With the Olympics upon us, it’s all looking good so far (well, apart from the weather and security) but what does our hosting of the Olympics mean for your business?
Not sure? Well here’s something to think about; during the 2008 Beijing Olympics, a UK-based ISP (Internet service provider) saw a “500% increase in streaming traffic compared to usual levels as staff turned to the BBC to watch Olympic coverage online”. Increased Internet usage through streaming will affect the amount of bandwidth you use, which may result in you exceeding your contracted subscription.
Anticipating this, we have contacted several ISPs who have told us that there will be NO period of grace for over-use of bandwidth. This is very likely to result in businesses being charged significant amounts if they go over their broadband quota. Think of it like exceeding your contracted minutes on your mobile phone.
Tecchies always like to help so here are 3 things that you may need to look at before the start of The Games;
1. Are you allowing staff access to streaming video and radio coverage in the workplace?
2. To allow staff to access broadcasts you may need to have a PRS licence. Here’s the link which explains more about the PRS licences;
3. If your policy is to allow access to streaming video and/or radio coverage of the Games at work, you should contact your ISP to check if you will need to increase the bandwidth to avoid any penalties.
If you’d like a little more guidance on any of the above or any other I.T. issue you’ve got, please feel free to contact us and we’d be glad to help you.