i3forum, a not-for-profit industry body enabling and accelerating transformation across the carrier ecosystem, recorded a sevenfold increase in international voice traffic to Ukraine amid the national crisis.
The unprecedented leap in inbound voice minutes has been largely generated by the 6.8 million+ refugees who have evacuated Ukraine since Russia’s invasion, as reported by the United Nations.
This massive increase in minutes was recorded by carriers on i3forum Insights, the comprehensive market database for international voice services. The platform is operated by TeleGeography, experts in managing large data sets in the carrier industry. Data is contributed by participating carriers including BICS, BTS, iBasis, Orange, Tata Communications, Sparkle, Telefónica, and Telstra.
“Voice services have been vital for creating personal, close communication between friends and families separated due to the Ukraine crisis. i3forum Insights brings this data and critical market trend to light,” says Cedric Godin, Interim Chairman at i3forum. “There’s just no substitute for the human voice, and in times of stress when we want to stay connected to loved ones, telephone calls have a very important role to play. We’re proud to be part of an industry that is keeping people connected during these difficult and unforeseen circumstances.”
i3forum Insights provides participating carriers with visibility, understanding, and data from across the industry, with intelligence on more than 17,400 destinations. The insights gathered from Ukraine demonstrate the power of these telecommunications services, which are indispensable during times of crisis.
“It was powerful to see the rapid acceleration of Ukraine’s incoming international voice traffic in such a short space of time. With so many people separated, voice calling provides an invaluable way of staying connected,” adds Tim Stronge, Vice President of Research at TeleGeography. “Beyond shining a light on traffic volumes, i3forum Insights provides information on quality, service level, and revenue. It’s a powerful tool that’s providing users with a true view of telecommunications trends across markets. The more carriers that join, the richer this data becomes.”
Participating carriers’ performance data is ingested into the system where it’s fully anonymised, 100% confidential, and completely secure. The data is then aggregated into an industry database that users can leverage to benchmark their own performance against the industry aggregate.
i3forum Insights is built on a robust data analytics platform, providing users with the flexibility to create their own customised views or pull from a standard inventory of autogenerated reports. It is unique in its ability to reflect accurate and updated traffic trends. Insights also provides users with intelligence that can improve their overall business and market planning functions, drive organisational alignment, and enhance critical daily operational activities.
