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Multinational technology company Microsoft plans to provide high-speed Internet to two million rural American residents through unused television airwaves.
The project, called the Rural Airband Initiative, aims to bring Internet access to remote areas in 12 US states including New York, Texas, and Virginia. It will utilize white spaces, or idle TV channels that have a powerful frequency range that passes through walls and over hills, making the initiative ideal for rural areas.
Around 34 million people in the US lack Internet access, with 23.4 million residing in rural parts of the country. These remote and sparsely populated areas experience difficulty getting fast Internet service because of the expensive costs of building the necessary infrastructure.
Brad Smith, president and chief legal officer of Microsoft, said that the initiative is being implemented because these areas are getting left behind by their urban counterparts in terms of economic and educational advancements. Once these rural areas gain Internet access, Microsoft plans to facilitate training on maximizing the technology to improve education, healthcare, and livelihood.
Smith also disclosed that improving Internet accessibility in rural areas would amount to $8 to $12 billion, a range that is 50% less than the cost of usual fixed wireless technology such as 4G.
Aside from developing the Rural Airband Initiative, Microsoft is urging the US government to align with private investments in broadband infrastructure. This is consistent with the Trump administration’s national $1 trillion infrastructure plan. In addition, the company is calling on the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to provide three channels to be used for broadband Internet across the country.