As Paris prepares to host the 2024 Summer Olympics from July 26 to August 11, the spotlight not only shines on the athletes but also on the technological infrastructure supporting the world’s largest multi-sport event.
With over 15 million visitors expected and a 125% increase in international flight bookings—the US leads this surge with 23.8% of bookings, followed by Canada, the UK, Japan, and Spain—compared to the previous year, mobile network operators (MNOs) face the huge challenge of managing unprecedented roaming traffic. That’s why iBASIS is already planning its support of French MNOs for 100% growth of roaming traffic and enhancing mobile connectivity and 5G roaming services.
Impact on Roaming
Major global events like the FIFA World Cup, F1, and the Olympics cause significant spikes in roaming traffic and data usage, pushing the capacity limits of MNOs. Historical data from 2023 highlights this phenomenon.
For instance, Dutch travelers streaming the 2023 Spanish F1 Grand Prix live to watch Max Verstappen win caused a 70% increase in outbound roaming traffic for Dutch MNOs due to fans streaming the event live. The ‘Verstappen Effect’ was again witnessed in the 2024 Spanish Grand Prix which saw peak traffic, generated mainly by outbound roamers of Dutch MNOs, hit 110.89Gbps.
In August 2023, millions of people flooded to Portugal during the Pope’s visit, creating one of the biggest roaming traffic generator events of that summer. iBASIS, which had recently built its own point of presence (PoP) in Lisbon, supported Portuguese MNOs to plan for and ensure high quality connectivity for their inbound roamers. The MNOs experienced a 110-150% increase in their typical summer inbound roaming traffic capacity.
Such events drive higher data consumption as viewers stream live competitions, share experiences, and stay connected with friends and family. This increased demand requires MNOs to be prepared for traffic growth rates exceeding the usual 25-30%, potentially reaching 50-60% during the Olympics for French MNOs.
Three Key Pillars to Manage High-Peak Events
To ensure high-quality connectivity, seamless 5G roaming experiences, and avoid network congestion during the Olympics, iBASIS has focused on three key pillars:
- Connectivity Upgrades
- Capacity Upgrade: Significantly upgraded its infrastructure and network capacity to 100G to be ready for 80-100% growth in traffic, primarily on inbound directions.
- 100G Upgraded Peering Interconnections: Upgraded all major peering interconnections critical for European destinations to 100G interfaces, ensuring traffic flows smoothly between different networks without bottlenecks caused by interconnection limitations.
- Advanced Monitoring and Analytics
- Invision™ Intelligence Tool: By leveraging iBASIS’s powerful Invision™ tool for real-time analytics, quality monitoring, alarming, and reporting, MNOs can ensure uninterrupted, high-quality network service and enhance subscribers’ roaming experience during high-profile events like the Olympics by proactively managing, identifying, and solving issues before end-user impact. All protocols and traffic entering the IBASIS network will be under close watch with the help of exclusive global standard monitoring tools and applications. Special surveillance enables the team to find the exact point of trouble at the time of need.
- Special NOC Desk & Real-Time Reporting
- Dedicated Support Teams: Enabling real-time adjustments and proactive issue resolution, a 24/7 global Network Operation Center (NOC) desk ensures uninterrupted service, network reliability, and swift issue resolution with dedicated roaming event support, a hotline for immediate assistance, and proactive action on quality/KPI issues. Additionally, an Expert Technical Support Group is deployed to address all technical issues promptly.
- Targeted & Actionable Reporting: Every four hours, reports will be published from iBASIS’s NOC containing data and voice signaling load status, and 4G/5G data and voice signaling success rate. The designed reports will provide insights into the performance of in-roamer and out-roamer signaling links. With this targeted information, MNOs can take focused action without spending time on data analysis.
Insights from EURO 2024
In preparation for the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, which presents an extraordinary opportunity to showcase collaboration and the capabilities of 5G and advanced roaming solutions, iBASIS has been closely monitoring traffic effects at the ongoing UEFA European Football Championship 2024.
iBASIS has observed significant increases in traffic during matches, particularly for MNOs in countries like France, the Netherlands, Belgium, Portugal, and Turkey, corresponding with how well the nations have progressed in the tournament. Matchday statistics indicate an 80-100% increase over regular daily peaks in the outbound direction, with summer destinations like Portugal also experiencing 50-60% growth in inbound traffic from major European countries during important games. These insights allow iBASIS to better prepare and optimize their solutions for the upcoming Olympics.
By leveraging iBASIS’s expertise and innovative solutions in network readiness, proactive operations, and real-time analytics, MNOs are ensuring a superior and seamless roaming experience for millions of visitors. This both enhances user satisfaction and also solidifies the reputation of service providers in managing high-traffic events efficiently.
Stay tuned for more insights and updates on how iBASIS continues to innovate and lead in the 5G roaming landscape.