The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) has disclosed significant revenue losses resulting from rampant VPN utilisation during internet outages.

An investigative report by the authority on internet disruptions indicates that the country was incurring a loss of nearly $10,000 per minute due to diminished production and stressed internet infrastructure.

The analysis said that bandwidth utilisation via VPNs surged to an unprecedented 634 Gbps in August 2024, thereafter declining to 378 Gbps by November. By December, significant enhancements in internet services were observed, resulting in a modest decrease in VPN usage to 437 Gbps.

The analysis indicates that the country incurred a loss of $10,000 every minute as a result of an increase of one terabyte per second.

The PTA attributed the rising utilisation of VPNs to stress and disturbances in internet infrastructure, compelling users to circumvent local Content Delivery Networks (CDNs). The survey said that 70% of internet access in Pakistan is facilitated by CDNs.

VPNs route traffic across international servers, circumventing local CDNs. This redirection overwhelmed global submarine cables, particularly during peak usage hours, and caused additional strain on the system, as the submarine is incapable of handling the load during rush hours.

During the internet interruptions, WhatsApp temporarily transferred its servers to international locations, resulting in connectivity concerns for millions of users in Pakistan. This action intensified the nation’s dependence on foreign internet routing, revealing the weaknesses of its domestic infrastructure.

The PTA’s research highlighted the necessity for substantial improvements to Pakistan’s internet infrastructure, including augmenting the capacity of underwater cables and refining local routing systems to diminish reliance on overseas servers.

It emphasised the need of advancing local CDNs to equilibrate bandwidth utilisation and alleviate the strain induced by VPN traffic.

The women’s health company has introduced a comprehensive sleeping and relaxing device at the CES technology exhibition.

The British technology company Elvie, recognized for its women’s health goods, has introduced its inaugural baby product—a smart bouncer that converts into a bassinet without requiring parents to relocate the infant.

The Elvie Rise, as stated by the company, is a hybrid gadget that enables parents to avoid transferring a baby between play, soothing, and sleep, allowing them to reclaim time to prioritize their own welfare.

In bounce mode, Elvie states that the Rise has SootheLoop technology, which captures and replicates the bounce supplied by a parent, subsequently transforming into a bassinet for naptime while allowing parents to monitor their baby’s sleep patterns via the associated app.

The Rise is being unveiled at CES, the major technology trade exhibition held annually in January in Las Vegas.

Alex Knox, chief product officer at Elvie, stated that the Rise is an extension of the company’s initiatives to provide women with increased time and autonomy, since Elvie is renowned for its breast pumping and pelvic floor health devices.

“Elvie has already revolutionized the domains of breast pumping and pelvic floor health to provide postpartum women with increased time and autonomy—and our latest innovation, Elvie Rise, perpetuates this legacy,” he stated.

“We have consulted with numerous postpartum parents, and following feeding, the primary concern was baby soothing and sleep.”

“Elvie Rise provides parents and caregivers the opportunity to reclaim hands-free, guilt-free time for themselves, assured of their baby’s safety and well-being.”

The company has not yet confirmed a release date or price for the Rise in the UK.

Elvie is among approximately 40 British companies showcasing at CES this year, and its announcement follows the statement from the chief executive of the Consumer Technology Association, which organizes CES, indicating a decline in UK participation in the event.

In an effort to protect its market share from growing competition from domestic rivals like Huawei, Apple is implementing exclusive discounts of up to 500 yuan ($68.50) on its most recent iPhone models in China.

On its website, it states that a number of iPhone models are eligible for the four-day promotion, which runs from January 4–7, when purchased with particular payment methods.

There will be the biggest discount of 500 yuan on the premium iPhone 16 Pro, which has a beginning price of 7,999 yuan, and the iPhone 16 Pro Max, which has a starting price of 9,999 yuan. The price of the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus will drop by 400 yuan.

With China’s economy weakening and deflationary pressures causing consumer inflation to fall to a five-month low in November, the discounts come as consumers continue to exercise caution when making purchases.

China is the largest smartphone market in the world, and local manufacturers have stepped up their competitiveness, which has caused Apple to lose market share.

With domestically produced chipsets, Huawei returned to the premium market in August 2023 and has since been a particularly formidable rival. Over the weekend, one of China’s top e-commerce sites saw Huawei reduce the cost of a number of high-end gadgets, including smartphones, by up to 3,000 yuan.

Before making a comeback in the third quarter of 2024, Apple momentarily dropped out of the top five smartphone vendors in China in the second quarter. In China, the U.S. company’s smartphone sales fell 0.3% in the third quarter compared to the same period last year, while Huawei’s sales increased 42%, according to research firm IDC.

Along with other product categories like MacBook computers and iPad tablets, the Apple campaign offers discounts of 200 to 300 yuan on older iPhone models. Customers who wish to receive the discounts must utilize approved payment methods, such as Alipay or WeChat Pay.