Rural High Speed Internet Providers and Access

Unfortunately, high speed rural internet connections are lacking for American consumers that live on the out reaches of large towns.  Today many rural residents either rely on dial-up, their smart phones, or travel distances to get public access to the internet.  The more rural a resident is, the chances are even lower in obtaining high speed internet.  The good news is that President Obama has set aside over 7 billion dollars to  “award competitive grants to accelerate broadband deployment in unserved and undeserved areas”.   Whether these areas will EVER see that money to make high speed access more accessible to them is another story that deserves attention.  In the meantime, while rural Americans wait for improved high speed internet (which has proven to stimulate the economy and creates jobs), there are a couple of other options to get rural internet which will be discussed here.

Indeed 3G is widely available.  One very powerful telecommunications company makes the outrageous claim that their 3G is accessible in the most desolate of areas such as in deserts, mountain tops, and even in caves.  If these claims are true, then the smart phones that run on 3G can be used as one way to get high speed rural internet.

Another way of getting their high speed rural internet is by using satellite services.  Satellite internet is a viable solution, however everyone knows that satellite has its problems.  Many rural residents likely have satellite installed and do tap into the information highway with this method, but unfortunately satellite is extremely expensive, almost doubling in costs of more conventional internet connections.  Also, satellite is not reliable in certain conditions.  One heavy rain cloud or excess wind has the potential to interfere with services.  As well,  the few internet satellite services that are on the market today that claim their internet is high speed, really is not regarded as “high speed” by suburban standards.  This will all depend on location, weather, and the satellite service itself.

To conclude, with the current economic conditions, rural residents without access to broadband internet need to fend for themselves and get creative.  It only takes one determined individual to get a small rural community connected to the information grid.  This is evident in some exclusive islands around the globe.  Some basic electronic skills and a good amount of start up cost can have lucrative results for a private business offering rural internet connections to citizens.