NCTA — The Internet & Television Association
Broadband For All Americans

Rural Broadband

The internet powers the economy, inspires our imaginations and provides an essential connection to family and friends. Yet some communities in rural America have yet to be connected, leaving an estimated 13.4 million people without access to fast, reliable broadband. Cable broadband providers are committed to being part of the solution, building out high-speed networks to all corners of the country. However, in some hard-to-reach areas, government support is needed for cable or other providers to offer service. But some simple changes to federal programs will encourage participation by all providers, quickly speeding up deployment in these areas. We want to ensure that all Americans—whether they live in rural communities or large cities—have access to our nation’s opportunity infrastructure.

Priorities

NCTA is committed to policies that help connect more people to broadband.

Highlights

Dutch Harbor Alaska
Article
Alaska’s GCI Will Extend Fiber Service to Remote Aleutian Islands

An example of getting broadband to the most remote areas is a new project from Alaskan broadband provider GCI to bring terrestrial fiber broadband to the remote Aleutian Islands in southwest Alaska.

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rural America
Article
Charter's Investment in Rural Ohio Brings Residents Up to Speed
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Minnesota
Article
Rural ISP Helps Keep Communities Thriving in Northwestern Minnesota
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rural caucus
Article
Six Ways Broadband Leaders are Transforming Rural America
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1GB
Internet speeds now available in rural regions
13.4M
Number of rural Americans without access to high-speed broadband
55%
Rural homes served by cable high-speed internet
st francis airplane

Connecting Rural America: St. Francis, Kansas

When Eagle Communications turned the small town of St. Francis, Kansas, into a gigabit community, it opened up more opportunities than ever before and brought its residents to the cutting edge of technology.

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Related Content

Article

Broadband Data: Infrastructure

As Congress moves forward on the bipartisan infrastructure package, America’s broadband leaders are continuing their work to extend superfast networks to all Americans, from large urban communities to far-out mountain towns. And while federal funding will be important to help close gaps and jumpstart projects in traditionally difficult-to-serve regions, these areas are just a small percentage of the country. That’s because cable (and other) internet service providers have been investing in and upgrading networks in urban and rural communities for decades.
Article

How Rural Broadband Can Help Agriculture Into the Future

For sure, one thing the last year and a half highlighted is how important a broadband connection has become in our daily lives, especially for business. That’s just as true for agricultural communities as it is for white collar offices. As new technologies like fixed wireless and DOCSIS 4.0 facilitate the rollout of broadband networks to remote and far out communities, next generation agriculture is posed to reap the benefits.
Article

Cable Operators Begin to Roll Out Emergency Broadband Benefit

All of NCTA’s operator members are participating in the Emergency Broadband Benefit (EBB) program, opening up this opportunity to millions of consumers across the country in urban and rural communities. The EBB gives Americans who meet certain criteria—including people of certain income levels, participants of free-or-reduced lunch programs, federal Pell grant recipients, or people enduring hardships such as job loss or furlough—the opportunity to receive discounted broadband service and additional benefits.

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