GÉANT - The Next Generation of European
Networking
Universities have always benefited from co-operation. In previous centuries,
travelling scholars ensured that ideas developed and spread.
The availability of data communications, which started seriously only in
the 1970's, meant that it was possible to create a network of Universities,
leading to the first National Research Networks in Europe, typically in the
early 1980's.
It took quite a long time for the pan-European dimension of research networking
to develop. It was really only in the early 1990's that a pervasive pan-European
network existed, which complemented and interconnected the NRNs in a number
of European countries.
Historically, pan-European research networking has suffered from the lack
of competition in international telecommunications in Europe. It used to
be asserted, quite wrongly, that the best way of building European networks
was for everybody to connect to the United States.
Fortunately, the liberalisation of the telecommunications market place in
Europe has had a dramatic affect both on international and pan-European research
networking. In the pan-European context, GÉANT represents the 6th
generation of network in ten years. It is the first generation that is a
truly world class facility.
This talk will look at the changing economics of networking in Europe over
the last several years, explore the capabilities that GÉANT offers
and consider the technical challenges that it will help us all to solve. |
