As much as I love living in a rural area where the animals run free, the pastures stretching as far as the eye can see, and randomness runs at large. The apparent downfall to this pleasantry is the constant and infamous ability to either be without cellular service or broadband at any given moment. The importance of Internet in our lives today cannot be overemphasized (Thakur & Prasad, 2021). This week alone has been by far very complicated for businesses and citizens alike as many go to social media to express their displeasures with their internet providers or the communications company. Rural areas deserve the same attention and dedication to service as the bigger urban areas in my opinion, but the issue is how do we get government entities and other to realize that and provide the infrastructure to complete this dream.
As of 2019, over 20 million Americans—predominantly those living in rural areas—lacked access to high-speed broadband service according to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) (Humphreys, 2019). The numbers have greatly changed since this data was collected but it does not change the devastating impact that broadband or the lack thereof has on rural areas. Having lived in a bigger city before, I can only imagine how wide the impact is. Although, with local governments stretching themselves out and providing Fiber access at a cost to citizens which generates revenue for the local government. I often wonder how long that can sustain itself, as several Texas cities have stepped outside the box provided access points throughout their parks, downtown areas, and business districts. Ensuring customers do not have to go far to stay connected to their friends and family but also share their life experiences on the spot through social media platforms. Those with favorable geography and demographic profiles often have higher demand, and thus present relatively attractive investment opportunities, for broadband providers (Humphreys, 2019). This situation leaves majority of the rural people unconnected thereby creating a massive rural urban digital divide (Thakur & Prasad, 2021).
Other programs to support broadband buildout to schools, clinics, and other community institutions have improved access for residents of rural areas, but it is not clear that these programs have affected overall market demand (Humphreys, 2019). The local school board decided to provide MiFi devices to students, which was a huge advantage unless the devices were not as strong or useful at the residence of the child. All kids deserve to have the same level of education provided and I commend the board and district for making this decision giving students a chance to succeed in some of the toughest times they have faced. Following this decision came the distribution of tablets which further sustained the idea that technology is the primary mean of survival when face to face contact is taken away from us. Parents often had to step up and strictly monitor their child’s work as other called on the government to help sustain education. Living in rural areas can have penalties when broadband companies do not reach your area, the MiFi device cannot find a signal, and the assignments of your child are due as their graduation chances hinge on critical moments.
However, the penetration of cellular network is limited in rural areas as its deployment becomes unviable due to challenges such as low average revenue per user, sparse population density, and intermittent availability of electricity (Thakur & Prasad, 2021). Government entities have a lot of things being pushed onto their plates as they must tread lightly in addressing them all. I believe they can have a strategic plan laid out for rural areas that can be beneficial to most Texans without a large economic impact such as taxation or other citizen focused burdens. Options for congressional consideration include measures to address obstacles to adoption and additional incentives for private sector investment in the rural broadband sector (Humphreys, 2019). Congress may also consider measures to encourage broadband providers to increase investment in persistently underserved rural areas and more aggressively develop nascent broadband markets (Humphreys, 2019).
It is 2021 and we are way beyond the point of settling for average broadband and cellular services. Technology is autonomously sending spaceships into orbit and landing them on another planet, producing driverless vehicles, and so many more other attributes that society can thrive from. Although we cannot figure out a way to sustain the very thing that gives parents peace of mind when their kids are away, connects countries on opposite ends of the globe, and sustains the way of life. Communications and the systems that drive them must be improved and focused on at higher levels than local level to truly thrive. With a focus on maintenance, upgrades, and external testing to ensure that Americans are provided the best available options at communicating internationally.
References:
Humphreys, B. E. (2019). Demand for broadband in rural areas: Implications for universal access. CRS Report, 46108.
Thakur, K. K., & Prasad, R. (2021). Wi-Fi for Affordable Broadband & 5G in Rural Areas. Journal of Mobile Multimedia, 225-244.
Joshua Hadnot 
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