Written answers

Tuesday, 28 January 2014

Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht

Rural Broadband Scheme

Photo of Robert TroyRobert Troy (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail)
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475. To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources further to Parliamentary Question No 146 of 29 November 2012, in relation to the rural broadband scheme, the actions taken to secure broadband services for the then remaining six applicants to the scheme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4257/14]

Photo of Pat RabbittePat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)
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The Rural Broadband Scheme, RBS, was launched in recognition of the fact that despite the widespread availability of broadband throughout Ireland, there still remained individual premises that were unable to receive broadband provision. This Scheme was aimed at making a basic broadband service available to un-served premises in rural areas, not already covered by the National Broadband Scheme.

The Application Phase of the RBS closed in July 2011 and my Department received 5,000 applications. Of these, approximately 3,700 applications qualified under the terms of the Scheme. The details of these applicants were passed to participating Internet Service Providers (ISPs) who responded to my Department indicating those applicants to whom they were able to offer services.

A total of 29 companies participated in the Scheme and a total of 2011 applicants gave their consent to receive written offers of service from these ISPs. The participating ISPs wrote to these 2011 applicants in April 2012 with offers of service and the outcome was that 509 applicants took up a service.

My Department was advised by the participating service providers that they had been unable to provide service to a total of 6 applicants. In one of these cases, the applicant obtained a service from another provider, leaving 5 applicants un-served subsequent to the RBS process.

Engineering officials from my Department visited those 5 households in May 2013 and provided advice, having assessed the local topography, on possible terrestrial and satellite providers who could provide a solution. Further information was provided to 2 of those households in September last and my Department has had no further requests for information or advice.

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