Challenges concerning the energy-dependency of the telecom infrastructure

Abstract

Industry worldwide depends on Information and Communication Technology (ICT). Through large-scale blackouts of the public electricity supply telephone services and Internet connections are massively reduced in their functions, leading to cascading effects. Following analysis of selected, typical failure situations counter-measures to re-establish the public electricity supply in Austria to consumers are identified. This can serve also as an example for other countries. Based on the existing public electricity supply system, a sensitivity analysis both in power and in the ICT sector for the mobile and the fixed network is carried out. As a new possible solution "smart grid" or "microgrids" and the controlled operation of decentralized stable islands are investigated. © 2009 Springer Berlin Heidelberg.