spectrum

Our third interview in the spectrum series features APC's internet access specialist Mike Jensen.  Mike has a 30-year history of establishing communications systems in over 45 developing countries. An Internet Hall of Fame inductee, he has been at the forefront of network connectivity since “the very start”. Mike co-founded "The Web", an internet service provider for the non-profit se...

For the second interview in our spectrum series, we had the chance to speak with Peter Bloom, general coordinator and founder of Mexico-based NGO and APC member organisation, Rhizomatica.   Peter established Rhizomatica in 2009 with the mission of increasing telecommunications access by helping communities to build, own and manage their own low-cost, open source communications infrastructu...

In Notice 1003 published in Government Gazette No. 41935 dated 27 September 2018, the Department of Telecommunications and Postal Services (DTPS) invited the public to provide written comments on proposed policy and policy directions to the authority on licensing of unassigned high-demand spectrum. Our submission is premised on the supply-side challenges identified in the White Paper to transfo...

Electromagnetic spectrum is ubiquitous. Like other common goods, spectrum has historically been subject to gradual curtailment and private ownership. At the same time, it continues to be invisible in political discussions. There are currently opportunities to change this scenario, which will largely depend on a new understanding of what the spectrum is and how to use it, as well as significant ...

This member story was featured in the 2017 APC Annual Report, as part of our work on access. The Nupef Institute supports the implementation of community networks in areas lacking internet access, both through the deployment of networks in regions that are not accessible (such as the Marohao communities in Maranhão where Nupef operated through 2017), and through the circulation of information...

Based on a review of the basic concepts regarding electromagnetic spectrum and its management, this article explores a few differences between the notions of “free spectrum” and “open spectrum” in order to understand some challenges related to freedom of expression in the 21st century. [1] The spectrum, invisible Today, it is difficult to imagine something more ubiquitous than the elect...

In 2016, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunication Commission (CRTC) ruled that broadband Internet is a basic telecommunication service. The CRTC set the ambitious goal of ensuring 90 per cent of Canadian householders would have access to broadband speeds of 50Mbps download and 10Mbps upload. The unfortunate reality in Canada is that the remaining 10 per cent of Canadians that will be...

In a new position paper from APC, we unpack the underlying causes of limited connectivity, the shortcomings of current initiatives, and propose a set of policy responses to address the access gap. Affordable and reliable internet access has become a vital means to exercise fundamental human rights and support development. In the words of former UN Special Rapporteur Frank La Rue, “the in...