FTTH in Catalonia: the case of Baix Llobregat

Digitization is reaching all forms of information, which has resulted in the proliferation of devices for processing (personal computers, tablets, netbooks, e-books, smartphones, digital radios, digital TV and high definition, game consoles ...). In 2022, in the Broadband Society and cloud journalism, the Information and communications technology (ICT) constitute one of the main pillars of the 21st century society and economy. 

A study conducted in 2019 states that the ICT sector is responsible for 3,1% of the Spanish GDP, which shows the huge impact this sector can have in society. Inside this ICT sector, the internet has shown to be an essential platform for the economic and social development of advanced societies. In fact, broadband is having a revolutionary impact in said societies, and has become a reality all over the world, and also in Catalonia. During the past years, this technology has arrived in Catalonia and it’s different areas an municipalities, with fiber optics as one of the most important addition. In this article, we will talk, in collaboration with Olivia Ferrer, from UPF, about the history and situation of fiber optics in the autonomous community with a focus on the region of Baix Llobregat.  

Broadband in the Canary Islands: a complicated path

Broadband is considered a vital infrastructure for countries, similar to electrical or water networks. Its development is of maximum importance. Proof of that is the list of recommendations that the UN Broadband Commission has enunciated, in order to improve the state of broadband in an national and international level. Among these recommendations, we find the need to strengthen digital skills; the importance of entrepreneurship on digital businesses; the adaptation of legal framework to this context; and the reduction of taxes in broadband services and ICT equipment. 

Periferic territories have always been the most vulnerable to technological changes. For that matter, the relationship between broadband and the Canary Islands (a highlight thanks to the volcano of La Palma) has always been quite complicated. We analyze it in collaboration with Julia Borges Cervera. There are three main reasons that explain this fact. First of all, the distance that goes from the Islands to the Iberian Peninsula. From Cádiz (the closest point) to Las Palmas de Gran Canaria there are more than 1268 km. 

Broadband in Reus and the Baix Camp county: the city of the future

The digital era led us to something called The Broadband Society where we live in nowadays. The two main axes of this concept are universalization and the guarantee of the service, as stated by the Council of the European Union in the eEurope project (2002), in order to “make Europe the most competitive and dynamic economy in the world”. We analyze in this scenario Reus and Baix Camp cases, in collaboration with Sergi Peralta Moreno, from UPF.

However, there are a couple of professional areas where the Broadband Society has become even more than reality: it has become part of their backbone. The information and communication technologies are one of the fundamentals of the knowledge society in the XXI century. According to the European Commission, ITC is responsible for a substantial rise in productivity in all economic sectors. The Internet is fostering economic and social developments in the First World. Rafael Díez Vega states that “broadband networks are having an impact as revolutionary as electricity or railways had in the past”.

Broadband in a local atmosphere: the case of Granollers

Broadband is a growing issue in today’s society. It is relevant talking in all levels of life and society. It is important in terms of Welfare State, with e-health and e-learning, in the Public Administrative Sector and in E-Business. Every communication, every search, every activity embraces the Broadband Society, and furthermore, an amount of good guaranteed broadband, which means access everywhere at any time. 

It is related with the concept “always one”, which means 24/7 connectivity. If every activity needs broadband, the paper of this “new” concept englobes either general relationships and specific ones. Municipal activity is as important as general activities of the country. In this article, in collaboration with Maria Rovira, from UPF, we will focus in the case of Vallès Oriental, writing about Granollers.

Broadband in Zamora: the goal of getting rid of white zones

Broadband has become part of the reality of advanced societies (Broadband Society), especially with the emergence of new technologies and with the developments carried out in this field. Broadband and the type of technology varies according to the plan of telecommunications of each territory, since the characteristics of this are taken into account to know whether to establish one type or another.

Along the following article, in collaboration with Cristina Poyato Santiago, from UPF, we are going deeper into rural and most neglected areas of Spain, specifically we are going to focus in the province of Zamora, located in the autonomous community of Castilla y León. Zamora is known as a zone with a high level of depopulation, that is due to the large extension of the rural area, since a generous part of the province is made up of low-density locations.

(Map of the territory of Zamora. MICHELIN)

First of all, we are going to define some concepts that we are going to talk about, in order to make it easier to understand along the article. Starting with broadband, this is a service that offers data connection and the transmission of documents and files, whether you want to download or upload on certain devices such as mobile phones, computers and laptops, or televisions, for example. In the case that we are going to analyze, we will specify in the type of ADSL broadband. The ADSL (Asymmetrical Digital Subscriber Line) technology, is a technology that runs by cable and it is characterized by being asymmetrical, that is, it has a download speed different than the upload speed (10Mbps and 4Mbps, respectively). This technology of telecommunications allows the Internet connection and the transmission of files through the copper wires of the telephone line.

Extra fast broadband in the Basque Country

Nowadays we are in a digital era, so broadband is a necessity. The broadband is a high-capacity transmission technique using a wide range of frequencies, which enables a large number of messages to be communicated simultaneously. The medium can be coaxial cable, optical fiber, radio or twisted pair. 

The broadband creation is going to create a huge impact in our society becoming an essential tool. We talk about the situation in Euskadi in collaboration with Ixone Arana Arana, from UPF. It is located in the western Pyrenees, straddling the border between France and Spain on the coast of the Bay of Biscay. Broadband here is very good. 

Broadband in Hong Kong: fast, very fast

Hong Kong is a city near China, which is different from China. In Hong Kong we have our own broadband provider with high broadband penetration rate. The fiber optical is also developed by Hong Kong people Sir Charles Kuen Kao. Nearly every part of Hong Kong has internet. 

The internet is well-developed in Hong Kong and people rely on the internet for their daily life, in a Broadband Society and cloud journalism environment. In this essay, we will analyze, with the collaboration of Lin Wing Kwan, from UPF, the questions you may rise when talking about broadband in Hong Kong.

Development of Broadband in Rural and Urban Irish Areas

Broadband in Ireland is now considered one of the fastest in the world. And while this might be true for our major cities like Dublin, Cork and Galway, broadband connectivity and speed in rural Irish areas has great potential for improvement. 

For the last 19 years since the first DSL connection went live in Ireland, great lengths have been taken to increase connectivity for the greater population in rural areas. We analyse it in collaboration with Aileen O'Shea. Broadband is becoming more and more of a necessity in our day to day lives, workwise and personally.

The Danish Broadband Society: step by step

In Denmark, 1981, were 231 computers from different Danish universities bound together by the Internet, and 10 years after the numer had increased to 300.000. In 1996 did 12 percent of the Danish population use the Internet two hours each week. 88 percent did not use the internet. In July 2007 did 83 percent of the Danish population, according to Statistics Denmark, have access to the broadband from their private homes. In a new research by Statistics Denmark in 2010 did the number increase to 91 percent of the Danish population who had access to the broadband from their personal homes.

This is why Denmark, studied here in collaboration with Nanna Torp, Peter Ullum, Karoline Neel and Amalie Arendt, is such an interesting country to look at when it comes to the broadband and the development. Denmark was one of the early adopters of broadband and Internet at the same time, and is now leading the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) with a broadband penetration rate of 29,3 subscribers per 100 inhabitants. The broadband rate signifies the amount of the Internet access market that high speed or broadband Internet has captured.

Broadband in the Netherlands: the challenge of rural areas

The Netherlands is one of the European Union’s most advanced countries in terms of broadband. It has one of the world’s fastest average broadband speeds, and the highest percentage of broadband penetration per capita in the world: 99% of all households. In recent times, the Netherlands has become a digital hub, consisting of many digital media and internet companies. We analyse it with the collaboration of Candela Arias-Camison López, from UPF.

Especially Amsterdam, its capital city, is home to many data centres, startups, and multinational digital firms. For example, in a Broadband Society and cloud journalism way, the most important Internet exchange point in the world, AMS-IX, is based in Amsterdam. This is supported thanks to an advanced fiber optic network. 

Broadband in Venezuela: a slow network

Today, everyone, once in their life, have used broadband connection. This internet service is used, in most cases, with a cable connection; although it can be present by Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) or Fiber Optic networks. 

From the internet, messaging and communication never had an easy way as now. The importance of this tool has grown due to the evolution of broadband technology, for that reason, users have better channels of information exchange practically infinite. The speed and efficiency innovation of this technology has caused everyone in the world to be dependent on the internet, and the case of Venezuela, in collaboration with Lenny Yohana Gonçalves, from UPF, is a sample about it.

Banda ampla i HbbTV: la santa aliança

Un dels fenòmens més atractius i rupturistes dels últims anys (de fet, ja de fa gairebé un decenni) és l’aparició de l’estàndar de televisió interactiva HbbTV (Hybrid broadcast broadband TV), que s’ha demostrat que permet una millor monetització de les inversions publicitàries.

De fet, tenim l’honor d’haver assolit i portar a terme una recerca inclosa en el Projecte Reptes de la Direcció General d'Investigació Científica i Tècnica, Subdirecció General de Projectes d'Investigació, Ministeri d'Economia, Indústria i Competitivitat, "Noves formes de publicitat interactiva en televisió, Internet i els mitjans digitals. Aplicacions reals en HbbTV "(CSO2017-88895-R), des de Blanquerna-Universitat Ramon Llull, CECABLE, Cellnex i altres entitats