Analyses and Comparisons of Technologies for Rural Broadband Implementation

This paper deals with the rural broadband in the Republic of Croatia, since it is presumed that the implementation of broadband access in rural areas accelerates the economic growth, expands the productivity and enhances the rural residents' quality of life. In this paper, the techno-economic analysis of broadband networks deployment is conducted and the model to assess the costs of rural broadband access is introduced. Using the basic profitability evaluation methods the costs of DSL and WiMAX systems implementation are calculated in three different rural scenarios. The results of these analyses are represented and compared, and the specificities of each scenario affecting the broadband access costs are pointed out.