It’s no secret that many rural towns across the US lack high-speed Internet options, where budding alternatives like 5G hubs and satellite-based ISPs are available. Facebook is now counted among the businesses expanding access to high-speed Internet services within the rural US with a replacement plan for a small county in Virginia.
Facebook says it’s teamed up with Appalachian Power and GigaBeam Networks to supply fiber Internet service to six 000 households in Grayson County, Virginia. Like many within the US, this rural town is poorly connected to the planet-wide web, leading to many of us who promptly move away upon reaching adulthood.
County officials have praised the decision to offer wireless Internet and fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) services in Grayson, stating that having access to high-speed connections will enable more people to seek out work without maneuvering to a much bigger city elsewhere. Grayson County administrator Bill Shepley told Facebook, “The lack of access is basically preventing the county and its people from participating within the modern economy.”
The upcoming Internet service, which can start rolling calls very shortly, will leverage Facebook’s fiber network, which is employed to attach the company’s data centers. Facebook is building its long fiber routes to connected data centers in North Carolina, Ohio, and Virginia; the corporate says small local providers will have the prospect to use the network’s excess capacity for getting local populations online.
Many have called on the govt to expand programs intended to deliver high-speed Internet connectivity to rural and underserved regions. Internet access remains a key aspect of recent education and employment; without it, kids struggle to finish homework assignments and attend virtual classes, while adults may struggle to seek viable employment.
