The UK Cabinet Office has warned that internet services may be slower during the 17 days, and that users could even experience drop outs and data rationing because of an unusual amount of traffic during “peak time”.
“It is possible that internet services may be slower during the Games or in very severe cases there may be drop outs due to an increased number of people accessing the internet,” the report warned.
“In addition, ISPs may introduce data caps during peak times to try and spread the loading and give a more equal service to their entire customer base.”
The report did also note that no ISP in the UK has confirmed that they will be rationing data usage.
But it also appears that companies are not ready with potential internet problems. Talking to The Guardian newspaper, Kathryn Hurt from MWB Business Exchange said, “A lot of businesses have still not prepared for the enormous risks presented by the London Games”
“There’s been a lot of discussion about traffic hotspots, but very little about potential internet traffic problems. The risk is that home workers are unable to work effectively due to over-capacity.”
As with every event of a large magnitude, telephone networks might also experience slowness during “peak times”, but the Games organisers have set up additional mobile capacity and coverage to reduce the strain on those networks. But of course, they can only go so far – so, just don’t expect some of your messages and calls going through.