NAPAfrica's Andrew Owens on explosive Internet growth under lockdown

Loading player...
NAPAfrica, the Internet exchange point (IXP) operated by data centre operator Teraco, has seen a 50% spike in peak traffic volumes in the past five months to 1.5Tbit/s, driven by the lockdown and work-from-home measures.
In this episode of the podcast, Teraco technical lead for interconnection and peering Andrew Owens talks to TechCentral editor Duncan McLeod about the history of NAPAfrica and why Teraco decided to build it and allow companies to peer freely using the facilities.
He explains why IXPs like NAPAfrica are important components of Internet plumbing and why NAPAfrica in particular has had a big impact on the efficiency, speed and cost of accessing Internet services in South Africa and the broader sub-Saharan Africa region.
Owens then unpacks the traffic trends that have emerged since the Covid-19 pandemic, particularly how people are using the Internet differently today than they did before the lockdown.
Don't miss the discussion!
21 Oct 2020 English South Africa Technology · Business

Other recent episodes

Meet the CIO | Inside the JSE’s tech engine with CIO Tebalo Tsoaeli

Technology sits at the heart of modern capital markets, and nowhere is that more evident than at the JSE. In the latest episode of Meet the CIO, TechCentral editor Duncan McLeod sits down with Tebalo Tsoaeli, the bourse’s CIO, to unpack how technology underpins Africa’s largest stock exchange – and…
2 Feb 47 min

TCS+ | Cloud On Demand and Consnet: inside a real-world AWS partner success story

The cloud revolution has challenged businesses of all sizes by changing how IT teams go about implementing projects and managing infrastructure. IT service firms have been doubly challenged, having to sell a new computing paradigm to their clients while also practising what they preach and adopting cloud-first technologies in-house. Consnet…
30 Jan 25 min

Watts & Wheels S1E3: ‘BYD’s Corolla Cross challenger’

TechCentral’s electric car show Watts & Wheels is back for episode 3 of season 1, and while EVs remain the focus, the conversation takes a detour into something far less planet-friendly – and far more jaw-dropping. Duncan McLeod and co-host William Kelly kick off by drooling over a wild new…
30 Jan 36 min

Watts & Wheels S1E2: ‘China attacks, BMW digs in, Toyota’s sublime supercar’

Chinese car makers continue their rapid push into the South African market, raising uncomfortable questions for incumbents. With aggressive pricing, fast product cycles and increasingly polished vehicles, the competitive landscape is shifting faster than many expected. There is also an update on Stellantis’s manufacturing plans and what they could mean…
23 Jan 38 min