By Naim Zard
Through the Beyond the Net Funding Programme, the Internet Society Foundation supports Internet Society Chapter projects that promote the development of the Internet and its use to empower people and transform lives around the world. We’ve invited the project leads to share their stories.
Overview
Today, we read about
advancements in technology, including terraforming Mars – yet more than half of
the world is still without a proper Internet connection.
It’s not just developing
nations that lack access. Rural areas are affected, too.
Community ISPs can answer
this gap. Locals build and operate networks covering the last mile for their
communities in return for monthly subscriptions. Since they are close to their
service area, they have lower maintenance costs, which gives them an edge over
big ISPs. Also, community ISPs contribute to sustainable development because
they don’t depend on government grants to keep going. They are self-started,
autonomous, and they create local jobs, which is good for the economy.
Starting a community
ISP, like any business, has its own challenges. It requires initial capital
costs and there is a learning curve. The capital costs go for buying cables,
wireless gear, client-premises-equipment (CPE), leased lines subscriptions, and
setting up monitoring and management systems. Learning the technicalities and
business best practices can be found online. There are also virtual communities
to get help and discuss everything from technical to business matters.
Zima History
About ten years ago, we
wrote software to manage the billing for a local ISP in Lebanon. The results
were so great that a couple of neighboring ISPs asked to have it installed. We
were happy about that and installed it for free. Then we started getting more
requests from ISPs all over the country. We decided to set up a website and
automate the installation process. Surprisingly, after launching our website,
we received email from India, South Africa, and Pakistan. We discovered that
community ISPs are not restricted to Lebanon – they are everywhere, specifically
in rural and remote areas. We have engaged with the ISP community globally and have
learned about industry challenges.
Zima and the
Beyond the Net Funding Programme – Supporting Community ISPs
Since we discovered how
important community ISPs are to connecting the remaining half of the world, we
have been dedicated to empowering them in many ways. First, by working on making
Zima accessible for all countries, regions, and languages. Second, by doing
research about the pressing challenges facing the industry and publishing
solutions and best practices.
One of our recent
studies is on Internet peak time and the
metrics that guarantee complete transparency between ISPs and their end users.
The transparency about Internet offerings is currently a highly-debated topic
worldwide. In Lebanon, for example, shared bandwidth plans represent more than
90% of residential Internet offerings. Our Beyond the Net project’s aim is to
provide the metrics that make ISPs accountable. The study is based on Contention Ratio, which indicates how
much an ISP is over-subscribed. If the methodology proves simple enough, it can
be included in future regulations about transparency in bandwidth offerings.
In addition, our support
from Beyond the Net will help
make the Zima Network Mapper software a free tool for everyone. Zima Network Mapper
includes an adjusted geographical map where community ISPs can draw and save
their network layouts. Community ISPs can also store information about their
antenna’s sectors bands, IPs, and other important information. They can measure
cable lengths on the map instead of having to measure them on-premises – which
takes a lot of time and effort. Currently, the alternative to Zima Network
Mapper is pen and paper or using diagram software not adapted to this work.
We are happy to have
learned about the Beyond the Net grants programme and we’re thankful that it
will enable us to finish these projects. Stay tuned for periodic updates about
our progress.
Author Biography
Naim Zard is a computer engineer turned product manager of a framework for community Internet providers called Zima. Remote and rural areas are often abandoned by the government and big telcos but when the local people decide to take charge of connecting their communities, Zima is there to make it possible.
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