Issues with enough bandwidth are just around the corner, but service providers are getting ahead of the trend.

People have been talking for years about managing the bandwidth dilemma. How much is too much? Too little? Just right? From a report issued by Nemertes Research users could be having a bad bandwidth day as early as a couple of years from now. It has found a tremendous growth in bandwidth demand due to video, file transfer, and other Web content like phones. However, not everyone agrees with this report.

Because it is in their own interest to get ahead of the curve, some service providers are doing just that. AT&T is doing a large build-out. Savvis and XO Communications are doing the same thing. Not just the largest are ‘digging in,’ but emerging providers and those in emerging markets according to Doug Webster, director of marketing for service providers at Cisco Systems.

Verizon is spending billions with its FiOS (Fiber Optic Service) project. Verizon and AT&T are doing things a little differently, however they see the writing on the wall. The biggest cost to providing fiber that will be supporting at least 50M-bps is planting the wire in the ground. Speed is pretty much unlimited since you can upgrade the endpoint hardware without having to change out the routers and switches.

If the access will be able to continue to grow once the fiber is down, what will the pricing model be for future users? When users are happy with 1.5 to 4.5 MBs of bandwidth, what is going to happen when they start using 20 to 35 MBs for daily work and entertainment. I guess that’s a question for another day.