Jakarta (Antara Bali) - Coordinating Maritime Affairs Minister Rizal Ramli, in his office on Tuesday, received Vice President and Project Leader of Project Loon of Google Mike Cassidy to discuss the implementation of the internet balloon program in Indonesia.
The meeting was a follow-up to President Joko Widodos visit to the Google Headquarters in Silicon Valley, California, several weeks ago, the minister stated here on Tuesday.
Project Loon itself is a research and development project developed by Google, with the mission of providing internet access to rural and remote areas.
As part of the project, high-altitude balloons are placed in the stratosphere at an altitude of some 18 kilometers to create an aerial wireless network, with up to 4G-LTE speeds.
Ramli remarked that the internet balloon project would be beneficial if it is implemented in some remote areas of Indonesia.
"Indonesia faces a problem. Many of our people, especially those living outside Java Island, in Eastern Indonesia, and in the remote islands, have no cellphone access due to the lack of cellular networks. There are no signal transmitter towers there," Ramli stated.
Moreover, building transmitter towers in such remote areas would be costly, he explained, adding that there are still thousands of islands that need telecommunication access.
Therefore, Googles Project Loon is expected to provide internet and cellphone connectivity in the remote areas of Indonesia.
"All Indonesians living in the middle of the ocean or in the mountainous regions will be able to communicate using a cellphone," the minister stated.
Googles Project Loon is expected to provide an inexpensive solution by enabling communication access to the people living in remote areas.
Google will test the program for a year. The government will thereafter discuss it with the Indonesian communication providers.
"This is an inexpensive technology that will fill the gap in our communications sector," the minister pointed out.
Meanwhile, Cassidy emphasized that improving internet connectivity will ensure better education and healthcare services, as well as offer other economic benefits to the people in remote areas.
Quoting a study conducted by the United Nations, Cassidy remarked that the 10 percent increase in internet penetration will annually improve the standard of living by 1.5 percent.
Increasing internet penetration by 20 percent will also help to double the gross domestic product (GDP) growth of the countries.(WDY)
