The increasing number of connected cars expected to hit the highway over the next decade threatens to cause congestion on mobile networks as well as roads, warned Machina Research on Thursday.
A study carried out by the machine-to-machine (M2M) research firm on behalf of network analytics company TEOCO predicts that by 2024, some cell sites could experience a 97% spike in data traffic during rush hour, compared to spikes of up to 22% today.
"Connected cars, as with other M2M devices, don’t behave like smartphones," said Matt Hatton, founder and CEO of Machina Research, in a statement. "They represent a very diverse set of challenges to operators through highly varying network traffic patterns at different times of the day."
According to Machina, the number of cellular M2M connections worldwide will increase from 250 million in 2014 to more than 2.3 billion in 2024.
While smartphones and tablets are relatively homogenous in terms of the demands they place on the network, M2M devices are much more diverse and could present less manageable traffic patterns at certain times and in certain locations.
"If connected cars regularly cause network traffic spikes in a particular location that can’t be met, there are implications for operators in meeting SLAs and delivering a positive quality of experience," Hatton warned.
It is not just connected cars that could pose problems. For instance, Machina suggested that cellular M2M services in the agriculture sector could drive demand for greater rural coverage, while the healthcare sector might require more r eliable, low-latency connections to support life or –mission-critical applications.
The variances in demand placed on the mobile network by M2M necessitates a new approach to how operators run their networks, claims TEOCO.
"Operators will need to identify where and when the network traffic is generated, measure the volume, and analyse the type of traffic as well," said Steve Bowker, vice president of technology and strategy at TEOCO. "They’ll need to more seriously consider how to cope with these demands for reduced latency, higher bandwidth, more signalling and higher QoS."
