(12 June 2010 1:15 pm)

MUMBAI: Internet cloud security vendor iSheriff has warned that the FIFA World Cup will not only affect worker productivity, but may also disrupt critical Web-based business resources through excessive bandwidth consumption on sites such as YouTube.

The Fifa World Cup is expected to draw a global audience of almost five billion fans.

It probably won’t come as a shock to some employers that workers might be calling in sick the morning after their team has played. Most businesses accept that these kinds of events will distract their staff and reduce productivity at some point. What many companies don’t realize is how events like this can hijack their network bandwidth and disrupt legitimate business functions.

iSheriff CEO Oscar Marquez says, "Fans accessing streaming media and live coverage at work can prevent productive employees accessing online tools such as Salesforce.com or add major delays to file downloads”.

iSheriff says that YouTube often accounts for more than 75 per cent of normal business bandwidth consumption in typical organizations, with that use set to skyrocket during the World Cup. The company suggests that while total bans on social networking and streaming media can be heavy-handed, there are a range of steps that companies can take to manage bandwidth use and mitigate disruption to their business and productivity.

For companies that want to preserve their bandwidth, but don’t want to cut off World Cup news and coverage completely, iSheriff suggests providing dedicated World Cup computers in the staff room or cafeteria alongside television coverage.

“If you establish central World Cup access in your staff common room or cafeteria, you encourage more efficient use of bandwidth while helping workers keep in touch with their teams in a more appropriate way,” adds Marquez.

iSheriff says that its Web Security Service can control access to sites such as YouTube by workstation or user, enabling organizations to lock down work computers during the Cup while allowing free access to sports sites and streaming media from nominated computers.

“However organisation’s choose to manage worker productivity during the World Cup, the key is communication. Keep workers informed of their responsibilities and the organisation’s expectations of appropriate Internet use during the cup and hopefully everyone can enjoy the occasion productively,” said Marquez.