As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to sweep across the United States and the world, the way people consume media and live has changed. Increasingly, most people are watching television and movies, spending time on the internet, and generally using these services harder than they ever have before. This creates a certain set of problems - and opportunities - for telecommunications companies that need help with operational support services, device management, and more. At the same time, appointments are taking longer and companies need to be careful about how they handle the workload.

They’ve Needed More Help Than Ever

Even before the pandemic, telecommunications companies need help with operational support and OSS management. It was always a struggle to balance workloads and determine the best ways to roll out updates and fixes. Thankfully, companies like ETI have OSS software that has been able to help companies target which communities need support now and which ones can wait.

At the same time, companies have been able to look within themselves and choose the best options for the jobs at hand. They look at metrics and see who has worked on that type of job before now, who is closest, and how many truck rolls they need.

People Are Using Different Facets Of Their Services

One of the biggest challenges is that people are using different facets of their services that maybe they haven’t used before, and they are starting to have trouble with things. For example, some people are digging into their streaming libraries while their teenage son plays Among Us and their teenage daughter watches YouTubers put on makeup. This increased strain leads to more problems.

More people are streaming than ever before, which takes up a huge amount of bandwidth for most telecommunications companies. At the same time, people are also playing video games, which do the same thing.

At-Home Schooling & Working Takes A Toll

Another issue that continues to manifest is the fact that more people are using their home internet for things that aren’t necessarily home activities, such as work and school. While it may not seem like something that would disrupt the internet, constant video calls and heavy content creation have really caused our infrastructure to crumble. Most towns don’t have the bandwidth for this.

As we get deeper into the pandemic, more companies have made the necessary changes, so it should start to turn around.

More People Are Signing Up

Another interesting thing to note is that more people are signing up for internet, streaming services, cable, and more. While the trend was going downward in some cases, people needed entertainment and distraction from the outside world. It is quite calming to spend the night streaming Schitt’s Creek compared to watching the news. 

At the same time, people are getting more information about current and social events from the internet. Movements are starting on social media, so it is important for people to stay abreast of the latest information.

One of the biggest populations to sign up for new services is the elderly! They want to stay in contact with their families and often, the best way they can do that is through Zoom or Skype chats. They need faster internet connections for that.

The pandemic has certainly changed a lot about our lives, including the way we consume media and how telecommunications companies work. They have had to pivot quite a bit, and it is likely that they will feel this need to work harder and do more for quite some time. Luckily, there is always fresh content out there for us to consume!