Tatiana Syrikova/Pexels
The COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated the extent to which we all rely on the internet in our day-to-day lives. It’s also highlighted the unfortunate fact that many Canadians in remote northern communities cannot depend on reliable internet for essential tasks such as downloading homework or conducting business meetings by video, or for leisure activities like watching Netflix and keeping up with friends on Facebook.
There is, in short, a deep digital divide between remote communities and the rest of the country.
Historically, network service providers have been the primary stakeholders tasked with ensuring that Canadians are well-connected. However, service providers have so far struggled to provide adequate internet service to remote communities, and it is only getting more difficult with the increasing requirements and complexities of modern web content and applications.