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I& #39;ve spent years covering rural broadband. Holcomb is absolutely right it is a major issue that contributes to the urban / rural divide. However, here& #39;s what this ad fails to mention, a thread... https://twitter.com/HolcombForIN/status/1302969873979465729">https://twitter.com/HolcombFo...
$100 million sounds great, but in reality the cost required to connect all rural Hoosiers is well north of $1 billion. This is the equivalent of walking into a car dealership with a few hundred bucks and expecting to leave in a new Tesla. It& #39;s progress, but not enough. 2/
People smarter than me have done studies looking at this investment. The math works. For every dollar spent on broadband, four come back to local economies. https://www.pcrd.purdue.edu/files/media/006-RPINsights-Indiana-Broadband-Study.pdf">https://www.pcrd.purdue.edu/files/med...
That assumes folks adopt it. Telecoms say even in areas where service is available, adoption is too low. Why? Well, it& #39;s expensive, populations tend to be older and less inclined, and rural incomes are declining.
To think for even a second, legislation has solved this problem is laughable. I said as much here: https://indianapublicmedia.org/news/legislation-solved-indianas-rural-broadband-problem-remcs-145103.php">https://indianapublicmedia.org/news/legi...
It can help provide incentives, but isn& #39;t the only answer. Telecoms and providers are the ones putting fiber in the ground and actually connecting ppl. Rural areas just aren& #39;t attractive. They& #39;re sparsely populated, adoption is low, and geographically challenging.
That& #39;s why it is much more economical for a provider to invest in connecting a dense city (lots of people crammed in a small area) as opposed to rural areas (few people, all of which are spread out).
It& #39;s the same problem the US faced with electricity. Rural Electric Cooperatives are getting into this space, already have the infrastructure and by nature are non-profits. They have a role to play. But tell me they aren& #39;t getting enough support from policymakers.
Perhaps worst of all, no one really knows how many people want service, but can& #39;t get it. Telecoms mark census blocks as served if one customer has sketchy service. In rural areas they can span HUNDREDS of square miles. https://www.census.gov/newsroom/blogs/random-samplings/2011/07/what-are-census-blocks.html">https://www.census.gov/newsroom/...
