Research on the evolution of global internet network interconnection relationship in 21 years

Abstract

The global Internet is composed of tens of thousands of autonomous system networks that are interconnected through a border gateway protocol. The analysis of changes in the interconnected relationships of the global Internet network is essential for studying the evolutionary trend of the global Internet. In addition, this analysis can also contribute toward the research on China's Internet development gaps. This article draws on the global Internet network status map for 21 years, starting from 1998 to 2019, based on inter-domain routing data sets of international third parties and China Academy of Information and Communications Technology. Moreover, the article also conducts a big data analysis on the relationship between global Internet network changes. The research results show that the global Internet network interconnection has increased, by nearly 60 times in the past 21 years. Peer-to-peer interconnection has gradually surpassed transit interconnection as the main mode of global interconnection. Furthermore, large Internet companies are playing an increasingly important role in global interconnection. Simultaneously, the results indicate the gradual movement of China's Internet base toward the global core and the continuous improvements of the global network's status.