Spectrum Refarming and Digital Dividend Could Triple Irish Broadband Coverage

The cost of deploying next-generation wireless broadband to rural Ireland could be reduced by two thirds if sufficient digital dividend and 'refarmed' spectrum was made available for wireless broadband, according to Analysys Mason.

Speaking at the Telecommunications and Internet Federation (TIF) seminar titled "EU Spectrum Policy", Amit Nagpal, Partner at Analysys Mason, highlighted the significance of the digital dividend, saying: "Ireland and Europe can gain significant benefits from a coordinated and timely approach to the digital dividend spectrum made available by the move to digital terrestrial television (DTT)."

Nagpal adds: "Our previous work for the European Commission showed the clear benefits for an EU-wide approach to this spectrum. Coordination would enable equipment to be designed for the entire European market. This could drive down costs by taking advantage of the potential economies of scale. It would also ensure consistent performance of devices and networks across the EU, which would facilitate roaming, and minimise interference.

Ireland stands to gain particular benefit from the digital dividend, however, due to the significant proportion of the population living in rural areas. For these areas, the low-frequency spectrum from the digital dividend could extend the reach of LTE and WiMAX base stations and consequently reduce the capital costs of providing next-generation wireless broadband by a factor of three.

The 'refarming' of 900MHz spectrum could allow wireless broadband services to be deployed using spectrum currently exclusively used for mobile voice services. Similarly to the digital dividend, this process could also provide crucial low-frequency spectrum for the deployment of next-generation rural broadband, and steps to make this spectrum available for use by different technologies are to be welcomed."

Next-generation broadband is a vital step for any country seeking to build a knowledge economy, and Analysys Mason is currently working on a number of next-generation broadband projects globally.