In the August 2012 IEEE 802.3 Ethernet Bandwidth Assessment report, the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) predicted that networks will need to support an average of 58 percent compound annual growth rates (CAGRs) with capacity requirements of 1 Tb/s in 2014 and 10 Tb/s in 2020.
"Traffic is growing everywhere—more Internet users, more ways to access the Internet more quickly, higher-bandwidth content, new applications enabled, etc.—and it's critical that we move now to create a plan for the Ethernet ecosystem to evolve beyond today's capabilities, in order to accommodate the burgeoning bandwidth tsunami," said John D'Ambrosia, chair of the new IEEE 802.3 400 Gb/s Ethernet Study Group and chief Ethernet evangelist, CTO office, Dell. "The launch of this study group is the next critical step in evolving the IEEE 802.3 standard to stay ahead of industry's needs. It builds on two years of open efforts around inviting Ethernet's vast array of stakeholders into the work of assessing and tackling the market's emerging application requirements."
The IEEE 802.3 "Standards for Ethernet" Study Group will be meeting at the Fairmont Express in Victoria, BC between May 14 and May 17, 2013. Those interested in taking part can view further information and register for the event at its event page.