Rural California ISP launches white spaces broadband for remote customers
It's not quite Google Fiber—but white spaces is a step up for
underserved areas.
by Jon Brodkin
Ars Technica
Apr 19 2013, 10:36am CDT
http://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2013/04/rural-california-isp-launches-white-spaces-broadband-for-remote-customers/
An Internet service provider in California says it has deployed one of
"the first commercial application[s] of TV White-Space broadband" to a
rural area where many people lack strong Internet access.
The ISP, Cal.net, said in an announcement yesterday that "[o]ver 59,000
residents in our rural service area have had little or no quality
Internet access." Many of those could be served with Cal.net's new white
spaces network, which uses empty TV channels to send long-range wireless
signals. Cal.net built the service using RuralConnect, a set of base
station antennas and white space broadband radios made by a manufacturer
called Carlson. The latest version of RuralConnect unveiled last month
promises speeds of up to 16Mbps, although Cal.net's website promises
wireless service of up to just 6Mbps.
Cal.net's white space service is available to businesses and residents
in the Gold Country region in central and northeastern California. "The
project comprises multiple transmission sites delivering broadband to
several hundred heretofore un-serviceable subscribers in El Dorado
County," Cal.net said. The company didn't say how many customers it has
so far, but it said one business owner is using the service to remotely
monitor remote store locations, while a brewery owner is now using white
space instead of satellite for video conferencing.
We wrote a story last month about how a solar-powered white space
network is bringing 16Mbps Internet service to people in Kenya who
lacked electricity. In the US, white space networks have mostly been
limited to pilot projects, but a planned spectrum auction could free up
more airwaves for such services. The first commercial white space
network in the US, in North Carolina, was launched in January 2012.
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