The global network of alternative communications is advancing and growing. Its strength is based on collaboration through social movement organizing and media reform campaigns to improve information and communications to the benefit of everyone. These networks differ in terms of space and scope, but they are all joined by their non-commercial nature and opposition to imperialist power dynamics. International alternative networks consist of non-profit organizations, individuals and local sites that advocate the idea of democratizing information and promoting the reform of communication. They also develop new infrastructures for communication to aid local connections and global shifts in relation to social movement developments. They also construct a lattice system of local-local, transnational (especially south-south) and global connections that bypass imperial dynamics north-south.
Around the world alternatives to media started to appear in the early 1990s. They took advantage of newly available alternatives to corporate production media channels to promote their message of development for consumers and empowerment of communities. Initially they were local, but later merged and linked across national and regional boundaries and created a wider range of media options for all.
These alternatives, in contrast to the traditional infrastructure of communication that is heavily dependent on capital investments, depend on volunteers to run them. They can offer lower costs and more flexible plans for customers. They can also deploy infrastructure faster, which allows for a faster rollout of 5G technology and larger expansion of coverage areas. This can assist businesses to compete more effectively on the market by ensuring their customers have access to cutting-edge technologies.