Facebook is taking its next step in its bid to connect the parts of the world without Internet access.
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The social networking firm has launched OpenCellular, an open-source wireless access platform to improve connectivity in remote locations. The platform can be deployed to support a range of communication options.
“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. It’s about the size of a shoebox and can support up to 1,500 people from as far as 10 kilometers away,” Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said in a post to his wall.“Along with our solar-powered aircraft Aquila and high-bandwidth laser beams, OpenCellular is the next step on our journey to provide better, more affordable connectivity to bring the world closer together.”
The platform can support a range of wireless network standards, from 2G and LTE to Wi-Fi access points and can be useful in both rural and urban areas. For example, because of its on-board computing and storage capacity, the system can be configured as network-in-a-box or simply as a cellular access point.
The software will be released publicly this summer to give researchers, developers, telecom operators and entrepreneurs the chance to use and improve on the design.
“With OpenCellular, we want to develop affordable new technology that can expand capacity and make it more cost-effective for operators to deploy networks in places where coverage is scarce,” Facebook said in a blog post. “By open-sourcing the hardware and software designs for this technology, we expect costs to decrease for operators and to make it accessible to new participants.
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