x close

Because every American
should have access
to broadband Internet.

The Internet Innovation Alliance is a broad-based coalition of business and non-profit organizations that aim to ensure every American, regardless of race, income or geography, has access to the critical tool that is broadband Internet. The IIA seeks to promote public policies that support equal opportunity for universal broadband availability and adoption so that everyone, everywhere can seize the benefits of the Internet - from education to health care, employment to community building, civic engagement and beyond.

What is IIA?

Library

Thursday, June 09

print this page

10 ways broadband helps rural communities

By IIA

Embed This

Copy-n-paste code to embed this graphic your website
<img src="http://internetinnovation.org/images/site/rural_infographic.jpg" width="600" height="4314" alt="9 Ways broadband helps rural communities" />
 
 

Print Version

Palmcard - PDF file (500kb)  
 

Sources

1

— Source: National Public Radio, 2/16/09
"One example of the connection between broadband and jobs is in Ten Sleep, Wyo., a town of 350 at the base of the Big Horn Mountains. Ten Sleep is home to vast ranches and a global cyberbusiness that expects to employ as many as 700 full- and part-time teachers from across northwest Wyoming by the end of the year. That would bring the company's payroll to close to $3 million a year. The cyberbusiness started three years ago, when Kent Holiday was visiting in-laws in Ten Sleep. Holiday had been a top executive at Korea Telecom in South Korea. So when he noticed spools of orange cable along freshly dug ditches in Ten Sleep, he knew the tiny Wyoming town was getting the kind of blazing fast fiber-optic service still elusive in most big city neighborhoods. Holiday called Chris Davidson, the general manager of Tri County Telephone, the local telephone, broadband and television provider. 'We discussed his idea for this business of teaching English via live video connection to South Korean students,' Davidson recalls. 'And it ended up that he headquartered his company right there in Ten Sleep.' Holiday's Eleutian Technology uses fiber-optic bandwidth to link its teacher-employees with 15,000 students in Korea." (Howard Berkes, "Stimulus Stirs Debate Over Rural Broadband Access,"

2

— Source: Federal Communications Commission, "Broadband Adoption And Use In America," hraunfoss.fcc.gov, 2/10
"Fifty percent of rural residents have broadband, a rate that reflects in part the older and less wealthy rural population but also the lack of available infrastructure. One in 10 rural non-adopters say they cannot get broadband where they live. That is more than twice the average. Rural Americans with broadband, meanwhile, are as active as their urban and suburban counterparts in using the Internet for shopping and taking classes online, suggesting that they use broadband as a way to virtually access the benefits associated with urban or suburban living."

3

— Source: "Text Of Gov. Otter's 2011 State Of The State And Budget Address," The Idaho Statesman, 1/10/11
"Truly one of the bright spots of the past couple of years for me has been watching the impact of the Idaho Education Network's expansion into every corner of our state. I've watched and listened to classes delivered over broadband Internet connections."

4

— Source: Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-WV), "Chairman Rockefeller Remarks On Closing The Digital Divide: Connecting Native Nations And Communities To The 21st Century," Press Release, 4/5/11
"Access to modern communications is not a luxury. It's a right. All people, no matter who they are or where they live, deserve access to basic telephone service, wireless service and broadband. Without access to these services, too many of our citizens will be left on the wrong side of the digital divide and denied the kind of job opportunities, educational development, health care options and personal safety that modern communications networks can provide."

5

— Source: Department Of Health & Human Services, "HHS Broadband Fact Sheet" Press Release, 2/1/08
"Telemedicine, or Telehealth, programs improve patient access to care over great distances, which can reduce costs from unnecessary travel, enhance chronic illness management, and improve health outcomes by facilitating regular and preventive care."

6

— Source: Pew Internet & American Life Project, Rural Areas and the Internet, 2/17/04
In each community type, 18-29 year olds are the most likely to be online. Three quarters of rural 18-29 year olds go online. Only urban adults 30-49 and 18-29 year olds in suburban and urban areas go online more often. But while a large percentage of rural young adults go online -- nearly equal to their peers in the cities and the suburbs -- young adults are the smallest age group in rural communities. Young adults account for about 18% of the rural population. By comparison, young adults account for 26% and 20% of the urban and suburban populations, respectively.

7

— Source: Washington State Department Of Information Services, broadband.wa.gov, Accessed 4/11/11
"For Today's Farmer, Access To Highspeed Broadband Is Increasingly A Necessity To Successfully Manage A Farm, Market Products And To Communicate With Suppliers, Customers And Markets Around The World."

— Source: John D. Sutter, "Twittering From The Tractor: Smartphones Sprout On The Farm," CNN, 7/3/09
Twitter Is A Popular Resource For Farmers. "A host of blogs and Twitter feeds have popped up around the subjects of technology and life on the farm. On Tuesdays from 8 to 10 p.m. ET, farmers meet on Twitter for a live chat about all things agricultural."

8

— Source: Howard Berkes, "Stimulus Stirs Debate Over Rural Broadband Access," National Public Radio, 2/16/09
"The Towns With Recreational And Scenic Amenities -- Such As Aspen, Colo.; Jackson Hole, Wyo.; And Moab, Utah -- attract urban and suburban transplants who expect broadband, and entrepreneurs who want to base their businesses in desirable locales."

9

— Source: Kevin Miller, "Legislators Hear Cons Of Erecting Billboards," Bangor Daily News, 4/27/11
"Alvion Kimball, owner of the Orland House Bed and Breakfast, said he believes more of his business comes from people finding his inn on their smartphones than from his roadside signs. 'I'm very happy with the signs I have,' Kimball said. 'I would rather see Maine invest money in better broadband service for the state.'"

10

— Source: Wellman, B., Smith, A., Wells, A. and T. Kennedy, "Networked Families." Pew Internet and American Life Project. 8/1/2008
"One-third (33%) of online adults say that the internet has improved their connections with friends "a lot," and nearly one-quarter (23%) say that it has greatly improved their connections with members of their family. By contrast, far fewer say their internet use has improved their capacity to make new friends: only 12% of internet users feel that the internet has greatly improved their ability to meet new people, and nearly two thirds (64%) say that it has not improved their ability to meet new people at all. Adults of all ages see the internet as an important tool for maintaining connections with family members, but young people are far more likely than older adults to go online in order to keep in touch with existing friends and make new contacts.

Share
Permalink

Next entry: March Madness in Bytes

Previous entry: A Stronger, More Competitive Nation

« Back to IIA Home