Facebook Brings The Internet To Remote Areas With OpenCellular

With the surprise announcement of the United Nations that makes Internet access a human right, Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg is becoming its staunchest supporter by bringing the Internet to remote places on earth with an inexpensive cellular access point. Introducing, OpenCellular.

The company may not be in the wireless business, but it is in the very early stages in developing a shoebox-sized access point that can support even LTE. For the moment, the system is used in Facebook's headquarters to get basic data connectivity, and to send SMS and make voice calls.

"We designed OpenCellular as an open system so anyone-from telecom operators to researchers to entrepreneurs-can build and operate wireless networks in remote places," Zuckerberg said. "It's about the size of a shoe box and can support up to 1,500 people from as far as 10 kilometers away."

It is Facebook's new way of providing everyone with internet connectivity without using expensive technology like their solar-powered aircraft Aquila, and the high-bandwidth laser beams.

Facebook engineer Kashif Ali said that it is too expensive for small organizations and networks to extend access in rural communities. "Traditional cellular infrastructure can be very expensive, making it difficult for operators to deploy it everywhere and for smaller organizations or individuals to solve hyperlocal connectivity challenges," he said.

The device is powered by any source that is available on the site, which includes, Ethernet connections, solar, direct current, or batteries. The software it will be running is open-source and the company hopes that the community will help make the technology better.

To focus on this, Facebook is setting up a company called Telecom Infra Project, which will develop new telecom hardware and work with wireless carriers.

The project is not all about charity work, however. One of the goals of the company is to expand their existing 1.6 billion users, targeting areas where the Internet and Facebook is not as accessible or out of reach.

This motive caused ire in its foray into India when Free Basics was suspended as the opposition claimed that Facebook was creating an unfair advantage against local internet firms.