Feasibility, Architecture and Cost Considerations of Using TVWS for Rural Internet Access in 5G

TL;DR

This paper explores using TV white space in conjunction with 5G infrastructure as a cost-effective solution to improve rural internet access, addressing economic and performance challenges.

Contribution

It proposes a novel two-phase approach to rural 5G deployment, emphasizing the integration of TVWS for economic viability, which has been underexplored in existing literature.

Findings

TVWS can enhance rural 5G coverage cost-effectively

The two-phase approach addresses economic and performance challenges

TVWS integration is feasible within current 5G architecture constraints

Abstract

The cellular technology is mostly an urban technology that has been unable to serve rural areas well. This is because the traditional cellular models are not economical for areas with low user density and lesser revenues. In 5G cellular networks, the coverage dilemma is likely to remain the same, thus widening the rural-urban digital divide further. It is about time to identify the root cause that has hindered the rural technology growth and analyse the possible options in 5G architecture to address this issue. We advocate that it can only be accomplished in two phases by sequentially addressing economic viability followed by performance progression. We deliberate how various works in literature focus on the later stage of this two-phase problem and are not feasible to implement in the first place. We propose the concept of TV band white space (TVWS) dovetailed with 5G infrastructure for rural coverage and show that it can yield cost-effectiveness from a service provider perspective.