According to the results of the first half of 2026, the total bandwidth of international Internet channels in the world reached 2259 Tbit/s. This is 23% more than the indicators of the same period last year.
According to the results of the first half of 2026, the total bandwidth of international Internet channels in the world reached 2259 Tbit/s. This is 23% more than the indicators of the same period last year.
This is stated in a report by the analytical company TeleGeography, reports the Mediasat portal. According to researchers, such average annual growth rates have been stable since 2022, during which time the total bandwidth has more than doubled.
The growth dynamics vary by region. Africa remains the leader, with channel capacity growing by an average of 35% per year between 2022 and 2026. In Oceania, this figure is 25%. Average and peak volumes of international Internet traffic also show stable growth — about 24% annually.
Analysts predict further growth in traffic volumes. The main drivers are the spread of new devices, expanding access to broadband Internet in emerging markets, as well as the growing popularity of applications that require high-speed connections.
Despite expectations, artificial intelligence has so far had a minimal impact on the load of international channels. IP backbone operators are not recording massive surges in AI traffic. AppLogic’s research also shows that the volume of data generated by AI currently remains insignificant compared to streaming video and social networks. However, the dynamics are noticeable: in 2025, such traffic increased by 90% in fixed networks and by 80% in mobile.
Another significant trend is the shift of international traffic to private backbone networks of large content providers (e.g. Google with its Sol cable), cloud services and data center operators. These networks are developing faster than traditional Internet backbones. Together with caching technology (storing copies of data closer to the user), this allows a significant part of the traffic to remain within individual regions, which somewhat slows down the growth of global data exchange.
The increase in the number of international networks has a positive impact on pricing. Due to economies of scale, the cost of data transmission is decreasing, and IP transit prices are falling. Most global network customers now require 100 Gbps ports, while demand for 400 Gbps connections is growing rapidly in the US and Europe.
