Delivering high-speed Internet to the coldest farms in China’s Northeast
(July 2024) Harbin, the capital of the northeast China province of Heilongjiang is undergoing a tourist boom. It’s freezing there in winter, but the city is famous for its beautiful ice sculptures and snowy scenery. When spring arrives, it takes time for the weather to warm up in the province. By April, when flowers are already blossoming in China's south, Heilongjiang still has vast frozen landscapes.
Much of the province is sparsely populated. This low population density and the extreme weather makes it difficult and uneconomical to deliver fiber connectivity to rural residents.
Farms nears the city of Suihua in Heilongjiang are hard to reach with optical fiber
For a farmer named Sun, access to good quality Internet is a game changer. In recent years, he has been fortunate to experience strong demand for his agricultural products, but that has meant taking care of more poultry, fish, and shrimp. The work entails not only ensuring the health of his animals and fish ponds, but also protecting them against predators.
Farms animals are a prime target for predators in rural Heilongjiang
Smart AI-enabled cameras that detect unusual movement can greatly simplify his work, but they require a good network connection. Delivering fiber to his farm is a huge challenge because it’s surrounded by marshes. “When spring comes and flowers are blossoming in other regions, only dozens of centimeters of ice under the surface will have melted here. The ice doesn't completely melt until July. So it's impossible to deploy fiber here."
Sun (pointing, left) with China Mobile's Jiang. Networked cameras can detect unusual movement and unwanted visitors on the farm, such as predators looking for an easy prey.
Enter Jiang Jingjing, a local sales representative for China Mobile based in Suihua City, 100 KM north of Harbin. Sun’s farm is in the area she covers. For a farm like the one Sun runs, 5G FWA is the solution.
FWA, fixed wireless access, is an alternative to fixed (fiber) broadband. As long as there is a 5G signal is available, anyone in the area has access to high quality broadband. All that is needed is to plug a CPE (customer premise equipment, also called 5G Wi-Fi router) into the power outlet. The CPE converts the 5G signal into Wi-Fi or ethernet signal. The solution is economical because 5G transmits data at a fraction of the per-bit cost of previous wireless technologies. With FWA, Sun no longer has to spend sleepless nights looking out for predators.
A CPE, a device that converts 5G signal into Wi-Fi, only needs access to power and a 5G network signal to provide first-class broadband
In Heilongjiang, it’s not only farmers that benefit from FWA. It also brightens the lives of the elderly who can sometimes get lonely after their children have moved out to the cities. With FWA, elders can enjoy the Internet like anyone else, to watch entertaining videos or talk to their grandchildren by video call.
FWA Wi-Fi keeps the elderly connected with their relatives who have moved to cities far away
"When we first started to promote this product, I first wondered how to sell it,” Jiang recalls. “But later I found this product can help users, especially elderly users, solve problems, or make things more convenient, and more enjoyable. This gives me a real sense of accomplishment."
