Table of Contents
Introduction
Today, people need internet access to engage in almost every facet of their lives, including employment, housing, health, and government services. Unfortunately, issues with broadband access, adoption, and affordability persist in the United States, creating a digital divide between those who have high-quality service and those who do not. The Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) 2020 Broadband Deployment Report stated that around 18 million people across the United States lacked an internet connection meeting the FCC’s definition of high-speed broadband service.1 The reality is likely far worse, as the FCC’s broadband-availability data collection methods have been found to overstate deployment figures.2
As communities work to bridge the digital divide, some have turned to building their own networks rather than waiting on private, incumbent internet service providers (ISPs) to expand or improve the services they offer. These community broadband networks, which include municipal or public option networks, serve more than 900 communities across the country today.3 These networks can challenge incumbent private providers in the area to deliver higher-quality and more affordable internet, reaching more underserved communities than private providers would. Numerous municipal networks have expanded economic opportunities by connecting people to online educational and employment opportunities.
Community broadband networks can also stimulate competition among ISPs, subsequently pushing down costs for consumers while increasing connection speeds. They can also attract new businesses to an area and improve the ability of existing firms to create more jobs and better products.
Ultimately, communities and local governments should be able to decide for themselves whether operating their own broadband network would be the best way to address a lack of broadband availability and to subsequently catalyze local economic development. Despite lobbying from incumbent ISPs against such efforts, as well as state legislation inhibiting the development of these infrastructure projects, communities should feel empowered to invest in their digital futures by investing in their own broadband networks.4
Citations
- 2020 Broadband Deployment Report, Federal Communications Commission, adopted April 20, 2020, released April 24, 2020, source
- Broadband Internet: FCC’s Data Overstate Access on Tribal Lands (Washington, D.C.: United States Government Accountability Office, September 2018), source ; An Update on Connecting Rural America (Microsoft, 2018), source ; Steve Lohr, “Digital Divide Is Wider Than We Think, Study Says,” New York Times, December 4, 2018, source ; Steve Sampsell, “Broadband researcher believes lack of access offers opportunity,” Pennsylvania State University, November 20, 2018, source
- “Community Network Map,” Institute for Self-Reliance, January 2020, source
- Kayleigh Rogers, “Big Telecom Spent $200,000 to Try to Prevent a Colorado Town From Even Talking About a City-Run Internet,” Vice, October 25, 2017, source ; “Community Network Map,” Institute for Self-Reliance, January 2020, source