Data Centres and the Holiday Hustle: What Makes Christmas So Demanding?

On a typical day, a regular person might find themselves seamlessly sending a cherished photo to a friend via WhatsApp, quickly accessing an important document stored on Google Drive, engaging in a work call on Microsoft Teams, and enjoying their favourite show on Disney+. Behind the curtain of these everyday activities lies the unsung heroes: data centres.

Data centres are the beating hearts of our digital existence, working tirelessly to keep our online lives running smoothly. However, just as a powerhouse might ramp up its production during peak seasons, data centres also operate at full capacity during the festive period. The reason? The surge in online activity surrounding the Christmas holidays.

At the forefront of this digital whirlwind is online shopping. While eCommerce has been a staple of modern life for years, its popularity has soared to new heights since the pandemic. With the holiday season approaching, both online retailers and data centres must be prepared for the avalanche of online transactions.

But the festive demands on data centres extend beyond shopping. The holiday season also sees a significant increase in video calls, film and television streaming, as well as online gaming. Each of these activities contributes to a heightened strain on the infrastructure that supports our internet activities.

Every holiday season experiences a surge in online shopping, yet Christmas transforms that surge into a veritable consumer frenzy. For perspective, online sales during Christmas 2023 reached an astounding $1.7 trillion. On Black Friday, sales peaked at $9.8 billion, and Cyber Monday outdid itself with $12.4 billion in transactions. Data centres must rise to the challenge, ensuring their servers can handle the overwhelming traffic, while online retailers must strategically manage their data processing requirements across multiple data centres and cloud services.

From the moment an advertisement captures a shopper’s attention to the final steps of shipping a purchase, data centres are integral at every stage. A single outage in this intricate network can lead to disappointment for customers and financial losses for businesses. If a technical glitch persists, customers may find themselves empty-handed during the holidays while businesses forfeit valuable revenue.

The internet often presents itself as a self-sufficient realm. We speak of “the cloud” and discuss what AI can accomplish for industries, overlooking the vital role of the humans behind the scenes. Data centres are workplaces just like any other, staffed by dedicated individuals who monitor and maintain these complex systems. Beyond responding to customer inquiries, data centre employees ensure that the operational engine of the cloud remains in optimal condition. After all, a malfunctioning hard drive won’t fix itself.

During Christmas, the pressure increases as the volume of data to process escalates. Think of a beloved online service, and it’s likely to experience heightened use during the holidays. For many, the comfort of being at home translates to increased screen time. While eCommerce stands as the primary driver of this surge, individuals worldwide are also taxing data centres with a higher frequency of video calls, streaming services, and online gaming.

Video calls gained tremendous popularity during the pandemic and have become a familiar tradition for many families during Christmas. A recent Vodafone poll revealed that a staggering 90% of UK adults who celebrate Christmas utilise connected devices to keep in touch with their loved ones. Video calls consume far more data than standard audio calls, creating additional demands not just on personal data plans but also on the data centres that facilitate these connections. The same holds for streaming platforms like Netflix, Disney+, and Amazon Prime; as more individuals relax at home, the demand for streaming spikes, and data centre employees work diligently to ensure they can meet that demand. Moreover, with numerous PlayStation 5 consoles expected to light up homes this year, data centres must also keep operations running smoothly to minimize lag and enhance the gaming experience.

With the remarkable surge in online sales, video calls, and streaming services, the magic of Christmas is contingent upon data centres operating seamlessly. To ensure this smooth operation, the staff must put forth exceptional effort to monitor and maintain the array of servers at their disposal. This holiday season, let’s take a moment to salute the backbone of our digital holidays—those dedicated individuals who make it all possible!