Nominet and Broadway Partners tackle digital divide in remote areas with TV white space

[Acorn Newsbot]

Nominet and Broadway Partners have today announced that they will be working together to use TV white space (TVWS) to power better broadband coverage for remote parts of Scotland and Wales. The commercial broadband rollout will the first of its kind in Europe.

The broadband rollout is starting on the Isle of Arran, it will initially cover the Machrie area on the west coast, an area which really struggles with poor broadband and phone connections, and then extend across the island over the coming months.

Tourism is the main industry on Arran making better connectivity a key priority as during peak season, the population grows from 5,000 to 25,000. In addition, as broadband speeds increase elsewhere, websites are becoming more content-rich and internet services are more demanding of bandwidth, making them harder to use and widening the digital divide for remote communities.

TV white space is the name given to the parts of wireless spectrum that were freed up as part of the digital TV switchover in the UK. It can create two-way communications at relatively high-data rates over long distances, enabling connectivity in large open areas where it would be inconvenient to put in new connections.

Nominet was the first company in the UK to qualify as a TVWS database operator, honing its technology during trials in Oxford. The available set of TVWS frequencies varies, so the database that Nominet has developed performs complex calculations that tell devices which frequencies they can use in that area, at what power and for how long.

Russell Haworth, CEO of Nominet said: “The Arran rollout shows that TV white space can reach places that other technologies cannot, and paves the way for further deployment of this dynamic spectrum management technology. It’s fantastic to see our proven expertise in new technologies like TV white space is now providing the key building block to help remote areas to finally get online.”

Michael Armitage, founding Director of Broadway Partners said: “TV white space has proved its mettle, cutting through hard to reach rural forested areas on Arran which, in fixed wireless terms, is pretty much unheard of. This technology will be a powerful tool in the drive to deliver affordable broadband access for all communities throughout Scotland and abroad.”

For more information on how to connect to the new service, please contact Broadway Partners on [email protected]

About Broadway Partners

Broadway Partners are a group of individuals who care passionately that large parts of the UK do not get the quality of broadband that they deserve. Broadway is a member of the Social Stock Exchange, which means they have to demonstrate the positive social impact of what they do, in addition to any return they generate for their investors.

The post Nominet and Broadway Partners tackle digital divide in remote areas with TV white space appeared first on Nominet.

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[martin-s]

WTF Nominet. Just how many hobby projects can you come up with as an organisation?

 

[Admin]

Totally inappropriate use of registration fees.

 

[martin-s]

Should be the sort of thing the Nominet Trust gets involved with, if anyone.

 

[ian]

Have Nominet finished painting lines in the car park now?

 

[RobM]

How's this being funded?

 

[invincible]

It's part of the aim to diversify Nominet's income, of which its ability to diversify was voted through at an EGM (#2 I think, end of 2006). I believe I voted in favour of permitting the company to diversify, as a paid up Nominet member at that time, during that EGM vote. Any other Nominet member here remember how they voted back then?

One needs to read through to this to fully understand the project. In my opinion it doesn't seem to be a million miles away from running a DNS database (i.e. registry operations, Nominet's core business). Diversification is funded from Nominet's sources of income, naturally including revenue generated from domain name registrations.

 

[Skinner]

Do any of these "side projects" generate any income to supplement whats spent ?

 

[martin-s]

Within the industry there is a belief that Web addresses will replace phone numbers within the next ten years.

10 years later...

 

[invincible]

10 years later...

It was the first reference (here's a second) I found detailing the result of the November 2006 EGM #2, where the changes to the Mem & Arts were approved permitting Nominet to broaden its commercial focus, and not my intention to get into a debate about the merits of ENUM. If you specifically want to read about ENUM successes and failures see this. Not something I wish to debate though.

What date did you first become a Nominet member @martin-s ?

 

[invincible]

Do any of these "side projects" generate any income to supplement whats spent ?

The intention is the diversification will ultimately be profitable and commercial viable. Compariable R&D spending in this sort of area wouldn't be expected to be profitable from day one at any corporate. Nominet is not doing one man band business.

 

[martin-s]

What date did you first become a Nominet member @martin-s ?

Not until August 2012 (newbie concerns for management of the namespace don't count, obvs.)

 

[invincible]

Not until August 2012 (newbie concerns for management of the namespace don't count, obvs.)

I simply wasn't aware of when you had become a Nominet member and so couldn't know whether you would have had the opportunity to vote in that particular EGM, November 2006.

Obviously you would have had the opportunity to read the Mem & Arts in August 2012, prior to becoming a member should you have wanted to, which would have provided you with an understanding of the remit of the company at the time (as voted for by past and existing members, including me).

 

[martin-s]

Obviously you would have had the opportunity to read the Mem & Arts in August 2012, prior to becoming a member should you have wanted to, which would have provided you with an understanding of the remit of the company at the time.

I have never heard the memoradum and articles of association mentioned so many times by anyone else in relation to any other company as you do with Nominet!

Perhaps when they were originally changed, the members had no idea what a future executive might read into their remit.

 

[invincible]

I have never heard the memoradum and articles of association mentioned so many times by anyone else in relation to any other company as you do with Nominet!

Perhaps when they were originally changed, the members had no idea what a future executive might read into their remit.

I think you would be minded to do some searching on this forum. There's plenty of discussion here about proposed changes to the Men & Arts from a decade ago, all stemming from EGM #1.

Begin here and here for EGM #1 (early 2006) and here for EGM #2 (late 2006).

 

[martin-s]

Interesting, thank you. (Not sure why the bold emphasis was necessary, I wasn't around on this forum until 2012 either.)

Edit: A superbly accurate quote from FC Domains on one of those threads:

It has all been, this is what we want to do. Don't bother to try and understand it, just sign here.

Edit: And another from a retired member:

What is Nominet, the members or the management? The members have spoken and yet the management won't have it.

 

[martin-s]

Another interesting quote from Nominet Director, Jay Daley at the time:

The scope resolution means that we can now bid for UK ENUM, which we will do when the tender is released. It also means that we are theoretically able to move into new business areas, related to Internet identifiers. However any such plans would be carefully considered and consulted upon.

What's that smelly smell?

This quote from @Whois-Search says it all:

What happens if ... someone who is in to making money takes over?

 

[invincible]

Interesting, thank you. (Not sure why the bold emphasis was necessary, I wasn't around on this forum until 2012 either.)

If I didn't I genuinely couldn't be sure people responding would take notice. Not aimed at anyone at all in particular.

I don't have those quotes in context, so would need to read through those threads, but the end result of EGM #2 a decade ago was changes were voted through.

Another interesting quote from Nominet Director, Jay Daley at the time:

Director of I.T. at the time. He wasn't ever on the board.

I thought you'd enjoy those links.

 

[martin-s]

My point stands - in my opinion and for the good of the namespace, Nominet's executive need a more powerful check and balance than is currently in place.

 

[invincible]

My point stands - in my opinion and for the good of the namespace, Nominet's executive need a more powerful check and balance than is currently in place.

Noted.