When it comes to broadband, Sweden gives a whole new meaning to
the expression "taking ownership."
For in that country broadband users are also its owners.
It's like assuming a mortgage, says Bill St. Arnaud, senior
director for advanced networks at Ottawa-based Canarie Inc.
"[Swedish] homeowners can purchase last mile infrastructure for an
equivalent of US$20 a month."
Canarie is a non-profit organization that promotes advanced
Internet development in Canada. It seeks to foster widespread
adoption of faster, more efficient networks, as well as innovative
products, applications and services to run on these networks.
That's quite a daunting goal, considering how far behind many
Canadian cities are when it comes to hi-tech infrastructure and
services. WiFi services in Toronto are currently among the most
expensive in the world, St. Arnaud says, adding that we would do
better if we took a page from the Swedes.
The telecom strategy in Sweden, he says, uncouples
infrastructure from service. "The State provides the
infrastructure, [while] each community develops local solutions to
[meet] their specific needs."
The Canarie exec likened it to the difference between renting an
apartment and owning a house. "With users owning broadband and
renting it out they can put in all sorts of value-added functions."
He contrasted that with the situation in a Canadian city like
Toronto, which probably has the most expensive WiFi in the
world.
St. Arnaud said Toronto Hydro Telecom, which provides WiFi
coverage in the city, is overpricing the service. "It's not that
what we're doing in Toronto is wrong, but Toronto Hydro Telecom has
made it extremely expensive to obtain the service."
Toronto Hydro Telecom charges $12 per metre, per month while
Montreal collects only $2 and the U.S. charges 50 cents, he
noted.
And in Sweden the government is really willing to put its money
where its fibre is. The Swedish government has set aside US$20
billion for a "dark fibre" network. The funding pool will be used
to connect main communities to neighbouring communities forming a
grid across the country. St. Arnaud said Sweden's system of state
tax incentives encourages each community to develop their own
systems to connect businesses, residents and institutions.
The national government advises local governments on how the
fibre networks should be built to fit the national IT
structure.
"The cities own the conduits and they can lease it to companies,
which then provide specific services the community needs." This and
competition among bidding services will bring down the cost of
networking said St. Arnaud.
While competitive forces in urban centres such as Toronto and
Montreal may help to bring down the cost of high-speed connections,
similar market forces are unsustainable in widely dispersed remote
areas, according to another panelist. "
The result is a patchy and uneven service between communities,"
said Diana Milenovic, senior vice-president of marketing and
mobility at SaskTel the dominant telecom company in Regina, Sask.
SaskTel currently provides connectivity to some 300 rural
communities in Saskatchewan.
Milenovic said it's very hard for some communities to depend on
local capital and technology skills to develop and maintain
networks. "One community is in quite a bind now because the local
tech guru has decided to move."
At least one expert believes that barriers to community
networking in Canada are now lower.
"The technology has become less expensive here," said Stefan
Dubowski, editor of Decima's Telemanagement, a journal dedicated to
Canadian business communications technology.
He said whereas [previously] the business proposition for
building a network in a remote area was not there, today the
situation is different.
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