On Wednesday, Feb. 4, Columbia County (Oregon) was approved for $9.5 million in BEAD funding, making it one of only four public entities in Oregon to receive broadband funding. This represents an important step toward closing longstanding service gaps and fostering equitable access to digital infrastructure.

Columbia County took steps to position itself to improve service availability and pursue federal broadband funding opportunities. Their process started by identifying underserved areas and developing a regional broadband plan. Columbia County engaged SNG to support this work, helping to make the economic case for investing in broadband and conducting a comprehensive Broadband Economic Feasibility Assessment.

This detailed assessment demonstrated how a County-owned fiber network could be financed through a combination of residential subscriptions and community anchor institutions (CAIs) connectivity. It also provided crucial evidence that the network could achieve financial sustainability by serving both high-cost rural and commercially viable areas, which is a key component in making the business case for public investment.

SNG values our longstanding partnership with Columbia County and applauds this milestone as part of Oregon’s historic broadband expansion. We stand ready to support the County, and others like Columbia County, as they move forward with the implementation and delivery of broadband solutions that will have immediate and lasting impact on their community.

Ready to see what smart broadband strategy can unlock for your own community? Learn more about digital infrastructure strategy for localities here.

For a closer look at what that impact looks like on the ground, explore our success stories and see how SNG’s broadband strategy drives local economies forward.

Five Years of Partnership. One Principle: Communities Deserve to Secure Their Digital Future. 

Broadband and digital infrastructure decisions are among the most complex choices local governments can face. They touch economic development, education, healthcare, public safety, housing and long-term fiscal sustainability – often all at once. 

For almost five years, SNG has worked with the City of Hermiston (Oregon) on identifying broadband gaps, assessing needs and planning the future of broadband infrastructure because the city understands a fundamental truth: ensuring that broadband infrastructure connects everyone requires consensus, credible data and a long-term view. 

SNG’s role in this process has been to help local leaders, elected officials, staff, anchor institutions and stakeholders build a shared vision about why broadband matters and how communities can move forward responsibly. That includes identifying ways to aggregating existing telecommunications budgets, developing public-private partnerships, and if needed self-funding broadband, rather than trying to create new budget through taxation, applying for grants (none seen forthcoming) or risk defaulting from unsustainable debt. 

Over time, the partnership with SNG has allowed Hermiston to build institutional knowledge, helping them to understanding that it is not just the technology, but the economics, the demand drivers and the community impacts behind these digital infrastructure decisions. 

In the here and now, SNG’s partnership continues to define the path by which the cities of Hermiston and Umatilla can pursue to deliver robust, competitive broadband to all city residents and businesses.  

That’s exactly why the Cities of Hermiston and Umatilla recently launched a Broadband eCheckup, a structured broadband market assessment study collecting granular data about connectivity, usage, gaps and priorities from households, organizations and businesses 

The eCheckup study is part of the ongoing effort by these cities to assess the current and potential demand for broadband, while they work to ensure broadband infrastructure is available for the benefit of all residents and businesses in the community.  

With close to five years of building a trusted working relationship and such an important community decision to make, continuity matters. Digital infrastructure is not a one-cycle or one-term issue. Communities that succeed are those that treat broadband as a long-term asset tied to local priorities, not something that is outside their mandate. 

At its core, this SNG partnership reflects a shared belief: communities cannot afford to expect outside parties to ensure their future. With the right data, planning and guidance, they can take ownership of their digital future – confidently, efficiently and based on their individual needs. 

BEAD funding is intended to provide broadband connectivity to previously underserved locations.

Columbia County, Oregon, has been recommended for $9.5 million in funding through the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program, which is particularly significant because Columbia County is one of only four public entities in Oregon to receive such an award. For a county that has long faced challenges in making high-speed broadband available to all businesses and residents, this represents an important step toward closing longstanding service gaps

Preparing for County Broadband Opportunity

Broadband infrastructure gaps have an increasing economic cost. Recognizing the importance of reliable broadband for economic development, education, and healthcare, Columbia County took steps to position itself to improve service availability and pursue federal broadband funding opportunities.

Columbia County started the process by identifying underserved areas and developing a regional broadband plan. Next, Columbia County engaged Strategic Networks Group to support this work, by helping the County make the economic case for broadband and conducting a comprehensive Broadband Economic Feasibility Assessment. This detailed assessment demonstrated how a County-owned fiber network could be financed through a combination of residential subscriptions and community anchor institutions (CAIs) connectivity. It also provided crucial evidence that the network could achieve financial sustainability by serving both high-cost rural and commercially viable areas, which is a key component in making the business case for public investment.

Columbia County also facilitated critical partnerships with local Public Utility Districts, putting together infrastructure agreements that provided in-kind asset valuation to  offset cash contributions needed for BEAD’s 25% matching requirement. Beyond the matching funds, those partnerships enhanced the overall broadband project by demonstrating how utilities could benefit from fiber access for their own operations while supporting expanded connectivity throughout the region. Other project stakeholders included local business organizations, port authority officials, and municipal jurisdictions within the county who participated in a coalition of local partners that support the project and advocate for long-term viability.

In preparation for BEAD, the County established a contracting framework that brought in a qualified operating entity. Through a competitive process, an open access network operator was selected. This partnership was central to the County’s BEAD application, focusing on network sustainability and operational capacity to ensure the project aligned with BEAD funding goals. The network operator, in turn, benefited from the established  County-wide support for the broadband initiative.

Navigating Program Changes and Award Summary

The journey to receiving the BEAD award recognition has not been straightforward. Midway through the BEAD application process, new federal guidance required states to adjust their programs to incorporate what became known as the “Benefit of the Bargain” round. This new phase required states to select the lowest-cost applicants for BEAD-eligible locations, regardless of technology. By adapting quickly and working closely together, the County and network operator were able to keep their application strong and secure awards for the County.

The state of Oregon awarded a total of $620,732,751 to broadband projects through the BEAD program, with only $15,032,943 of awards to public entities (less than 3%). Columbia County received nearly two-thirds of those public entity BEAD award monies across three school districts. The award for Columbia County includes over $9.5 million in broadband funding to bring service to more than 2019 unserved and underserved locations across the Rainier, Scappoose, and Vernonia District Grant areas. These investments will directly benefit households, small businesses, and community anchor institutions that currently lack adequate access to reliable, high-speed internet.

The awards are pending review and final approval by the NTIA, with a decision expected for the beginning of December 2025.

Looking Beyond BEAD

While the BEAD awards are an important milestone, they are not the end goal. Columbia County has faced persistent broadband challenges, with large portions of the county still lacking reliable service. Building on the BEAD-funded projects, the network operator is looking to use this as an opportunity to expand its network and extend service more broadly across Columbia County. By doing so, the County aims to create a sustainable broadband infrastructure that can meet community needs for decades to come.

“What began with a recognition that county residents lacked sufficient broadband access, has grown into a multi-year project to provide a solution, that recently reached a major milestone – our preliminary BEAD award. This effort has required a great deal of problem-solving, multi-agency collaboration, and resilience, but I’m incredibly proud of what we’ve accomplished so far. Reliable broadband unlocks opportunities—remote work, home-based businesses, telehealth, education, and economic growth. I’m committed to bringing these opportunities to every part of our community and thankful for the partnership with SNG, a steady and crucial source of support throughout this journey.”

Holly Miller, Columbia County IT Director

Building a Stronger Future

This award recognition highlights the progress Columbia County is making toward improving broadband access. Reliable internet is increasingly essential for tele-workers, students, businesses, and residents alike. By moving these projects forward, the County is laying the groundwork for stronger communities, new opportunities, and improved quality of life for its residents.

Strategic Networks Group is proud to support Columbia County in reaching this milestone. We look forward to continuing our work as these projects take shape and building towards a more connected future.

Contact SNG to learn more about SNG’s projects and how we help communities achieve their broadband goals.

Camp Sherman, Oregon: A Community in Need of Broadband

Camp Sherman has road and bridge infrastructure. They are working to get digital infrastructure.
Photo: Camp Sherman Bridge across the Metolius River by DBerry

While it may not face the same economic barriers as many other rural areas underserved with broadband – with household incomes approximately 20% higher than the Oregon average – Camp Sherman, Oregon, has broadband gaps and is now stuck in broadband limbo.

Camp Sherman is a small, unincorporated community nestled in the Deschutes National Forest of Central Oregon. The community has clear goals to improve connectivity. Local leaders and residents formed a broadband task force, engaged stakeholders, and launched CampShermanFiber.com to share updates and rally community interest. While these important steps have shown the community has demand and a pressing need for broadband, there has been difficulty in achieving results.

Even though the area was selected as a Federal broadband RDOF grant award recipient in 2020, the project never came to fruition. Like many other communities facing similar hurdles, the program that provided a brief period of hope for residents to get broadband service, ended up as a default on commitments, leaving the goal of achieving high-speed internet back to square one.

Today, Camp Sherman remains unserved by fiber. Residents rely on satellite or fixed wireless connections which have proven inadequate for work-from-home professionals, students, and local small businesses. Additionally, Camp Sherman is under the canopy of conifers, obscuring the sky view of satellites and many residences and businesses simply cannot connect to satellite providers, leaving them with no option at all to connect to the internet.

Camp Sherman also highlights the unique challenges of rural broadband planning:

Camp Sherman shows that even relatively affluent communities, the so-called “haves”, can still lack broadband access and thus ‘have-not’.

When it comes to building digital infrastructure, there is no substitute for working closely with a community to address its specific needs. There is no a one-size-fits-all solution to providing internet service in places that struggle to attract traditional market driven investment.

An individualized case must be developed to show that utilization of broadband from a community’s residents and businesses can support an investment in digital infrastructure. Building an economic case for investing in broadband needs to breakdown traditional silos and bring together many factors including the need to support online services such as telehealth, online education, and public safety communications. In addition, the support of community leaders is paramount to supporting the long-term vision and the benefits that internet connectivity can enable for a community. There are also other considerations such as, an area’s relative vicinity to other regional municipalities, which can increase the scale of broadband planning and develop the market viability to support digital infrastructure investment.

“Black Butte School District has been leading the charge in Camp Sherman towards fiber, for over 10 years. We have experienced one devastating set back after another, leaving us now in a state of limbo. We are wondering if anyone will believe us when we say that satellite and fixed wireless internet do not work under the canopy of pines. Fiber is our only option for our community to enter into the 21st Century. Without it we will simply be limping along patching together solutions that do not actually fix the problem. We live at least an hour away from most doctors, and would love to choose to video conference with them, but with satellite providers, these calls drop, skip, or become garbled. Many people choose not to invest in our community because of our lack of internet, so the long-term sustainability of our community is in the balance.” Jennie Sharp, Special Projects Manager, Black Butte School District 

What Can Communities Do Now?

With delays and uncertainty in government broadband funding (e.g. BEAD and RDOF) , communities need a new strategy—one that’s locally driven, financially sustainable, and less dependent on government subsidies.

Plan for Action, Not Just on Paper

Communities need to go beyond high-level strategies and feasibility studies that are not actionable. They need to produce investment-ready, technically and financially viable broadband plans that align with market opportunities. Broadband planning and technical feasibility assessments need to aggregate demand and build a sustainable business case that will attract internet service providers (ISPs) and infrastructure investors.

Bring Funding Options to the Table

Consider options such as revenue bond financing and public–private joint ventures, which are powerful tools that exist for communities to leverage municipal and stable market conditions in order to help clients structure broadband projects that do not rely solely on slow-moving federal programs. Communities that are ready to take steps to address broadband should determine the best approach that suits their current status and aims (see Options to Bridge Broadband Gaps). 

Engage Local Partners who are Stakeholders

Some of the most valuable partners in the broadband space, are local organizations that are already or could/should be using the internet as a part of their everyday operations. These can include local education and health institutions, as well as non-profit and government organizations that are directly engaged with the local community. Understanding the needs of these organizations can help shape the best approach to solving broadband challenges and improving utilization.

Use Data to Build Support and Reduce Risk

By conducting granular market assessments and financial modeling tools help communities delineate and define underserved areas, quantify demand, and evaluate the economic impacts of broadband investments, communities can provide validation for return on investment that is critical for securing stakeholder buy-in and minimizing risk for investors.

The Bottom Line

We’re in a moment where the broadband future feels uncertain. But that does not mean communities should wait. It means they should act.

Taking action on your broadband future includes:

Contact SNG for more information about how we help communities overcome these challenges, avoid common pitfalls, and deliver results in broadband planning and deployment. Let’s build broadband infrastructure that gets funded, built, and drives community benefits by starting with two questions:

  1. Are your community leaders ready to move forward on a broadband initiative? Use the Digital Needs and Readiness Assessment to find out
  2. To what extent could existing telecommunications budgets finance your digital infrastructure? Take the Broadband Economic Feasibility Assessment

How Jefferson County, Oregon Secured $19M for Broadband — With a Plan Built on Local Insight and Hard Data

In rural communities like Jefferson County, Oregon, broadband isn’t just about speed — it’s about access to opportunity. Whether it’s farming operations relying on remote sensors, local students trying to do homework and access remote learning, or small businesses needing to reach customers online, reliable internet is essential infrastructure.

That’s why in 2021, Jefferson County partnered with Strategic Networks Group (SNG) to take a hard look at their broadband challenges — and opportunities. The result? A detailed, data-driven plan that helped the County successfully secure $19 million in broadband funding from the state’s Broadband Deployment Program.

Understanding Local Needs

SNG started by working closely with County officials, local stakeholders, and tribal representatives to understand the full picture. Broadband gaps in Jefferson County weren’t just about geography — they were tied to how people lived, worked, and accessed services across the region.

Through interviews, planning sessions, and our Digital Needs & Readiness Assessment, we helped surface the community’s broadband priorities:

This kind of listening and understanding local needs was essential — it laid the groundwork for a plan that reflected the realities on the ground and incorporated direct input from local leaders who emphasized the need for equitable access, resilient infrastructure, and long-overdue investment in rural connectivity.

Filling in the Data Gaps

 SNG then got to work collecting the data needed to make the case for investment, including:

One of the most striking findings? Nearly 80% of residents said they’d switch providers if better service were available — clear evidence of unmet demand.

Turning Insight into Strategy

With strong local input and a solid dataset in hand, SNG worked with County leaders to develop a broadband strategy. This wasn’t a generic plan — it was tailored to Jefferson County’s geography, economic goals, and technical realities.

The strategy included:

The goal was to equip the County with a clear, actionable roadmap to guide decisions, attract investment, and take meaningful steps toward a more connected and resilient broadband future.

A Plan that Delivered Results

Following Jefferson County Commissioners’ official adoption of the Broadband Assessment and Strategic Plan, the County had a clear picture of the approach and infrastructure improvements required to achieve results.

Working with SNG to develop a funding application grounded in local priorities and backed by strong data, the County successfully secured nearly $19 million through Oregon’s Broadband Deployment Program. This funding will support the expansion of fiber broadband to over 1,800 unserved and underserved locations, in partnership with a local private internet service provider.

It’s a big win — and one that didn’t happen by accident. It happened because the County had a clear, data-backed plan and could show how investment would translate into real benefits for residents, businesses, and institutions.

What This Means Going Forward

Now, Jefferson County is moving into the build-out phase. But the work doesn’t stop with construction. The County is continuing to draw on the guidance provided in SNG’s strategic plan as it explores ways to support adoption and ensure the network reaches those who need it most — including through digital navigator programs and ongoing coordination with tribal and regional partners.

For more information about this project, visit SNG’s webpage for Jefferson County

More information about the Broadband Deployment Program Oregon Awards

With more and more funding for broadband – for example, the US’s $100 billion through the American Jobs Plan, or Canada’s Universal Broadband Fund – unserved and underserved localities should be encouraged by these positive and significant steps. However, there are a number of uncertainties:

SNG recommends that localities proceed with their own and/or private investment to build digital infrastructure and to not lose any additional time in bridging broadband gaps. No locality can wait to catch the next wave of broadband funding. COVID-19 has accelerated the urgency that digital infrastructure be available to all – now.

In parallel to developing their own broadband investment solutions, localities should apply for broadband funding once the application process is available. If their application is funded, great – then use public funds to support and expand a healthy competitive broadband marketplace that connects all local premises with digital infrastructure that can provide needed redundancy by being available to multiple providers.

For those localities that know they have broadband problems, but struggle to find a path forward – especially when potentially large investments are needed … there is an alternative strategy. Localities need to answer key questions on how to solve their broadband needs:

SNG can help in this process with our Broadband Technical Opportunities Roadmap to answer these questions and empower localities to develop their own strategies so they can effectively engage with service providers and other partners to take action. Broadband is too important to your community’s prospects not to own your digital future.

As a local leader or elected official, you may need to decide whether or not you need a survey, or a study for your broadband initiative. If the value isn’t clear, or if it doesn’t get you closer to your goal, why spend time and money on a ‘survey’ or another ‘study’? Don’t do it just because another community has.

Understand which communities have achieved their broadband goals and how they got there.

If you have areas that are unserved or underserved with broadband, private sector providers have not seen enough of a business case for them to invest. Low density, tough terrain, insufficient take rates to make a business case, etc. are realities that must be overcome and will require more than re-packaging of your market, or expounding on ‘we have a great community’. If service providers have a better return on their investment elsewhere, that is where they will invest.

To get broadband deployed to your unserved or underserved areas there are generally three options going forward – 1) entice a provider to deploy in your area by subsidizing their business case; 2) build your own network to compete directly with other incumbent providers; or, 3) build your own digital infrastructure which multiple providers can then use to provide services (like municipal roads which are built, owned and maintained by the municipality, but anyone can use them).

Regardless of which option communities choose, elected officials would want to be in the best position to negotiate and to decide the best path forward for their community by understanding the broadband investment options, the market potential, and the community returns on investment (ROI).

As a builder of broadband networks explained, ‘take rates’ and ‘revenue generation’ are really the opposite of what a community wants to achieve. A community needs to focus on the development of a sustainable model that does not restrict, but enables sustainable future growth. What communities nor providers don’t know is what broadband can do to sustain and grow what the community already has, as well as how that growth has been suppressed by lack of or slow broadband investment

For these reasons assessing broadband demand is not a survey, but necessary due diligence on the market potential and choosing your broadband strategy (bringing providers to serve your areas, or building your own) while ensuring the best return for your community.

We know that providers already have their expected take rates and will use their spreadsheets in developing their own business case. However from SNG’s extensive research, the majority of the community benefits from broadband are off-balance sheet to providers – which means providers under-value their return on investment as compared to community returns on investment (i.e. community benefits). We call this an economic case for investing in broadband – some people call it a government business case. It’s the same reason we have public investment in roads.

For those considering a public-private partnership, if you know that you have a strong market potential (current and future demand) for broadband and value-added services, this will strengthen your position on negotiating how much your community needs invest to make a successful business case. On the other side, if your unserved and underserved areas do not show a strong demand then you may want to limit your risk, or take actions to build up demand. It is also possible that some areas have higher demand than others, which can allow you to be more tactical with the timing and prioritization of broadband deployments.

Data points on market potential inform your investment case for whether you choose to negotiate with an ISP by developing an RFQ or RFI for a public-private partnership, or if you decide to build your own digital infrastructure. We’ve written about this issue in our recent post: Where do we put our efforts to get connected with broadband?

SNG has recently launched the Digital Economy Demand Checkup offering with a regional ISP (who were the ones that requested we do this) and we think it will be of interest to communities everywhere because it:

We are able to address these fundamental investment case issues in a cost effective way with our Digital Economy Demand Checkup. Not only do we identify current demand, but also potential demand and market potential. We don’t know of anyone else that can benchmark demand to increase service provider revenues and maximize local economic impacts. For example, with a municipal service provider we identified a 64% increase in revenues for no additional capital investment. This represents an increase of 47% in Average Revenue Per User (ARPU).

SNG was recently asked by residents from a neighborhood just outside Nashville, Tennessee, where to best put their efforts to get connected with broadband. They have lived in a location for 10 years and it is not serviced with high-speed internet even though they are near where it stops on either end of their community. Asking the incumbent providers in their words “has proven futile” to getting better service. However they have many neighbors who would be interested in better internet service because many have businesses and work from home and they don’t want to move.

At SNG, we understand this challenge, which too many residents and businesses face across North America because of their perceived addressable market, expected revenues vs. cost to service their market, low density, etc. Approaching private sector providers can be ‘futile’ if those providers do not see enough of a business case to invest in your area and when providers have better returns elsewhere.

The challenge to get broadband deployed in unserved or underserved areas is to enable a positive case for investment. Driving awareness and utilization of broadband with local residents and businesses drives local economic growth and community benefits – which makes a case for public investment to bridge broadband gaps.

Two Options Going Forward

There are generally two options going forward – either 1) a public-private-partnership to entice a broadband provider to deploy in your area by subsidizing their business case; or, 2) build your own digital infrastructure which multiple providers can then use to provide services (like municipal roads which are built, owned and maintained by the municipality, but anyone can use them).

Subsidizing a Service Provider’s Business Case

If you choose to subsidize a provider’s business case to bridge their gap between their costs and their expected returns on capital, then local dollars should be used to build infrastructure that the locality owns (like a tower, backhaul fiber, etc.). This retains local ownership and negotiation capability which may be needed if there is poor broadband service because the provider is exercising a market dominant position. Retain ownership and control of your digital future.

In working with providers, there is also the option of conducting a broadband demand assessment to identify people ready to sign-up to new service, as well as assess potential demand for online services. This is local market demand research. Private sector providers are often reluctant to spend their retained earnings on such research, especially if they are unsure there is a business case for them. By quantifying current and potential broadband demand up-front and sharing that with private sector providers, they can apply that data to their business models to see if there is a business case for them that previously ‘flew under their radar’. Having a contact list of people who are ready and committed to sign-up makes that business case for the provider even stronger.

In both these broadband public-private-partnership instances, local funds subsidize one service provider. This may be a tactical, less complicated, and a less involved way for a locality to move forward – who in their right mind would want to take on more work, especially a broadband initiative! However, performance agreements should be negotiated and periodically reviewed to ensure local residents and businesses are getting the broadband they need – and want.

Investing in Digital Infrastructure

The other approach is the locality investing in their own digital infrastructure which is more involved, more complicated, and longer term. But this approach addresses the issue of local ownership and control of essential infrastructure – as with other infrastructure like roads, or electrical where community benefits are significantly greater than a private sector business case. At SNG we call this the economic case for investing in broadband. The example of Ammon, Idaho, proves that it is possible for a locality to own their digital future while also allowing multiple providers to provide competitive, robust internet services that meet the needs of local residents, businesses, and organizations.

Deciding where and how to get started depends on the addressable market of the locality (i.e. broadband market potential), the local champions available to drive the process, the local organizational capacity to support a broadband initiative, and whether local residents, businesses, and organizations (government, education, health) have an understanding and vision of how they can benefit from using online practices. The table below outlines a roadmap to get started with broadband and SNG’s suite of services that have been designed to help you make the right decisions based on your needs and circumstances, no matter what stage you are at in the process.

Where and How to Get Started with a Broadband Initiative

If you are interested in assessing at what stage your locality is in the process of getting broadband – because it is a process – we have the Digital Needs and Readiness Assessment that your local broadband champion can take online. When they completed the 10 minute online survey, a report will be generated and automatically be emailed to them. We developed this tool specifically to help local leaders understand at what stage their locality is and to help them prioritize their community goals and priorities. SNG’s goal with this is to help local leaders make better informed decision on how they can and need to move forward in a way that is pragmatic, clear, and cost-effective.

SNG Research Brief – Household Broadband

 

Access to robust and competitive broadband is essential for any community to survive, let alone thrive. Unserved or underserved areas continue to exist in many localities, whether because of limited or no choices for service providers, outdated technology, etc. This research brief provides some insights and data points on the current state of access for households, with focus on rural communities and how they compare to urban areas.

From SNG’s research of over 19,000 households across the North America we are able to reveal some of the important findings that proponents of broadband need to know. These insights are from household data collected directly by SNG rather than statistics provided by service providers or other agencies.

Technologies used

While fiber deployment and use are increasing, cable remains the dominant broadband technology overall with 23.6% of households, followed by DSL at 19.6%. However, the picture changes when you compare urban and rural areas.

While cable dominates urban markets, DSL is still the most used technology in rural areas – which suggests that this is due to the lack of other available options. Fiber use is low for both urban and rural households. For rural areas in particular, the lack of cable and fiber options drives up the use of mobile wireless and satellite as an alternative.

Broadband Service Priorities and Satisfaction

From a user perspective, technology is only relevant for its impact on connection speed, reliability, and price. Understandably, much emphasis is put on speed of connection, since this is how services are sold. However, when it comes to how households prioritize their selection of service, reliability is cited as highest priority with 88% of households compared to 77% who say speed is a high priority and 66% who say affordability is a high priority. These priorities are almost identical between rural and urban households.

So, if that is what households expect, then what is available and how do they feel about the connections they have?

More than half (54%) of households have only one broadband provider available, clearly indicating a lack of choice for most households. For rural areas nearly 62% of households have only one broadband provider to choose from, with implications for competitive service price and quality.

This is reflected in rural service speeds, price, and satisfaction. On average, rural households get approximately half the download speed as urban households and just over one third the upload speed. When it comes to meeting current FCC speed recommendations, 28.7% of urban households meet or exceed the recommended 25 Mbps download and 3 Mbps upload speed, while only 17.2% of rural households do so. Even looking at the old FCC recommendation of 10 Mbps down and 1 Mbps up, just over one third of rural households meet those speeds.

More than 61% of rural households get less than 10 Mbps download speed for an average cost of $70 per month. Overall, rural households pay a monthly cost of $4.38 per MB compared to $2.32 per MB for urban households, almost double the cost. Rural households have less choice and slower speeds and spend more for the same or poorer service.

As a result, 70% of rural households subscribing to less than 10 Mbps download speeds are dissatisfied with the value of their service for the price they pay, and 69% are dissatisfied with the speed of service. In addition, 64% of households are dissatisfied with the reliability of their service. The satisfaction levels are only slightly better for urban households with less than 10 Mbps download, with 68% dissatisfied with value, 58% with speed, and 68% with reliability.

This is partly explained by the different mix of technologies deployed in rural areas. With a higher proportion of DSL and satellite connections used in rural areas the quality of speed and reliability is reflected in overall satisfaction levels, resulting in lower satisfaction with value for the price of the service. Fiber connections generate the highest satisfaction levels by far, followed by cable service. Very few households are fully satisfied with DSL or satellite services, and yet for some these are their only options for broadband connectivity.

34.7% of households say that their fiber connection is “worth every penny” for value satisfaction, compared to 7.6% for cable, 4.6% for DSL, and 2.0% for satellite. Another 48% say the value of fiber is “acceptable for what I pay”, versus 38% for cable, 27% for DSL, and 15% for satellite. Similar satisfaction levels by technology are shown for connection speed and reliability. More than any other technology, fiber is clearly a solution that meets household priorities and expectations.

The Implications for Households and Communities

Households without good broadband available to them may choose not to take any of the options forgoing the speed and reliability they need. Households in this situation will not use the internet to its fullest capacity, missing opportunities for them to fully benefit from what the internet can offer – such as new income opportunities, remote access to health care and education. This negatively impacts community well-being as inadequate broadband risks losing population and difficulty in attracting new residents and businesses. This is particularly challenging for smaller, rural communities where SNG research has shown that they are more likely to lack quality broadband and have the most to lose in terms of population decline, especially among youth.

See how a rural county got the support and funding to build the digital infrastructure they need to thrive – Custer County Broadband Impact and Market Assessment.

Find out more about SNG Solutions for Local Economic Development.