Floating transmitters will take internet to remote areas

Google Project Loon:

By Lalin Fernandopulle

The next round of tests for Google's balloon-powered high-speed internet service known as Project Loon will be carried out within the next six to 12 months, a senior official of the Information Communication Technology Agency (ICTA) told Observer Business.

The first test was carried out in Sri Lanka in February following an agreement between Google and ICTA mid last year. ICTA Program Manager (Information Infrastructure), S. Gavashkar said the first test was successful as the balloon travelled to Sri Lanka from the USA and its electronic components were in a proper functioning state to provide telecommunication transmission from the balloon to the ground station without an issue.

'Crash landing'

The landing at a location in Gampola during the last test conducted early this year which looked like a 'crash landing' raised many questions about the success of the test.

'Adverse reports flashed in the media lacked thorough knowledge of the nitty gritty of the technology and the project," Gavashkar said.

Regarding the delay to resume the next phase of the project he said ICTA had to sort out the spectrum allocation and now that we have solved the issue the next test will be launched shortly. The project will operate on a 700 MW frequency. When quipped about the time frame for the completion of tests before launching commercial operations Gavashkar said six to 12 months are required to ensure the telecommunication and the balloon infrastructure are capable of carrying out commercial operations.

Refuting speculations about the balloon's ability to withstand adverse weather, an ICTA official said there are no weather effects as the balloons float on the stratosphere on an altitude of around 60,000 feet from sea level.

"Telecommunication companies will be able to expand their Long Term Evolution (LTE) coverage to the entire country through the loon balloon infrastructure. The floating towers will help take Internet coverage which is now confined to main cities to rural areas," Gavashkar said.

'Spy operation'

Project Loon received mixed reactions from various sections. While the project is being hailed as an innovative move that will create more opportunities for Sri Lanka from the Silicon Valley and provide equal high speed LTE connectivity to the entire country it is also being speculated as a subtle 'spy operation' that would pose a threat to the security of the country.

IFS Sri Lanka, President Jayantha de Silva said we should support innovation and be optimistic. Rejecting new concepts of this nature will be a huge loss to the country. The project will create more business opportunities and employment in the country.

The Google Loon Project which is being facilitated by ICTA will provide high quality broadband connectivity and benefit telecommunication service providers which will result in reducing the infrastructure investment cost.

LIRNEasia Chair, Prof. Rohan Samarajiva said Project Loon is an experimental project funded by Google and not by Sri Lanka's tax money. Innovations should be encouraged and supported. "Sri Lanka has generally maintained a level playing field with regard to frequencies. LTE frequencies in the 700 band are extraordinarily valuable bringing in huge amounts of money to the government. However, there is no transparency with regard to the securing of the frequency by the project. Frequency should be tied to the project", Prof. Samarajiva said.

Twenty-five percentstake

The first of three Google balloons entered Sri Lankan air space early this year after being launched from South America. The launch is part of a planned joint venture between Google, the US Internet giant and ICTA to deliver high-speed Internet access powered by helium-filled balloons.

The government will take a 25% stake in the joint venture with Google. Sri Lanka is not investing capital, but will take the stake in return for allocating spectrum for the project.

Project Loon is a research and development project developed by Google X to provide internet access to rural and remote areas. The project uses high altitude balloons placed in the stratosphere at an altitude of about 18 km to create an aerial wireless network with upto 4G-LTE speeds. The project was launched in June 2013, with Carl Young and Craig Paterson managing the project from their UK lab.

ICTA has launched 62 projects to develop the digital infrastructure in the country this year with an investment of Rs. 10. 6 billion. The project will be completed within next two to three years. The digital classrooms in all schools, the national digital identity and the Household Transfer Management system are some of the major projects that will be carried out this year by the ICTA.

The ICTA in collaboration with the Ministry of Education will set up 100 Digital classrooms in 50 schools across the country, to enhance knowledge on the use of Digital Technology among students.

NDI

Work on the Household Transfer Management Project (HTM) to introduce National Digital Identity (NDI) will be expedited to ensure financial and non-financial digital transactions are carried out safely. The NDI will comprise an unique number in all data bases such as passports, tax file, customs documents, vehicle registration, voter registers, welfare registers, bank data bases and utility bills, an ICTA official said.

Innovations in the digital arena are linking countries and communities enhancing the quality of life. In the latest move SAP SE (NYSE: SAP), a market leader in enterprise application software unveiled new offerings for customers and partners on the comprehensive SAP HANA Cloud Platform for the Internet of Things (IoT) last week, a move that will boost the digital transformation on the country.

With a focus on the 'things to outcome' part of the IoT journey, SAP can help capture the real value of the IoT by connecting "things" to the enterprise to provide better insights and proactive actions giving customers the outcomes they want. This announcement was made at IoT World 2016 being held May 10-12 in Santa Clara, California.

"SAP is helping customers map their journeys through digital transformation, and the IoT has the potential to drive the largest segment of growth in new business value," said Tanja Rueckert of SAP EVP LoB Digital Assets and IoT. "We offer the right solution infrastructure and are committed to building the strongest, most comprehensive ecosystem for the IoT in the industry. Our robust platform and line-of-business and industry applications for the IoT enable customers to improve their operational efficiency and transform their business models," said Rueckert.

Google Street View' renowned photographer Felix Steck was in Sri Lanka last week to shoot images of Lankan businesses for 'Google See Inside' the indoor version of Google Street View inviting customers into the interiors of hotels, schools and business establishments through the lens of the photographer. Customers can experience a location even before they arrive.