Only about 40% of the world's population currently has access to the Internet and annual growth has already slowed from 10.5% in 2012 to 8% in 2013 and 7.9% in 2014. Any further growth will require cost-effective access such as a global satellite network. Thanks to the mass production of micro-satellites, and the construction of a broadband internet that will operate using groups of satellites, many possibilities are opening up.
Author: Nirmalathas Ampalawanapilai Thas, website, Theconversation
Director of the Melbourne Networked Society Institute, in Australia, professor of electrical and electronics engineering, as well as co-founder and academic director of the accelerator program of the University of Melbourne (a program to encourage start-up companies).
We are at the beginning of a new space race, designed to connect billions of people to the Internet through a global satellite network. The European aerospace manufacturer Airbus announced earlier this month that it will design and build up to 900 satellites for OneWeb, a privately owned company of which Richard Branson is a board member.
OneWeb says in a statement that the program's satellite launches will begin in 2018 to provide internet access at a reasonable price for everyone by providing broadband at high speed and with low latency, at a total rate (for all users) will reach 10 terabits per second, meaning 2-50 megabits per second per user.
It's an ambitious move that follows reports that entrepreneur Elon Musk's SpaceX is seeking US government approval to launch a network of 4,000 satellites into space to provide similar Internet access.
Internet access via satellite is nothing new. Australia's NBN plans to launch a satellite in September that will help connect people in large areas to its high-speed network.
But what makes OneWeb and SpaceX's ventures interesting is their plan to connect people anywhere on Earth, similar to the plan Google unveiled last year. Facebook also announced a similar project - internet.org which aims to make it easier for more people everywhere to connect to the Internet.
A real WORLD WIDE WEB network
Only about 40% of the world's population currently has access to the Internet and annual growth has already slowed from 10.5% in 2012 to 8% in 2013 and 7.9% in 2014. Any further growth will require cost-effective access such as a global satellite network. Thanks to the mass production of micro-satellites, and the construction of a broadband internet that will operate using groups of satellites, many possibilities are opening up.
Big internet companies like Facebook and Google make business sense to increase internet access in the developing world. Having benefited from the huge penetration of Internet connectivity among the residents of the developed countries, these companies see an opportunity in the still untapped market among those who do not currently have access to the Internet.
Governments must take advantage of these opportunities and connect residents to the Internet and thereby achieve many positive benefits for the community. The Internet supports development by giving the younger generation the opportunity to acquire knowledge and skills and contribute to national growth. This connection can also help the older population stay active and healthy.
Connectivity changes all areas of life such as transportation, production, logistics and environmental planning. A government's way to achieve greater efficiency and get a better cost-effectiveness ratio depends on the ability of their citizens to connect to the Internet. Access to digital connectivity is an essential component of the networked society and it is essential that there be equal and universal access all over the world.
Access should be reasonably priced
The Alliance for Affordable Internet has long emphasized the need to increase the proportion of those able to access the Internet by providing affordable Internet to a larger percentage of the world's population.
Its latest Affordability Report reveals that only 5% of the population in the 49 least developed countries are connected to the Internet. For the 2 billion people living on less than $2 a day, basic broadband access can exceed 40% of their monthly income.
The low income in many areas does not create enough demand to justify investing in internet connection. This leaves these communities in a vicious circle, where the gap between the connected and those who are not is widening. A global satellite network may be one of the solutions that will allow such access.
But how will it work?
Providing a broadband network of this type requires overcoming significant challenges in the planning, deployment and operation of global infrastructures and at a reasonable price for those suffering from economic hardship or living in remote areas.
Large constellations of satellites require fast and economical transmission technology (backhaul) that will provide connectivity and allow expanding the deployment of the Internet. Transmission refers to the connectivity required for the satellites and the Internet in order to provide customers with Internet access. This connectivity can be achieved using laser beams or microwaves operating at millimeter frequencies. It also requires internal systems to maintain the relationship in space between the individual satellite and other satellites despite changes in their relative positions.
Alternatively, the satellites can create the essential transmission by connecting to ground stations located near major Internet access gateways. Either way, satellite networks also need ground stations and Internet access gateways, which add to the cost and complexity of network deployment and management.
By using large constellations of satellites, we can expect that some satellites will not function at any given moment. The operators are required to consider the operational limitations and take into account the risks of losing satellites. This is the reason why, as part of the OneWeb/Airbus deal, 900 satellites will be built, but the plan is to launch only 700.
Satellite-based broadband access may only be within the reach of those living in rural communities in developed countries and for emergency communications. The key question is whether operators will be able to leverage these initial markets to provide affordable access to the 2 billion people who earn two dollars a day.
The world needs connectivity and it is needed now in places where it is already almost impossible from the technical point of view. Microsatellites could provide real potential worth exploring and could be the driving fuel of a new space race, this time among Internet companies.
For information on the site The Conversion
Disclosure: Thas Ampalavanapillai Nirmalathas is a professor of electrical and electronics engineering. He is the Director of the Melbourne Networked Society Institute which has received funding from a wide range of sources, including the University of Melbourne, industry partners as well as the Victorian State Government. He is also the founder and academic director of the Melbourne accelerator program which helps to promote an entrepreneurial culture through the promotion of start-up companies. The views expressed in this article are entirely those of the author and do not reflect the views of his employer - the University of Melbourne. He receives funding from the Australian Research Council. The University of Melbourne provides funding as a founding partner of Theconversation.au.
