Internet Backbone Networks

No technical description of the Internet can skip the role and the value of the Internet backbone networks. These infrastructural networks are responsible for transferring Internet data packets around the world. They consist of the long-haul [Page 457]links that connect destinations separated by long distances. In terms of Internet hardware, the backbone networks are high-capacity fibre-optic links, which are placed on the top of the infrastructural hierarchy of the Internet and are usually owned by private telecommunications and Internet service providers (ISPs). From a broader perspective, the Internet consists of two layers: (1) a technical layer and (2) a content layer, with the latter being overlaid on the former. The key characteristic of the Internet’s technical layer, an essential part of which is the backbone ...