Chapter 5 - TV White Space Technology for Affordable Internet Connectivity

Abstract

In spite of the spectacular growth in internet usage, a staggering 47% of the global population is still unconnected. In Indian context, there are only 159 million broadband subscribers in a population of about 1.34 billion. The rural scenario is even worse. The fiber connectivity reaches only at designated points in the vicinity of the rural areas leaving a large part still unserved. Thus, we propose wireless solution based on TV White Space as a potential option to provide connectivity in the unserved rural areas. In addition to providing an efficient technology solution, it is important to ensure that there is a sustainable return-on-investment for the service provider and an affordable subscription price for the end user. For this, we propose a model which ensures active involvement of villagers who will eventually promote and sustain the broadband.