The articles in the two urls below announce Google’s support for a project to bring internet connections to the half of the world’s population that currently does not have access:
“The search engine has joined forces with John Malone, the cable television magnate, and HSBC to set up O3b Networks, named after the "other 3bn" people for whom fast fibre internet access networks are not likely to be commercially viable.”
Rather than focus on connecting homes to the telecommunications network in each country, the coalition of firms is working to try and establish the network itself:
“They will today announce an order for 16 low-earth orbit satellites from Thales Alenia Space, the French aerospace group, as the first stage in a $750m (£426m) project to connect mobile masts in a swath of countries within five degrees of the equator to fast broadband networks.”
Once in place, the infrastructure will reduce the cost of internet provision, while also improving quality and reliability.
Have a good weekend.
Dave
Bill Werther & David Chandler
Strategic Corporate Social Responsibility
© Sage Publications, 2006
Google backs space-age project to connect 3bn to net via satellite
By Andrew Edgecliffe-Johnson in New York
426 words
9 September 2008
Financial Times
London Ed1
01
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/ee2f738c-7dd0-11dd-bdbd-000077b07658.html
Archived at:
http://www.iterasi.net/openviewer.aspx?sqrlitid=sy59pbbkokig8rjyb5l8nq
Space offers high-speed Net access to Africa
Edgecliffe-Johnson, Andrew
717 words
9 September 2008
Financial Times
Europe Ed1
23
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/591d172a-7de1-11dd-bdbd-000077b07658.html
Archived at:
http://www.iterasi.net/openviewer.aspx?sqrlitid=d9seealcfeie3tk-ycplmw
