[March 20, 2009] March Madness Causes Internet Traffic to Spike Tweet PORTLAND, Ore. --(Business Wire)-- Integra Telecom Inc., recorded an increase in business Internet traffic of nearly 20 percent on Thursday and Friday, March 19-20, compared to two weeks ago as March Madness swept through the nation—and worker productivity—during the first round of the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament. "Although many of our business customers may want to believe that the increase in Internet traffic is related to increased business activity, it's likely that much of the extra traffic is the result of streaming online video of the NCAA basketball tournament and employees checking their brackets," said John Nee, vice president of corporate communication for Integra Telecom. Compared against Internet traffic from the past 12 months, Thursday's and Friday's traffic recorded by Integra Telecom represents the third and fourth busiest days of the year. Cyber Monday, the first Monday after Thanksgiving when e-commerce retailers traditionally offer discounts, normally takes the top spot. However, this year's presidential inauguration was the clear winner as Internet traffic more than doubled. This week's spike in Internet usage included visits to sports Web sites as well as e-mail exchanges. The Internet traffic statistic provided reflects Integra's combined network. Integra's March Madness Internet usage was compared against its Internet usage recorded two weeks prior to the first round of "Big Dance" games. About Integra Telecom Integra Telecom Inc. provides voice, data and Internet communications to thousands of business and carrier customers in 11 Western states, including: Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Minnesota, Montana, Nevada, North Dakota, Oregon, Utah and Washington. The company owns and operates a best-in-class fiber-optic network comprising metropolitan access networks, a nationally acclaimed tier one Internet and data network, and a 4,700-mile high-speed long haul network. The company has earned some of the highest customer loyalty and customer satisfaction ratings in the telecommunications industry. Primary equity investors in the company include Warburg Pincus, Banc of America Capital Investors and Boston Ventures. Integra Telecom, Electric Lightwave, Eschelon Telecom, Unicom and OneEighty Communications are registered trademarks of Integra Telecom Inc. For more information, visit www.integratelecom.com. [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]