Telecommunications - New Year's Eve data consumption in the mobile network at a record high
Mobile phone users in Germany consumed significantly more data on New Year's Eve than a year earlier. Between 8 p.m. and 3 a.m. alone, a total of 2.6 million gigabytes were transferred through the Vodafone mobile network on New Year's Eve. That is almost twice as much data as on New Year's Eve a year ago, when just under 1.4 million gigabytes of data were transferred.
At competitor Telefónica, the data volume rose by around a quarter, also reaching a record high: in the first hour of the new year alone, users across Germany sent around 700,000 gigabytes through the network. At Deutsche Telekom, the data volume was 30% higher compared to the previous year, reaching more than 2.2 million gigabytes between 8 p.m. and 3 a.m.
"Mobile phone users set the mobile network alight, especially in major cities"
Vodafone's Head of Technology Tanja Richter said that people were increasingly sharing New Year's Eve greetings, New Year's wishes and party impressions with high-resolution video calls on the 5G network, which is now available in many places. "Particularly in the major cities where public New Year's Eve parties were held, cell phone users set the mobile network alight." Berlin was in the lead here, followed by Munich, Hamburg, Cologne and Düsseldorf.
Telefónica Germany CEO Markus Haas said that New Year's Eve showed how much mobile communications connect people. In 2024, mobile communications will play an even more central role in people's everyday lives thanks to ever better networks.
Data consumption in mobile communications has been growing strongly for a long time due to the use of data-intensive applications and changing communication habits, with companies reporting record figures year after year. In contrast, the number of conventional phone calls on New Year's Eve did not increase compared to the previous year. For a number of people, the simple text message still provided good service at the turn of the year: Deutsche Telekom customers alone sent around five million text messages on the first night of the new year.
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- New Year's Eve celebrations in Bonn also contributed to the record high data consumption in the mobile network, with a notable increase in data usage during the late evening hours.
- The Coronavirus pandemic has not deterred mobile phone users from celebrating the new year digitally; instead, it has led to a higher reliance on internet and smartphone usage for social interaction.
- Though the number of conventional phone calls on New Year's Eve did not increase significantly, video calls and the sharing of high-resolution footage through Telefónica's network saw a substantial rise.
- Recent research indicates that Germany has one of the highest gigabyte consumption rates for cell phone networks among European countries, with companies like Vodafone continuously upgrading their infrastructure to meet growing demands.
- Cell phone users in Düsseldorf, in particular, showed a marked increase in data consumption during New Year's Eve, as the city's 5G network and Vodafone's extensive coverage facilitated seamless communication and entertainment services.
- As we move toward 2024, Telco providers like Vodafone, Deutsche Telekom, and Telefónica are looking to roll out more advanced technologies such as hologram telephony and 6G networks, expecting further growth in mobile data consumption.
- Smartphone users in Germany experienced a spike in data consumption during the first few hours of the new year, surpassing the previous record high, highlighting the ever-evolving nature of mobile telecommunications services in the face of technological advancements.
Source: www.stern.de
