CHAPTER 6 Networks and Networking: Linking the World
Optical Fiber Technology Improvements A full-length digital movie can be downloaded in four seconds over optical fiber. The same download would take hours via the fastest cable modem. Soon new technologies will enable a single fiber to be divided into 160 channels, thus increasing channel capacity over a hundredfold. The result is that the cost of moving data over fiber-optic cable is decreasing dramatically. The speed at which content can be delivered over the Internet has a direct impact on Internet content.
Two-Way Direct Satellite Internet Access Until now, satellite Internet access has required users to maintain a dial-up connection with an Internet service provider (ISP). Now, satellite providers are beginning to offer two-way direct satellite Internet access for both upload and download. Initially, download speeds will be up to 500K bps and download speeds will be at 150 K bps. Anyone in the United States with a southern exposure to the sky can install a satellite data system.