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Why North Dakota Has the Best Internet in the United States
June 24, 2021 /
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Local communities fought cooperatively against telecom monopoly domination in the 90s. Now rural North Dakotans have better, faster broadband than many U.S. cities.
The roots of the state’s broadband success originate in the 1990s, when a coalition of local communities banded together in frustration over US West, a then dominant network provider created by the 1982 breakup of AT&T. Like many modern telecom giants, US West didn’t believe that serving rural America was worth the expense. Locals obviously disagreed, and a coalition of 15 local cooperatives and small businesses bought US West’s neglected network assets, incorporating them into their own networks—paving the way for the fiber networks of today. “Not only did it prevent the entrance of another national monopoly, but the new territories strengthened the North Dakota providers, helping them grow and achieve new economies of scale,” the report notes.
North Dakota Broadband Plan – Empower People, Improve Lives, Inspire Success 2019
Many thank to Lorraine H R for sharing
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