Top Internet Exchange (IX) operator DE-CIX had a huge growth in traffic at its Internet Exchanges in 2022. According to the operator’s calculations, the DE-CIX IXs enabled the global interchange of more than 48 exabytes (EB) of data in 2022. The overall data throughput recorded in 2021 was 38 EB, which is an increase of more than 25% in a year.
48 EB would equal the storage capacity of more than 370 million smartphones (each with 128 GB of storage). This would correspond to the DE-CIX IXs transporting enough data to fill the storage of slightly more than one smartphone for every man, woman, and child living in the United States.
“More and more data is being transmitted over the Internet, simply because modern, digital applications and services require more and more data from different sources,” said Dr. Christoph Dietzel, Global Head of Products & Research at DE-CIX. “This trend will undoubtedly continue as consumer demands for digital applications continue to rise – not to mention with the Metaverse just around the corner. The global DE-CIX ecosystem is growing steadily. Not only are new locations being added, but traffic at our largest established IXs, such as in Frankfurt, Mumbai, New York, and Madrid, is growing irrepressibly.”
Digital Services
The 14th of December saw the greatest data traffic of the year at the global DE-CIX Internet Exchanges. 132 terabytes of data streamed through the DE-CIX Internet Exchanges in a single minute at roughly 20:28 CET on the evening of the Soccer World Cup semi-final between France and Morocco in Qatar, setting new traffic records for the IXs in New York and Frankfurt, for instance.
“The peak throughput for the World Cup semifinals shows how much all areas of life are becoming digitalized worldwide,” added Mr. Dietzel. “Whether at work – with regular video conferences – or at play, e.g. when streaming sports events, digital services have become an indispensable part of our everyday lives.”
However, there were considerable variations in the times that these services were used throughout the year. For instance, over the summer, video conferencing-related data traffic significantly decreased at the main IXs in Frankfurt, New York, and Madrid. Although overall data throughput in the gaming industry peaked in the previous quarter, all three IXs had a sharp surge in June at the start of summer.
DE-CIX’s IXs Globally
DE-CIX in Frankfurt – with itself nearly 34 EB annual throughput, peak traffic of more than 14 terabits per second, and around 1100 connected networks in 2022 – is one of the largest IXs in Europe and one of the most important worldwide. DE-CIX facilities in New York, Madrid, and Mumbai have all experienced considerable data growth and all did achieve the coveted 1-terabit-per-second peak-traffic threshold in 2022.
Additionally, DE-CIX Dallas nearly doubled its data traffic throughput in 2022, surpassing 500 Gigabits per second (Gbit/s) and ending the year at 625 Gbit/s, while UAE-IX powered by DE-CIX in Dubai, which celebrated its tenth anniversary in November 2022, saw peak traffic rise to almost 400 Gbit/s on November 22, coinciding with the Soccer World Cup match between Argentina and Saudi Arabia.
Next to that, DE-CIX announced additional sites and collaborations for Internet Exchanges in its home market (DE-CIX Leipzig) and throughout the world in 2022 as part of its ongoing expansion (Africa, the Middle East, Southeast Asia, and Central and Southeast Europe). The firm currently provides peering, cloud, and connectivity services in more than 40 metro areas across the world.
