Three Technologies That Could Change the Internet

As the year begins, it’s interesting to look at technologies that may truly affect the future of the Internet. I’ve chosen three that may have major implications for network bandwidth and the applications that will drive that bandwidth.

The first is twisted light. This has been a concept familiar to physicists for over 60 years, but one which has seen little application until most recently, when researchers have used various wireless techniques, such as quadrature phase shift modulation, to achieve data rates in excess of 560 Gbit/s on a single wavelength in a DWDM (dense wavelength division multiplexing) system. They expect data rates in excess of 1,000 Gbit/s per wavelength soon -- dramatically increasing the potential bandwidth of optical networks.

Right now, optical networks are usually 10 Gbit/s per wavelength, but there have been a few 40-Gbit/s deployments as well. Wavelengths of 100-Gbit/s are expected commercially later this year.

Twisted light will work with existing DWDM networks and dramatically increase bandwidth capacity to tens if not hundreds of terabits per second. Later on, it’s expected that Optical Orbital Angular Momentum (OOAM), another effort that is being widely researched now, will emerge with the potential to add an almost infinite number of phase states to the modulated signal and further increase the capacity to thousands of terabits. Up to now, the challenge has been how to couple OOAM modulated signals into singlemode fiber.

OOAM also is a promising technology for sensors as well.

A second interesting technology is Truphone, which lets you make Skype calls on your iTouch or Iphone using any WiFi networks and avoid expensive cellphone charges and long-distance fees.

The announcement by Truphone is a first significant step toward the convergence of the handheld device and the PC or cloud. It demonstrates that we no longer need a big, clunky PC in order to access any of our desktop applications. It also promises to significantly reduce the energy consumption of computers and personal devices. I think that points the way to the future of personal computing.

A third technology with potential to change the Internet is broadband TV. As Truphone and Skype have done to the telephone industry, broadband-ready TVs may do to the cable industry. With broadband TVs connected directly to the Internet, users will no longer be held captive by cable companies in terms of packages, program schedules, and high costs.

The move of TV to broadband is hardly suprising. Ultimately, as long predicted, everything will move to the Internet, including telephone, wireless, and cable services. The network itself will become blindingly fast and almost free because of new bandwidth technologies like twisted light.

Of course, these aren't the only technologies that stand to improve our online future. But they are among the most intriguing I've seen recently.

One thing to keep in mind: If your business is at the center of a network, your future looks pretty bleak. Go to the edge. That’s where future business opportunities exist.

— Bill St. Arnaud, telecommunications analyst and frequent speaker on the future of the Internet and broadband