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Data: US downstream peak traffic declines

August 28, 2020

Over 72 million homes and businesses across America subscribe to broadband delivered by cable providers. With the ongoing pandemic, these connections are more important than ever, including home Wi-Fi networks, as the nation adapts to the realities of “social distancing” and many of our daily activities have moved online.

To better explain how changing consumer demand is affecting network usage and performance, NCTA members and other providers are joining together to report key metrics during the pandemic that aim to better inform the public regarding usage trends and network performance. The industry has also made available tips for maximising the performance of home Wi-Fi networks. Companies currently reporting include: Altice, CableOne, Charter, Comcast, Cox, GCI, Mediacom, Midco and Sjoberg’s.

Key Takeaways inlude:While national downstream peak traffic has declined recently, early weeks of the pandemic showed downstream peak traffic growing 20.1 per cent. Overall, since March 1st, national downstream peak growth is up 14.3 per cent.

National upstream peak growth has also declined recently, but earlier in the spring saw a surge of 35.1 per cent growth. Overall, since March 1st, national upstream peak growth is up 27.1 per cent.

Throughout the pandemic, provider backbone networks have showed no signs of congestion.
Wi-Fi data traffic and Wi-Fi calling increased as cable broadband networks continue to support the offload of mobile data traffic.

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