In the event of a global influenza pandemic, would we really need YouTube?
As Computerworld reports, this isn't as silly a question as it sounds. Because companies and governments alike are banking on their staff being able to work remotely from home to keep essential services going. But these plans may quickly fall apart as millions of people turn to the Internet for news and entertainment, potentially choking online traffic.
Such a surge in usage would almost certainly prompt moves to restrict or prioritize traffic, such as blocking video transmissions, according to business continuity planners who attended a pandemic forum at a SunGard Data Systems Inc. hot-site facility in northern New Jersey this month.Both businesses and home users likely would be asked to restrict high-bandwidth transmissions, the planners said. And if that didn't work, they warned, government action might well follow.
Computerworld | Web Use Spike in Pandemic May Make Telework Tough