Case study on Infrastructure of GIGA Internet in Korea

Case of Korea

 

Case 1:

In 2015, Korea Telecom (KT) have announced that it will expand ‘BcN (Broadband Convergence network) Project’ for small rural areas across in country. The ‘BcN’ is a project to establish high-speed Internet infrastructure at the level of communication welfare for small rural areas with less than 50 households. Organized by the Ministry of Science and ICT, KT, the National Information Society Agency (NIA), and local government are working together. BcN is called the ‘next-generation network’ that integrates the Internet, wired and wireless telephone network, and broadcasting network into one thing. KT has established a high-speed broadband integration network in a total 8,781 villages through its BcN project, which has been implemented since 2010. KT plans to set up broadband network in 1,743 villages by the end of this year and completed construction of infrastructure regarding broadband network in 13,217 villages nationwide by 2017.  Meanwhile, KT believe that the establishment of a high-speed broadband integrated network will not only help to mitigate the multiple digital gap between urban and rural, but also be a key part in the implementation of ‘smart farming areas’ that combines ICT technologies and agriculture.

 

Case 2:

In 2018, the Ministry of Science and ICT and the National Information Society Agency (NIA) announced results of the ‘Telecommunication Service Quality Assessment in 2018’ on December 28. They evaluated and verified the quality of wired and wireless telecommunication services over the past seven months. Especially, the speed of rural areas has increased.

Generally, mobile network operators expand and manage base stations in large cities where live many people. In response, the Government had allocated 50 per cent of the ratio of telecommunications quality assessment areas to rural areas. As a result, the average download speed of rural areas has increased to 126.14Mbps in 2018 as well as Wi-Fi speed has also improved. This figure is an improvement of 26.6% compared to 99.63Mbps in 2017. The average download speed for commercial Wi-Fi was 305.88Mbps. Compared to 2017 with 264.86Mbps, it has improved by 15.49%. The speed of public Wi-Fi is 354.07Mbps, 23.49 per cent faster than 2017 with 286.73Mbps. [1]

 

 

 

 

 

Figure. LTE transmission speed by city type (in Mbps) in 2018

	All		SKT		KT		LGU+
	Download	Upload	Download	Upload	Download	Upload	Download	Upload
Metropolis	164.64 (157.09)	50.61 (41.92)	206.96	55.97	145.64	40.02	141.33	55.66
Small-Medium Cities	149.66 (144.94)	45.09 (36.10)	192.53	50.06	144.25	34.97	112.19	50.22
Rural areas	126.14 (99.63)	36.38 (25.54)	173.26	45.72	135.21	30.19	69.94	33.24
Average	150.68 (133.43)	43.93 (34.03)	195.47	50.39	144.54	34.86	112.03	46.52
Gap between urban and rural	31.01 (51.23)	11.47 (13.68)	26.49	7.30	9.73	7.31	56.82	19.70

(The figure in parentheses means the figure for 2017)

 

Case 3:

 

In 2020, The Ministry of Science and Technology (MSIT) singed an agreement with the National Information Society Agency (NIA), Korea Telecom (KT), LGU plus, and SK Broadband to build high-speed Internet broadband network in rural areas. MSIT set up plans to build high-speed Internet broadband network in 1,300 villages by 2020, starting with 600 villages in rural areas. For this project, MSIT has secured a budget of 3.05 billion won ($26 billion). It has already completed the construction of high-speed Internet broadband network in 13,000 villages through the BcN project that have been stated in 2015. However, a new village was formed due to the revitalization of farming and new demand on high-speed network was generated. Previously, KT only participated in BcN project in 2015, but this project in 2020 lead to participate all three major telecommunications companies in Korea. MSIT has designated high-speed Internet broadband network as a universal service in 2019. With the expansion and construction of high-speed Internet broadband network, it is expected that people who live in rural areas will completely use a service, including remote education, remote conference, and Internet commerce and it would contribute to the realization of a digital inclusive society.[2]

 

 

 

Reference

 

[1] http://view.asiae.co.kr/news/view.htm?idxno=2018122813575583845

[2] https://www.etnews.com/20200811000221