This disparity in access is also seen in what researchers call the “homework gap”-the differences between school-age children who have access to high-speed internet at home and those who don’t. The Pew Research Center reported in May that 44 percent of adults in households with incomes below $30,000 don’t have broadband. And at the other end of the supply-demand equation, many low-income Americans lack access because they cannot afford the monthly bills that come with connecting a computer to high-speed internet. The companies providing the services need adequate returns to justify their investment in the necessary fiber, towers, and cables. New employers don’t come in.”Ĭost is one obstacle to extending broadband internet to everyone who wants it. Before long, young families, older citizens, and jobs leave. Boats delivering live lobsters from the ocean that can’t ‘talk’ in real time to their customers lose a competitive edge in the supply chain. Older people have to drive off our islands to talk to a doctor. Without broadband, “Kids can’t do homework.
Internet connection download#
Other research, including analysis from Microsoft, suggests that the number of Americans without broadband-that’s internet access with download speeds of at least 25 megabytes per second (Mbps) and upload speeds of at least 3 Mbps-could be over 163 million.Īnd at a time when broadband access has become increasingly essential, any community without fast, reliable internet is condemned “to a long, dark death,” says Peggy Schaffer, executive director of Maine’s ConnectME Authority, which is working to extend service in the state. Research shows that 40 percent of schools lack broadband, as do 60 percent of health care facilities outside metropolitan areas.Īnd those estimates are on the low side.
That includes nearly 3 in 10 people-27 percent-who live in such rural places as the outreaches of Maine and the fertile fields of Indiana, as well as 2 percent of those living in cities. From the comfort of their homes to the nearest coffee shop, Americans expect-and rely-on internet access being available almost wherever they go.īut the Federal Communications Commission estimates that more than 21 million people in the United States don’t have that connection.