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By Estelle Dumout, 5 September 2003 13:35

NEWS Wi-Fi, satellite and broadband through power lines are three solutions that the French government is considering in order to deliver on its promise of high-speed internet for the whole country – including rural areas – before 2007. The French government is looking into how to deliver on one of the electoral promises made by Jacques Chirac on the presidential campaign trail in 2002 – notably, ensuring that every district in France has access to a high-speed internet connection by 2007. An interdepartmental committee, charged with overseeing and developing rural development, met on 3 September to assess the situation and the measures needed to take the promise from theory to reality. The challenge is the scale of the operation, with the latest statistics showing that those who can access high-speed internet, chiefly through ADSL and digital television, make up 74 per cent of the population, but are spread across an area that covers just 21 per cent of the country. Around 15 million people still can't currently take advantage, excluding satellite and rented connections. In order to try and clear up the problem, the government has once again highlighted the potential of the Wi-Fi network, which can now be used as hotspots set up across the country with no administrative hassle from the authorities. The frequencies will be issued free of charge to local authorities from 2004 until 2006. Satellite technology is also on the agenda and will be targeted chiefly at the SME and smaller industrial markets. A key system of tax cuts has been put introduced for those who buy equipment for the purpose of accessing high-speed internet through satellite. Another method under consideration in order to open up rural regions is internet through power lines. The government wants the technology to be more extensively tested and the possibilities of using electricity network for internet access to be more thoroughly explored, while the industry minister has been charged with finding ways to promote the development of such networks in rural regions. The government has also underlined that an agreement had been signed on 15 July last year between mobile operators to spread national coverage to 99 per cent of the country. Estelle Dumout writes for ZDNet France