Converting Coaxial Infrastructure From TV to Internet

[Pianoman57]

I have recently found out that in my town we have an existing coaxial infrastructure from an old television service that went out of business. The coaxial cable was never taken down from the power poles in my town (A population of around 3000, most of which are not avid internet users). The coaxial cable spans the town, with connections going out to houses that are not covered by local ISP wireless ranges. Is it possible to convert this infrastructure to carry moderately fast internet speeds, i.e. 10 - 40 mbps? Our town has had internet provider issues for several years, but I believe I could get the local council to get this process moving if I had a valid answer to the issue. If it is possible, how would we do it? Would the cable need to be replaced anyway? Would it be more expensive than it would be worth it? If there is anywhere that I can go to find more info please share, I am in the process of talking with the city engineer to see if this is possible, and any information would greatly help. Thanks!!

 

[audie-tron25]

I think engineers will give a much more informed opinion than anyone on here but it might be possible assuming your local ISP is willing to pay for it. I would assume they would have to put their own equipment in the distribution nodes and make sure that the cables are still in a good condition (which would depend on how long they have been abandoned). My opinion is that unless there is a high demand for fast internet access or the local council would be willing to fund it, the ISP would not take this opportunity since they could likely expand the current wireless network easier and cheaper.