Cable & Wireless uses caching to speed Web page
delivery
By Paul Krill
InfoWorld Electric
Posted at 6:23 AM PT, Nov 12, 1999
Internet backbone provider Cable & Wireless on Friday plans to roll out a Web content delivery service that uses Web
caching techniques to refine page delivery processes.
The company also plans to unveil a dedicated Internet access service for ISPs.
Cable & Wireless' Web content delivery program, called Web Content Distributor, is intended to drive e-commerce
applications and boost Web usage and advertising, company officials said. The service is intended for content
providers, ISPs, and Web-hosting centers.
Web Content Distributor serves Web content from the edges of the Cable & Wireless Global IP Network, storing
information at the regional hub closest to the Web surfer. This reduces download times, costs, and puts an end to
universal global traffic, according to the company.
Network caching techniques are used to distribute and store content of high-volume and media-rich Internet sites.
An alternative to other forms of Web caching in which information is stored on local servers, the service replicates
commonly accessed Web pages at 15 nodes worldwide, due to expand to 84 nodes worldwide by April 2001.
Other forms of Web caching, while they reduce traffic back to an originating server to speed viewing, can result in
posting of out of date information and distorted viewing figures, according to Cable & Wireless. Legal issues also have
arisen related to ownership of cached data, the company said.
Web Content Distributor overcomes these problems by working with site owners to determine what can be cached,
how often it is refreshed, and to record and provide accurate viewing figures for page impressions.
The service could end "tromboning," in which data requests and Web pages are sent back and forth across the ocean
every time a page is accessed. Local storage cuts down on transmission time, according to Cable & Wireless.
Web Content Distributor sits between end-users and Web content main servers. When a site viewer selects a page, the
request goes to the service. If the page is stored locally and is up to date, it is provided immediately. Pages not
immediately available locally are requested from the originating server and then stored for local use.
The service is available now in the United States and will be available globally starting in March 2000.
The company's global.net service, meanwhile, provides direct access to the Cable & Wireless global Internet
backbone, as opposed to accessing it via international circuits to the United States, according to the company. With this
service, IP-based services can be provided including voice over IP, security, global Web hosting, unified messaging,
and information services.
The Cable & Wireless backbone operates at speeds of as much as OC192, or 9.6Gbps.
Global.net will be backed by service level agreements to guarantee availability, with proactive fault resolution and
dynamic re-routing.
Cable & Wireless Communications PLC, in London, is at www.cwplc.com.
Paul Krill is an InfoWorld associate news editor. |
