¡Muchas gracias por los 50 millones de páginas vistas del blog!

¡Muchas gracias a todas y a todos por los 50 millones de páginas vistas del blog científico Telecomunicaciones y Periodismo! Es emocionante alcanzar cifras como esta, y también el homenaje por sorpresa recibido en la Universitat Pompeu Fabra, que agradezco de corazón.

  

Se trata de un éxito de todas y de todos, ya que el autor cuenta con numerosos colaboradores (individuales, empresas y entidades), seguidores y lectores que configuran una estimulante comunidad para analizar y debatir sobre la Sociedad de la Banda Ancha y el Cloud Journalism. 

Broadband implementation in the province of Lleida

During a lot of years, great efforts have been carried out to provide this Catalan region with great connection facilities in the Broadband Society. During the first years of the 21st century, broadband arrived to Catalunya, but often in a non-regular way. For this reason, in 2003, during the rise of Internet and communication technologies, the local government, the Generalitat of Catalonia, launched the program ‘Catalunya Connecta’. 

A plan that intended to provide access to the new communication technologies - including broadband - to the Catalan territories, especially within the rural areas. We analyse it in, focused in the Lleida’s reality, essential for tourism, in collaboration with UPF.

Broadband in Catalunya: the gap in rural areas

Broadband is increasing in all European countries; this is also the case of Catalunya. Broadband Society axioms are the universalizations of the service and a guaranteed broadband flow. But, is this broadband network available at the same level in urban and rural areas? We analyze it with Ariadna Coll, from Universitat Pompeu Fabra (UPF).

One of the latest broadband news that Catalunya received was on September 19 of 2018, published by El Periódico. “Catalunya tightens the accelerator in the ultrafast internet access”. With this title El Periódico explains that Catalunya has stood out in the last years in comparison to other autonomous communities.

Mataró, a powerful broadband connection

Broadband Society is essential for all the municipalities. We will analyze the case of Mataró, with Oriol Agramunt, from Universitat Pompeu Fabra. The capital city of El Maresme has had 95% of broadband penetration for the last 4 years.

                                               Laia l’arquera Sculpture in Mataró  (Image: Oriol Agramunt)

Nowadays European citizens live in the Broadband Society, but it is also true that there is a wide range of broadband penetration depending on the area the people live. The same happens in Spain and Catalonia.

Broadband in Viladecans: a fiber optics challenge

We analyze the Viladecans broadband case in collaboration with Laura Martín Encinas. Nowadays, in the Broadband Society, it is unquestionable that Information and Communication Technology (ICT) is one of the basic fundaments of the XXI century society. Getting into this ICT, the networks, and more specifically broadband, are having an impact so revolutionary in our society just as the transport or electric net had in the past. This is due to the broadband internet service is the most used form of Internet access thanks to its high access speed. Moreover, it is usually commercialized with other important services such as fixed and mobile phone service or television. 

Just to give a specific definition of broadband, we have to know that this service offers to the users a permanent data connection and a high transmission capacity to upload and download files by a determined terminal like for example a laptop, a mobile phone or a television. It is offered in four different forms: DSL, fiber optic, cable and satellite. In the present article it will be analyzed which and how is the broadband in the town of Viladecans, belonging to the region of El Baix Llobregat. But first, it will be important to have a general look on this important net in Spain and also specifically in Catalonia.