Are we heading for an internet meltdown?

The internet could come to a screeching halt by 2010 as the mountain of data carried exceeds the ability of the network to handle it, according to a Nemertes Research Group study reported by iTNews.

Nemertes analysed the growth in data flows over the past year and the development of the internet infrastructure designed to handle it. They found that in three to five years, an overflow of data will start causing serious bottlenecks.

To avoid the breakdown, serious money needs to be invested in infrastructure – as much as $US55 billion, Nemertes estimates.