What consumer is a revolution in access to information and how to communicate, for the operators is a giant headache: how to create a cellular network capable of supporting such an avalanche of data.

Telefónica has invited twenty international experts to discuss the issue, in an event being held on December 16th at its headquarters in Madrid. The operator's accounts do not square-off.  On the one hand, customer's income decreases yearly, due to the competition offering more favorable flat rates or the messaging haul such as Whatsapp applications that reduce invoicing. On the other hand, the number of smartphones, tablets and laptops connected by 3G has taken off. And with them the traffic that support networks and the need to provide better coverage and service.

The operator has assured today that, for now, no capacity problem is foreseen, but the situation could turn in the future. "We know what will happen in the next three to five years, but not what will happen in 10," explains Enrique Blanco, global head of technology of Telefónica. Mischa Döhler , Research Associate leading the Intelligent Energy [IQe]  at the Centre Tecnològic de Telecomunicacions de Catalunya (CTTC), agrees. "Steve Jobs left us a legacy," says while lifting an iPhone, "but also another, to solve the problem of capacity on the mobile network".

Text available in Spanish .