Spain has sharp increase in phone and internet use

TELECOMMUNICATIONS firms in Spain have been as prepared as they can for the rise in internet usage, but one aspect has caught them on the hop – a big surge in people making phone calls. Over recent years this has been a declining service as people increasingly communicate by messaging, voice mail etc. However, many are not now regularly seeing family and close friends and have been phoning them for a more personal chat. One large operator conceded that “voice communication has not been among the investment priorities of our sector recently" and are having to quickly readjust. The strain is particularly felt at peak time for calls, around midday before people sit down for lunch and then again in the early evening, between about 7 and 8pm. There are also many more people working from home, necessitating frequent calls to offices or making calls that would usually have been on their office networks, which are designed for heavier call volumes. At times usage has surpassed 100% of capacity, causing major headaches for the operating businesses.