of the overload.  

 

Philip Bates, a senior manager at Analysys (News - Alert) Mason, who spoke at the Mobile World Congress on this issue, told reporters that most operators have announced their intention to boost their capacity by moving from circuit-based to packet-based backhaul.

Not to mention pressure by regulators to start sharing capacity.

 

“We believe that this combination of factors creates a unique opportunity for incumbent fixed-line operators and their altnet competitors to offer shared packet-based backhaul services,” said Bates. “Backhaul-on-demand, as we call it, can be a win-win situation for both the buyer and the seller. Mobile operators eliminate the risk of over- or under-dimensioning their backhaul networks as a result of errors in forecasting future levels of data traffic, avoid the capital expenditure associated with a move to packet-based backhaul, and safeguard their quality of service at shared sites by means of a service level agreement with the backhaul provider.”