Small Internet Providers as Agents: Internalizing Digital Infrastructure in Brazil

Abstract

The expansion of connectivity on a national scale in Brazil, whether through mobile Internet or fixed broadband, is described as one of the factors that can lead to social and economic benefits for large parts of the population who do not have a network connection. It can also help to reduce poverty by improving the infrastructure of services and increasing Internet use for education purposes. It also provides people with the ability to communicate with online administrative services – local, regional, and national. In Brazil, the main difficulty facing an effective universalization of telecommunications has been limitations in accessing services. This chapter demonstrates the relevance of small Internet providers for the expansion of fixed broadband in less commercially attractive regions (in terms of subscribers, income, and distance) who have been growing over recent years and are now present in 70% of Brazilian municipalities and whose role is paramount to reducing the digital divide.

Citation

Moreira, S.V., Del Bianco, N.R. and Martins, C.F. (2024), "Small Internet Providers as Agents: Internalizing Digital Infrastructure in Brazil", Robinson, L., Moles, K., Moreira, S.V. and Schulz, J. (Ed.) Geo Spaces of Communication Research (Studies in Media and Communications, Vol. 26), Emerald Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 9-29. https://doi.org/10.1108/S2050-206020240000026005