Published April 11, 2001
A maze of telephone lines, TV cables, and wireless radio beams are the last mile connection of the Internet to your home or business. A new very cool process, unlike any other, is being developed now, available by 2002.
Commonly telephone wires, attached to the computer’s modem, are our primary link to reliable, albeit slow, access to the Web and email. Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) is a fast but expensive, always-on business solution here now. Cable for Internet and TV is not expected in Park County (Montana) anytime soon, leaving wireless (microwave and satellite) as viable options in the near 6-month to 2 year future. But wait; something new is coming.
From the Netherlands, cofounder Dennis de Boer of the Dutch Retrograde Internet Project (DRIP) is promoting a totally untapped network, a concept so glaringly obvious, it’s ridiculed by detractors allegiant to existing infrastructures.
An unnamed benefactor, believed to be a Dutch shipping magnate, funded the initial research of $2M. $240M from New Worlds Associates, a New Orleans venture capital firm, is committed to moving this unusual project forward. The company’s share of the global broadband market is projected to be worth $580,000M by 2010, according to Comsys, a U.K. consultancy.
Dennis de Boer’s plan is an extension of the old message in a bottle, tossed upon the waves to drift with the tides. But his messages instantaneously flow through the water to hydro communication stations that relay information to the Internet and back again.
The Internet’s topmost communication pathways—coincidentally called pipes—are the backbones of the largest data conduits. At this level, in excess of one hundred thousand interconnected networks form the whole of the global Internet. These are mostly fiber optic cables carrying huge bitstreams of data along glass strands of multi-colored light.
Dropping a fiber optic cable into your den or office is not the same as twisting a pair of copper telephone wires to a junction box. The light cable needs very sophisticated equipment to convert the signal into usable information. Thus the last mile is vital to span the connection from the backbone to us.
What do the Dutch do very well? Nearly half of the Netherlands is below the sea level of the North Atlantic. For centuries they have held back the ocean by a labyrinth of dikes and drainage systems. They are the recognized world experts on the subject of water.
Dennis de Boer explains that, “In most developed countries, more people have plumbing than have telephones. After more than five years in the lab, we’re ready to make this technology commercially available. It will be cheaper and capable of carrying more data than any existing network.”
Following ten years independent research, loosely affiliated with Eindhoven University of Technology, Mr. de Boer published his findings in two volumes, The Mystery of Water; Properties, Uses and Potential. Within his academic research community, he recalls, “I was treated like a visionary by some, and an ‘all wet’ lunatic by most.”
Milton MacGregor, editor of an industry trade journal, Water Today, said, “In the sedate world of advanced water research, de Boer’s book about water and the Internet was considered groundbreaking, a real wake-up call.”
A WaterNet replaces wires, cables, radio waves and laser beams. Wherever water flows—in rivers, lakes, underground aquifers or within plumbing—communications can pass through it as easily as any other method.
A municipal water authority is the likely candidate to replace the standard telephone network central office as the information connection point, or node. “A highly cost-effective router-like device will be installed,” says Mr. de Boer, “transforming the waterworks into high-bandwidth communication providers.”
At the consumer end, a simple client-side nozzle (CSN) will be attached to a standard water faucet, replacing the more familiar telephone jack. The process of sending information through water is sparsely described as a “highly proprietary process.” In other words, they’re saying it’s a secret.
A water-based bandwidth solution could revolutionize broadband delivery. Yet some sneer with sarcastic skepticism or dismiss de Boer as having water on the brain. Other authorities in their fields debunk it as preposterous, a defensive reaction to their own infrastructure dependence.
But Juan Man, of The Man Group, thinks it’s remarkable. “The water-based bandwidth solution could revolutionize the market for broadband content. We downloaded a feature-length Dutch motion picture in roughly five minutes with zero packet loss by attaching a special nozzle to a faucet in the kitchenette of my office. This could be the Holy Grail for providers of rich data over the Web.”
Mr. de Boer claims, “Costs could be ultimately cut in half and free bandwidth a reality for consumers. This means the current $20/month Internet access model in the United States will be eradicated with access speeds easily eclipsing cable and DSL services. In some cases, data delivery could exceed T3 speeds.”
Executives of leading bandwidth providers agree that capacity will always be in demand. Gary Gohen, President of Global Crossing says, “No amount of bandwidth is excessive for the providers that plan to the demands of their customers.”
Clarence Madison, the venture firm’s managing partner, said, “This investment could be one tall glass of water.”
So what’s your choice for the last mile: wired, wireless, or water?