The federal government says it will focus on “backbone” Internet connections to remote and rural communities with its five-year program to invest $500-million in expanded broadband access.
The government first announced the funding in its spring budget and Navdeep Bains, minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development, revealed some new details of the program, dubbed “Connect to Innovate,” on Thursday.
Although the department shared little specific information it did say that after consulting with Internet providers and other stakeholders, it plans to emphasize funding for “backbone” networks, which it compared to “digital highways that move large amounts of data in and out of communities at high speeds.”
“Connect to Innovate is primarily focused on the construction of new backbone infrastructure… to connect institutions like schools, hospitals, First Nation band offices and libraries, as well as to improve residential, business and mobile services,” the department said in brief background document.
“Building this infrastructure will give rural and remote areas access to the digital economy; it is the modern equivalent of building roads or railway spurs,” it said in a separate press release.
Remote, hard-to-reach communities often face difficulty with reliable and fast transport of traffic to and from the broader Internet. Backbone connections can be provided by satellite, microwave technology and, ideally, fibre-optic cables.
During an April hearing at the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC), many participants said better backbone connections are badly needed for places like Nunavut, which has 25 fly-in communities.
The CRTC is planning to release its decision from that hearing on “basic telecom services” next Wednesday and could announce levies on Internet revenues to help pay for expanded broadband access.
During the hearing, CRTC chairman Jean-Pierre Blais said he was disappointed Canada lacked a national strategy on broadband deployment. Internet advocacy group OpenMedia pointed to that criticism on Thursday, stating that while any investment is welcome, “What we need is a comprehensive National Broadband Strategy, rather than an underwhelming piecemeal approach.”
The Connect to Innovate program, which will run until 2021, aims to expand access to 300 communities. The deadline for companies seeking funding under the initiative is March 13. The program will also allocate some funding for “last-mile” projects that directly connect individual users’ homes.
The previous government launched two earlier programs to extend Internet access, beginning with an investment of $225-million over three years that started in 2009-2010 and followed by the $305-million Connecting Canadians initiative launched in 2014.
Both programs contributed funds to applicants – ranging from large players like Telus and Bell to small Internet service providers – for discrete individual projects that used both wired and wireless technologies.
Connecting Canadians awarded funds to more than 70 projects that have been publicly announced. Its goal was to support the delivery of services that met target download speeds of 5 Mbps and upload speeds of 1 Mbps upload target to 98 per cent of households by 2017.
The press release and background materials provided Thursday did not specifically set target speeds, but suggested the government would continue earlier efforts to ensure all Canadians have access to minimum download speeds of five megabits per second and upload speeds of 1 Mbps.
Follow Christine Dobby on Twitter: @christinedobby
Also on The Globe and Mail
More Related to this Story
Topics
powered by sue.ng a legal search engine