Trends come and go

Remember planking? No? Thought not. Whilst some trends come and go, others are here to stay. Distinguishing between the long and short-term trends is a key part of identifying the driving forces for Network Architecture 2020.

Let's start with those from outside the industry. These are typically more important than those from inside the industry, as they show a change in user needs, expectations or perceptions.

Cultural trends

Mobile First

Mobile devices now consume more data than those on the desktop. We need to put mobile first.

video is king

And what is most of that data? Streaming and real-time video. All hail video, king of the applications.

more now

User expectations are growing, rapidly outpacing network performance.  More now, please.

Why Two types?

Although cultural trends are highly important, we can't discount industry trends unless they run completely counter to a stronger cultural trend. These show us what people in the know think about the future of the industry, and it's wise to listen carefully.

Industry trends

Virtualisation

What transformed the data centre and is now moving into the network? You guessed it.

spectrum

Wireless networks are running out of space. Time to get smarter with spectrum.

cloud

Public or private, the cloud continues to heavily influence decisions, for better or worse.

What's next?

Although there are other trends constantly emerging, these are enough to get us started. Next, let's take a look at the tribulations.

Trials and Tribulations