Taylor Swift and the Paris Olympics smash mobile data records

Mobile data records have been smashed as the phenomenon that is the Taylor Swift Eras Tour sweeps the globe, and the 2024 Paris Olympic Games attracts 15 million people to Paris in the largest sporting event ever held.

Swifties and Olympic visitors alike captured  terabytes of memories on their smartphones and shared them in their millions on social media.

These were not just live events, they were global, shared experiences, with millions of fans connecting through their phones, eager to capture and share every moment.

The record-breaking mobile data consumption seen during Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour and the Paris Olympics is a clear indication of where we’re headed in the digital age as live events blend with our online lives. 

Taylor Swift's Eras Tour: A Digital Phenomenon

It was no surprise that the Taylor Swift Eras Tour was a global sell-out with tickets snapped up in minutes, and thousands of fans swarming stadiums, joined by more 'gating' outside to share the atmosphere. What no one anticipated, however, was the massive digital footprint that each concert would leave behind.

• Australian Swifties consumed data like no other crowd in Australian history. Taylor Swift's Melbourne concerts in February 2024, were each attended by 96,000 fans - her largest crowd ever. At each concert fans used an average of 15TB of data  - and it would have been more if the network could have handled it. (More on this later)

• Responding to the Melbourne spike, Telstra provided COWs (Cell-On-Wheels) to boost bandwidth inside Accor Stadium, Sydney.

• Taylor Swift has smashed records in multiple countries for the most mobile data used at her Eras concerts. During a standalone concert at Wembley Stadium in London, 5.57 TB of data was used, beating major sporting events at the stadium including the recent UEFA Champions League and the FA Cup Finals.

Fans flooded platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and Twitter with videos, photos, and live updates. The demand for real-time content drove people to use their mobile data more than ever before, sharing clips from the concert, discussing setlists, and even live streaming portions of the event for those who couldn’t attend.

Another significant contributor to the data spike was the use of apps dedicated to enhancing the concert experience. From augmented reality filters to interactive features within concert apps, these tools added layers to the live experience, but they also required substantial data usage. 

Finally, the communal aspect of the Eras Tour was greater than we have ever seen for any other performer, and extended beyond those physically present at the concerts. Swift parties for those who couldn't get tickets abounded and fans worldwide tuned into live streams and engaged in digital conversations, effectively turning each event into an online party. This collective engagement amplified data usage far beyond what was typical for a single concert, as millions of users simultaneously consumed and created content.

The Eras Tour illustrates how a single event can evolve into a massive digital phenomenon, driving unprecedented levels of mobile data consumption.

But it isn’t just music lovers who have pushed data limits to new heights this year —sports fans did their part too, as we’ll explore in the next section with the Paris Olympics.

Image Credit: EE, part of British Telecom

The Paris Olympics: A Global Digital Surge

The Olympic Games have always been a spectacle of global proportions, and the Paris Olympics were no exception. However, among all the sporting records broken at the Games, there was also a new record set for the amount of mobile data consumed, eclipsing all other sporting events including the F1 and the FIFA World Cup.

As the world tuned in to watch athletes compete for gold, the 2024 Paris Olympics didn’t just draw viewers to their television screens; it pulled millions into the digital sphere, leading to a surge in mobile data usage unlike anything seen before.

More Olympics fans than ever before used the IOC’s various digital and social platforms to follow the Games:

• Unprecedented results on Olympics social media handles, with over 12 billion engagements, more than double that of Tokyo 2020

• Over 32 million new followers joined Olympics social media during Paris 2024, more than tripling the growth seen during Tokyo 2020

• Record usage of the Olympic web and app, reaching approximately 300 million people during Paris 2024, the highest for any Olympic Games edition

• No. 1 sports app in over 70 territories and the no. 1 app overall in key markets, including the USA, France and Italy

One of the primary drivers of this surge was the sheer scale of the event. With over 200 nations participating and a global audience of billions, the demand for real-time updates was immense. Fans didn’t just want to watch the events; they wanted to be part of the conversation, sharing their thoughts on social media, discussing performances in real time, and even following live updates through various sports apps.

The Paris Olympics also saw a significant increase in streaming services, with many viewers opting to watch the events on their mobile devices. Unlike traditional broadcasting, which concentrates viewers around televisions, streaming allows for more personalised, on-the-go viewing experiences. Whether fans were commuting, at work, or attending watch parties, they accessed high-definition streams on their phones, further pushing data usage to new heights.

Additionally, the rise of immersive technologies played a crucial role. Virtual and augmented reality experiences, available through Olympic apps and partner platforms, offered fans a new way to engage with the Games. These experiences, while innovative, required substantial data to deliver high-quality visuals and real-time interaction, contributing significantly to the overall data consumption.

The combination of a global audience, increased mobile streaming, and the use of cutting-edge technology created the perfect storm for record-breaking mobile data usage during the Paris Olympics. But what can we learn from these two vastly different events? In the next section, we’ll compare the data trends between the Eras Tour and the Olympics to uncover key insights.

How did the telco's manage the demand?

Taylor Swift data demand was difficult to predict for Australian telcos

Taylor Swift played to a sold-out MCG over three nights in February 2024. The 96,000 fans in the stadium was the biggest crowd she has ever played to. 

Unsurprisingly, this massive crowd generated unprecedented data consumption - and the networks struggled to meet demand.

On the Telstra network alone, concert goers used around 34.85 TB of data, or 12 TB each night.

Optus said fans used more than double the data than the crowd at Ed Sheeran's show at the same venue in 2023, churning through 1.7TB at every show. 

Meanwhile, Vodafone recorded 1TB of data per night, bringing the average across the major providers to 15TB per concert.

The telcos plan ahead for events that will clearly cause a data spike however ultimately they have to make an educated guess.

Australian Swifties consumed data like no other crowd in Australian history and caught the telcos by surprise.

Telstra's executive in charge of technology development and innovation, Channa Seneviratne explained the challenge.

The 15TB per Melbourne concert was more than Swifties data consumption at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles - 12TB, Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta - 12TB, and Soldier Field in Chicago - 7.2TB. It was significantly more than the 5.5TB used at Wembley in London, and that was a record for that venue. 

It was also significantly less than fans consumed at one of Taylor Swift's shows at Nissan Stadium in Nashville which reached 23TB on the AT&T network.  

Image: Taylor Swift Concert Melbourne Cricket Ground February 2024

Orange delivers 'the most digital Games ever'

Paris was the fifth Olympic Games to use 5G technology. At the 2018 Winter Olympics in South Korea, the telecommunications company KT Corp. trialed 5G for a limited time with mixed results. During the Tokyo Olympics, which took place in the pandemic era of 2021, mobile-data technology was more widely adopted, however physical attendance numbers were smaller.

For the Paris Games’ organisers chose French telecommunications company, Orange, as the sole connectivity partner entrusting the operator with providing a network that could accommodate over 15 million people over a four-week period.

Orange deployed hundreds of new 5G antennas across 32 key spots and 120 official sites across the city. Additionally, Orange offered temporary 5G access to all its 4G customers during the Games, helping to distribute the network load more efficiently.

Orange also established a private 5G network to operate separately from Orange’s commercial network. 21 cells operated across five sites: 12 for the opening ceremony, three at Marseille Marina for the sailing competition, four at the Stade de France for athletics, and two at two other venues. They utilised the 3.8GHz-4.2GHz spectrum. – a dedicated service constructed on a 6km stretch along the Seine for boating events, and in several venues including the Stade de France, Arena Bercy and Paris La Défense Arena.

The network used the “standalone” version of 5G (5G SA), which means not just the radios but also the core of the network – the control centre for the entire system – has been upgraded beyond 4G.

Orange Events chief technology and information officer Bertrand Rojat., has explained the approach:

“One thing that’s very important. In France, we don’t use Wi-Fi, we use mobile networks. If we go to a stadium and use the mobile, Wi-Fi is not the natural choice. So, the Wi-Fi in the venues that we are deploying is for media, for the organising committee, for all the technical staff.

“For the public, this is why we have enhanced all our mobile coverage, to enable mobile connectivity to all spectators including in big stadiums, all using our mobile network."

2TB of data in one hour at Olympics Rugby Sevens Final 

France won 16 gold medals during the Games, including one in the Rugby Sevens — for which Rojat suggested that they deserved two medals: one for rugby and another for the mobile network.

During the Rugby final, which took place at the Stade de France on 27 July, Orange measured more than 2Tb of data in just one hour on its mobile network deployed at the event.

The Leon Marchand Factor

Another success for the French during this year’s Olympics was superstar swimmer Leon Marchand. During one of his finals, other events had to stop because so many attendees were watching him compete on their mobile devices, Rojat claims.

Overall, Orange measured more than 100Tb of data in the Paris Arena during that hour; “We have never seen that kind of number before,” he added.

What does this level of mobile data consumption mean for the future?

The record-breaking mobile data consumption seen during Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour and the Paris Olympics is a clear indication of where we’re headed in the digital age.

As live events continue to blend with our online lives, the demand for mobile connectivity will only intensify, posing both challenges and opportunities.

For mobile network providers, the surge in data usage foreshadows the growth in data demand. Events like these are no longer outliers but the new norm, and networks are preparing themselves to handle both the growth and these massive spikes in demand. The 5G network is key to being able to manage data growth and decommissioning of 3G networks and re-purposing of spectrum to 5G is crucial. Similarly, the evolution to Standalone (SA) 5G will accelerate the ability to cope with data-intensive events through the addition of private networks and network slicing.

Event organisers will also need to rethink their strategies. The success of the Eras Tour and the Paris Olympics in generating massive digital engagement shows that fans and viewers crave more than just the event itself—they want a fully immersive experience that they can share with others. This means integrating digital features that enhance engagement, such as interactive apps, augmented reality experiences, and social media-friendly content. By anticipating the digital needs of their audience, organisers can create events that resonate far beyond the physical venue.

Mobile data consumption is growing at 30 percent p.a. in Australia

Even outside of events, data consumption is skyrocketing.

Telstra, our largest provider, reports that demand for data has been increasing by about 30 per cent each year, citing mobile devices as the main driver. 

According to Ericsson, total mobile data traffic across the globe is projected to triple between 2023 and 2029. Ericsson Mobility Report June 2024

Looking ahead, it’s clear that the lines between live events and digital experiences will continue to blur. Whether it’s a concert, a sporting event, or any other large-scale gathering, the digital footprint of these events will only grow. This trend not only underscores the importance of mobile connectivity but also highlights the need for innovation in how we plan, manage, and engage with live events in the future.

As we reflect on these recent events, one thing is certain: the future of live events is not just about being there in person, but about being connected—online, in real-time, and with the world.

About MobileCorp

MobileCorp is a Sydney-based communications technology company. We support enterprise and business by providing managed endpoints and ICT services including mobile device security, mobile device management, expense management and managed connectivity solutions. We are a Telstra Platinum Partner and the Telstra Mobility Partner of the Year 2023.