Demand is Growing
ISPs covering rural networks and hard-to-reach subscribers know the pain of increased content consumption all too well. Managing spikes in network traffic; expanding upstream capacity before it becomes constrained; maintaining high-quality streaming content for every subscriber; and fielding customer complaints. For many ISPs, the pressure to consistently deliver optimal content performance is rising, especially as Video on Demand (VOD) and demand for live over-the-top (OTT) streaming grows.
While this pressure is shared by ISPs worldwide, initiatives like Project Gigabit in the UK are starting to address connectivity in remote areas. Thanks to recent funding, 15 million subscribers based in underserved areas and rural communities across the UK will have gigabit-capable broadband by the end of 2025, with ISPs and new Alternative Network Providers (AltNets) setup to serve them. Yet the rise of VOD and live OTT streaming is creating a parallel problem, particularly for network providers serving remote communities. Where Project Gigabit offers connectivity, ISPs and AltNets must manage content consumption, and, more importantly, the infrastructure and capacity required to deliver increasing content requests efficiently.
Consumption is Insatiable
Managing content delivery in any network is no small feat. The amount of content being consumed is huge – and growing – and it’s not just VOD. Live sports, in particular, is some of the most-streamed content across digital platforms around the globe. According to SportsPro Media, the 2024 Uefa European Championship final was streamed by 24 million UK viewers, while UK Premier League matches and highlights command some 59% of the total UK TV audience.
After the US and China, the United Kingdom is one of the largest video streaming markets in the world. The UK is also seeing similar shifts in consumer preference for OTT content instead of broadcast TV. As more people cut the cord, major streaming platforms are investing billions for exclusive rights to major sports events. In the US, content providers have closed $8.5B in exclusive deals so far this year, just for US-centric leagues, with more deals and more sports-related content to come.
Scaling is Complicated
With further-reaching access to gigabit-capable broadband in sight, scaling content delivery in remote regions will soon bring a swift dose of reality. Most legislators and content platforms are not acutely aware of the backhaul capacity issues that remote ISPs already face. These capacity issues will inevitably increase when the growing demand for VOD and live streaming video incorporates more gigabit-capable subscribers.
For many ISPs, adding extra capacity comes at a premium. It requires accurately calculating anticipated network traffic which is often difficult to predict. Calculate too much, and high coverage costs are wasted; calculate too little, and capacity becomes constrained anyway – and that’s if extra capacity is even available to add (often, it isn’t). When network congestion drives consumption upstream, smaller ISPs and AltNets feel the impact the most. How? Lower bitrates, slower startup times, more buffering, and dropped packets. TL;DR: poor Quality of Experience (QoE), loads of subscriber complaints, and a dilemma that is becoming too big to ignore.
Capacity is Solvable
Addressing the capacity problem for rural networks is both timely and urgent. While some ISPs are rebuilding their network infrastructure to handle the scale, others are investing in locally embedded caches as an alternative. A locally embedded cache allows content to be stored and delivered closer to subscribers, easing backhaul capacity by collapsing multiple requests for the same content into a single request. With frequent traffic spikes being the new norm, placing a cache within the serving ISP’s network has been gaining momentum in the UK and US, particularly for ISPs serving lots of live sports content.
Perhaps more importantly, investing in a locally embedded cache can be extremely cost-effective. ISPs and AltNets can build their own cache with open source software, or they can partner with a technology solution like Netskrt. Netskrt’s last-mile CDN has helped hundreds of ISPs around the world to significantly reduce traffic on backhaul connections, while also ensuring high-quality VOD and live OTT streaming video for their rural subscribers. More than just a cache, Netskrt is a fully managed service with multiple content provider partners. They’re on a mission to equip last-mile serving ISPs and AltNets with locally embedded caches that can scale demand and cover the hardest-to-reach subscribers.
If your subscribers enjoy live streaming football matches and top series VOD content, Netskrt can help deliver the high quality video they expect – without adding more capacity. Learn more about Netskrt and get a cache today.