Everything we do at the Internet Society is to develop a strong and resilient Internet that helps people thrive.
Part of that work is building the technical infrastructure that connects us all. The fastest route between two points is a straight line, but when infrastructure is underdeveloped, sometimes Internet data zigzags worldwide, adding time and cost and reducing efficiency and reliability.
When Internet traffic stays local and direct, it is faster, more reliable, and more affordable.
The 50/50 Vision is an ambitious target set by the Internet Society to keep at least half of all Internet traffic in selected countries local by 2025. Our plan will help improve Internet access and affordability in these countries by working with policymakers, technical communities, and the whole Internet Society community to:
- Build additional Internet Exchange Points (IXPs). IXPs are physical locations where Internet Service Providers (ISPs) and Content Delivery Networks (CDNs) share the costs of maintaining physical infrastructure and associated services. By exchanging traffic with each other at IXPs, companies reduce latency and fees, which can then be passed along to the end user.
- Improve the policies and regulatory processes that govern Internet traffic. For example, governments can make it easier for ISPs to connect and build IXPs. They can also provide financial incentives for ISPs to keep traffic local, encourage a thriving and open connectivity market, and foster strong technical communities.
- Defend peering and interconnection in local communities through training courses on the importance of IXPs and how to build and support them and engage with local IXPs to understand their impact on the local Internet ecosystem.
How are we Measuring and Sharing Success?
We’ve devised a methodology to measure our progress toward the 50/50 Vision, but measuring local versus non-local traffic levels is often not straightforward.
Our methodology uses data from two open-source tools (OONI probes and RIPE Atlas) to quantify the level at which Over-The-Top (OTT) services, such as video streaming, web surfing, and social media fetch their content from local servers/cache.
We are building a dashboard showing the percentage of traffic exchanged locally in the Pulse country reports so all countries can see how much of their traffic is exchanged locally.
Get Involved
The 50/50 Vision is ambitious but achievable. By working together, we can make the Internet faster, more reliable, and more affordable.
We want you, your organization, your ISP, your technical community, and anyone who uses the Internet to join us as we make this vision a reality.
The easiest ways to help is to:
- Deploy an OONI or RIPE Atlas Probe.
- Attend a peering forum.
- Take our IXP course.
- Donate to support our work.
Please email us at [email protected] to learn more.