Digital have-nots in very rural or remote locations in New Zealand, Africa, South America and Australia, take heart! Google has been experimenting with a technology that uses high altitude balloons carried by winds high above airplane traffic lanes to beam Internet access at 3G speeds to receivers on the ground.
The project is aptly named Project Loon, because, well, the idea does sound kind of crazy when you first hear it. But this week, Google proved it works.
According to Michael Cassidy, Director of Project Management at Google, Google thinks it might be possible to build a ring of these high altitude balloons, flying around the globe on stratospheric winds, which would be able to beam Internet access to subscribers below. The focus would be bringing some measure of Internet access to Earthlings who live in very rural or remote areas. Further, should there be a natural disaster and normal communications systems are down, this could bring communications quickly to these stricken areas to assist with urgent disaster aid. The public safety applications should not be overlooked.
This week Google tested its balloons in Christchurch, New Zealand. The site was aptly chosen, if you recall the devastating earthquakes that struck Christchurch in 2011, cutting it off from modern communications. About 50 balloons were launched and successfully maneuvered to the proper places to beam Internet signals down to about 50 volunteer testers. The loony idea worked and speeds are supposed to be comparable to 3G Internet speeds.
Why is this so important to these rural and remote citizens of the world? According to a McKinsey study in October 2011, Internet accounts for 3.4% of GDP in 13 countries it looked at and 21% in GDP growth in the last five years for mature countries. There are two billion Internet users worldwide. Further there is a 10% increase in productivity for small businesses from Internet usage.
In short, Internet access to these very rural and remote places may help these people improve their economic circumstances by opening up their markets, and increasing their access to important information like weather, market conditions, etc. Further the educational, public safety and social aspects of broadband access must also be factored in. While it seems clear that this experiment is just that, the promise of alternative wireless broadband access through new technologies is exciting. Google is to be commended for pursuing this idea to this stage. and giving hope to those who desire the Internet but cannot get it.
