The economic downturn has not prevented small rural carriers from upgrading their communications networks to support higher data rates, a new survey from the National Telecommunications Cooperative Association (NTCA) reveals. Fifty-three percent of NTCA members responding to the NTCA Broadband/Internet Availability Survey said their customers can now receive broadband service of between 3 and 6 Mbps (up from 46% last year) and 39% can receive speeds of 6 Mbps or higher (up from 25% last year).
Digital subscriber line, offered by 98% of respondents, is still the predominant broadband technology deployed by NTCA members. But fiber is making gains, with 59% of respondents having deployed either fiber to the curb or fiber to the home. Nearly three-quarters of respondents said they plan to offer fiber to the node to more than 75% of their customer base by 2011. Also by that date, 55% of respondents plan to offer fiber to the home to more than half of their customers.
One hundred and fifty-six of the NTCA’s 580-plus local exchange carrier members responded to the survey, which also found that the typical respondent is 103 miles from its primary Internet connection. Sixty-seven percent of respondents have 10 residential customers or fewer per square mile, including 31% that average no more than two customers per square mile.
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Categories: Broadband
