Diplomatic World_nummer 57

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is the concept of dynamic spectrum sharing and white
spaces created by Digital Dividend (470 - 690 MHz TV
band).Television White Spaces (TVWS) technology has the
potential to cover extended ranges or distances compared
to traditional fixed broadband solutions due to its robust
propagation characteristics. This implies fewer BTS and
CPE infrastructure and hence reduced cost. Other reasons
for the reduced cost on TVWS infrastructure deployment
is the reduced power consumption on the TVWS BTS
compared to traditional telecommunication equipment. These
characteristics attract new approaches to fixed broadband
connectivity in rural areas with high possibility to achieve
universal access to ICT services.
The term TV White Space spectrum refers to frequencies in
the ultra-high frequency (UHF) television broadcast bands that
are either unassigned or unused by existing broadcast or other
licensees. Television broadcasts occupy designated channels in
the UHF bands, with the assignment of channels to broadcasts
varying by location. Not all the designated channels are in
use for broadcast in any given market, giving rise to “White
Spaces” in which a channel that is not used for broadcast
may be available for other purposes. Unused TV channels
are available in the UHF band, allowing for throughput of
up to 30 Mbps. The reach is over 20 km even under nonline
of sight (NLOS) conditions. TVWS radios in the UHF
band can easily overcome hills and other obstacles while still
providing broadband connectivity of over 3 Mbps bandwidth.
NLOS technology is ideal for hilly areas and also allows the
penetration of obstacles such as buildings and forest foliage
as illustrated below, this sets TVWS technology apart from
competing technologies using higher radio frequency bands.
The cost and complexity associated with traditional
wired broadband infrastructure makes TVWS the optimal
solution for the significant broadband coverage gaps in
the underserved areas. Even though market opportunities
for fixed access in developed markets seem limited, TVWS
technology can use the low deployment cost of wireless to
provide wide range of next generation ICT solutions and
quality broadband internet services in developing markets.
UltiNetS is currently deploying a countrywide broadband
infrastructure in for commercial use. On completion, the
network will comprise more than 80 core nodes connected
to speeds of up to 1.24 Gbps, more than 100 TVWS base
stations sectors connecting in excess of 3.000 TVWS client
nodes connected to almost 15.000 Wi-Fi access points and
serving a user subscription of more than 1.2 million.
UltiNetS took a decision to build its own wireless national
backbone and tower locations across the country. “We’ve
bought all that equipment, and we will be the only ISP with
a countrywide footprint. Most operators have cherry picked
the premium users. We’ve taken a different model, we want
to blanket the country and offer services to the underserved
consumers in much simplified and affordable fashion. We
took a conscious decision to build our own towers because
the current co-sitting fees (on other operator’s towers) are
very high.” UltiNetS considers TVWS technology to possess
the ability to change the current communications paradigm
and give users the power to shape and control the processes
of accessing and utilising the communication networks. The
time has come for an integrating technology that simplifies
broadband internet connection for all humanity. TVWS
technology can provide a cost-effective broadband access
solution in areas beyond the reach of traditional DSL and
cable. Currently we have an operational link to a refugee
camp 40 miles north of the capital Lilongwe in Dowa
district. User connectivity is provided through TVWS and
local Wi-Fi access points. According to UNHCR, the camp
has almost 30,000 inhabitants so it is really a town in its
own right. UltiNetS built, manages and operates the wireless
access points covering part of the camp and are looking
to increase in order to provide coverage to the wider local
host community through the purchase of vouchers to enable
access to the Internet.
TVWS IN MALAWI
Malawi is an agro-based economy, meaning with increased
connectivity and real-time access to localized data, TVWS
can bring new efficiencies to this country’s agriculture
industry. Farming drives the rural Malawian economy,
contributing significantly to gross domestic product; it
should be a priority to provide farmers across the country
with all available resources and innovations to help them
succeed domestically and internationally. Esther De Valliere
an entrepreneur and founder of GreenXtraPower Ltd.,
a company based in Malawi producing Moringa leaves
and oil since 2011, is working with UltiNetS to deploy
innovative TVWS-driven agriculture technology solutions.
GreenXtraPower is an ecologically organic farm in district
Nkhotakota with more than 35 workers on a 45 hectare land.
The Moringa leaves and oil are purely organic, pesticide-free
and handmade with care by local farmers and exported to
many countries and is known for its anti-bacterial and antiinflammatory
benefits. Integrating data-driven techniques
in the Moringa farming will help boost productivity by
increasing yields, reducing losses and cutting down input