The fastest Internet speed varies across the United States. Americans who live in urban areas have access to speeds unavailable to many of those who live in rural America. It is left up to rural broadband carriers to make the investments needed to close the gap.
Highlighting the important role played these carriers, a new Hudson Institute report, The Economic Impact of Rural Broadband, has determined that the industry has a direct annual economic impact in excess of $24 billion. Rural broadband further supports more than $100 billion in e-commerce, manufacturing, and retail sales.
On Wednesday, April 20, Hudson Institute hosted a discussion about closing the urban-rural gap. Hudson Institute Senior Fellow Hanns Kuttner presented the new report. Joining him to discuss the industry’s impact and prospects were Shirley Bloomfield, CEO of NTCA–The Rural Broadband Association; Nancy White, CEO of a rural broadband company in Lafayette, Tenn.; rural broadband consultant Leo Staurulakis, and Dusty Johnson, Vice President of Consulting, Vantage Point Solutions.
Join Senior Fellow Dr. Rebeccah Heinrichs and Senator Rick Scott (R-FL) for a fireside discussion on how Congress can guide American strategy, the need to modernize the defense industrial base, and the vital role of allies and partners in an unstable international environment.
Join Hudson Institute Senior Fellow Robert McDowell for a discussion of the book and communications law with the authors, Harold Furchtgott-Roth, Kirk Arner, and Arielle Roth.
Please join Congressman Jimmy Panetta (D-CA) and Senior Fellow Ken Moriyasu for a discussion on Central Asia’s economic and strategic significance and why updating US trade policy is key to unlocking the region’s potential in an era of renewed great power competition.
