Potential economic boost as rural Clare community gets a 100Mbps broadband service

6 Sep 2012

A fibre-to-the-mast deployment by Mid-West Wireless will see people in the Kilmaley district of Co Clare served with a 100Mbps broadband service ideal for heavy video streaming and VoIP telecoms.

The backbone of the service is built on a fibre-optic Tier 1 line which is linked by a high-powered microwave link to Ben Dash, the hill overlooking the entire 21-kilometre wide parish of Kilmaley.

“The MIMO technology being used transmits signals both horizontally and vertically from the access point on Ben Dash providing higher bandwidth, which is particularly beneficial to heavy video streaming and VOIP users,” Mid-West Wireless CEO Charlie Roberts explained.

“This allows residential customers and businesses in semi-urban and rural areas to take advantage of a superior broadband service that matches the best available in any city centre in Ireland.”

The company plans to offer domestic broadband packages in the area from €29.99 per month.

The economic necessity for broadband in rural communities

Roberts said the provision of quality broadband is essential for the development of businesses and jobs in rural communities, such as Connolly and Kilmaley.

“While Eircom did introduce a broadband service to Kilmaley in 2010, a significant portion of this large rural parish is unable to secure an adequate broadband connection due to the distance from the local exchange.

“The provision of wireless broadband to such locations overcomes this obstacle and in doing so delivers enhanced education opportunities and helps to create economic development opportunities,” he explained.

Roberts said too many rural Irish communities remain frustrated with the lack of available broadband services.

“Members of the business community have indicated to me that expansion, investment and development opportunities have been inhibited due to the current situation.

“Therefore, we are delighted to be able to deliver a scalable broadband solution to hundreds of potential subscribers in Kilmaley who would have previously felt that they had no option. We are always keen to hear from local communities who are currently without a broadband service as we seek to continue to expand both our market share and geographic coverage in the coming years,” Roberts said.

John Kennedy is a journalist who served as editor of Silicon Republic for 17 years

editorial@siliconrepublic.com