Tools For Broadband Investment

Kelleigh Cole

Broadband Project Manager

What is Broadband?

Broadband refers to high-speed Internet access, which can be obtained through several technologies such as wireless, fiber, cable, DSL and satellite

Utah is #1 in home broadband adoption in the nation with 80% of homes in subscribed to the Internet

According to Akamai Technologies, Utah has the 5th fastest Internet speeds with the #1 fastest Internet in the west, outranking California

108 cities in Utah increased their broadband speeds to over 1 Gig from 2010 to 2013

How Does Broadband Impact the Day-to-Day Lives of Utahns?

Education Economic

Development Healthcare Transportation

Public Safety Agriculture Energy and

Environment Tourism

Utah Broadband Project

Purpose

• Map available broadband services

• Develop a plan to increase broadband adoption and deployment

Mapping Efforts

Map service areas of all residential broadband service providers who own infrastructure

Utah Broadband Map

Current State Coverage

• 97. 14% of Utah households have access to 3Mbps

• 95.60% of Utah households have access at or above 10 Mbps

• 84.16 % of Utah households have access to 25 Mbps

Broadband Challenges in Rural Utah

• Lower population density

• Higher deployment cost

• Greater geographical distances

• Coordinating with federal land agencies

2011 Utah Broadband Adoption Survey Results

Utah’s rural communities do not have a lower broadband adoption rate than their non-rural counterparts

Many of Utah’s rural communities are able to identify multiple broadband options in their area

Utah’s rural communities do not pay higher prices for Internet service than their non-rural counterparts, and are even willing to pay more for broadband services

Regional Planning Efforts

Regional Broadband Planning Councils

• Identify key issues

• Conduct a needs assessment

• Identify recommendations and priorities

• Draft a regional plan (June 2014)

Regional Planning Efforts

Goals

• Increase collaboration on a local level between public and private stakeholders

• Educate local stakeholders on broadband issues

• Inform state leadership on local broadband issues

Broadband Friendly Communities

High Capacity Connections

Broadband Business Development

Web Development

Tools To Encourage Broadband Investment in Your Community