World Mobile, a provider of decentralized wireless (DeWi) networks, announced on June 8 that it had completed field tests of its DeWi technology in Kenya, Mozambique, and Nigeria, bringing it closer to a full deployment across the African continent.
The tests in Kenya and Mozambique, according to World Mobile, which strives to deliver affordable and dependable internet connectivity to rural areas that are typically underserved, were conducted using TV White Space equipment. This technology uses unused spectrum in the TV broadcast band to provide mobile network services.The field test in Nigeria made use of Starlink, a satellite internet service provided by SpaceX.The business claims that TV White Space and Starlink are complementary technologies that allow World Mobile to make use of currently available infrastructure and spectrum resources in order to increase the size of its network coverage.
The tests “validate the feasibility and scalability of our DeWi technology, bringing us one step closer to providing affordable and dependable internet access to both rural and under-served areas throughout the world,” according to World Mobile CEO Micky Watkins.This news comes in the wake of World Mobile’s May commercial network launch in Zanzibar, where it claims more than 300 AirNodes offer wireless connectivity to more than 16,000 users per day. As part of its efforts to build “a global community-owned wireless network that can bridge the digital divide and foster social and economic inclusion,” the firm stated it would expand its network into other African nations as well as other regions.
According to World Mobile, their DeWi solution offers connectivity for less money than traditional mobile network carriers and might support the development of “a sharing economy” to pay for the growth of telecommunications infrastructure in rural Africa and elsewhere. In contrast to conventional mobile networks, World Mobile is based on blockchain technology and aims to promote participation in what it refers to as “a sharing economy” by providing users with access to the trillion-dollar global telecom industry.