Everest base camp has its own 3G base station which will allow for phone calls and internet access all the way up to the summit of the world’s tallest peak. To celebrate the new tower the service provider, Ncell, made the world’s highest ever video call at 5 300 meters above sea level.

The 3G coverage should let tens of thousands of visitors to the mountain every year connect to the internet and make phone calls but in all reality will probably only result in thousands more selfies from the top of the world. The real benefit to the residents of the valley around Everest and the climbers will be the significant drop in price that the new connectivity will bring over the old, and very expensive, satellite-based communications.

The tower is the first in a planned $100 million (nearly R1.1 billion) investment in infrastructure that will see cell coverage jump from only 30% of Nepal’s population to over 90% in the next year. “This achievement is as mighty as the altitude as 3G high-speed internet will bring faster, more affordable telecommunication services to the people living in the Khumbu Valley, trekkers, and climbers alike,” said Lars Nyberg, chief of Nordic Swedish telecom’s company TeliaSonera, which owns 80% of Ncell.

We’re sure that once they’ve finished with the challenge of outfitting the world’s highest peak with broadband, Ncell could be convinced to try the vastly less challenging 1 753m altitude of Johannesburg where we could most definitely use some extra tower capacity.

Source: Reuters

[Image: Shutterstock]