Broadband Internet’s Value for Rural America
by
Peter Stenberg,
Mitch Morehart,
Stephen Vogel,
John Cromartie,
Vince Breneman, and Dennis Brown
Economic Research Report No. (ERR-78) 70 pp, August 2009
Cover Image for ERR78
As broadband—or high-speed—Internet use has spread, Internet applications requiring high transmission speeds have become an integral part of the “Information Economy,” raising concerns about those who lack broadband access. This report analyzes (1) rural broadband use by consumers, the community-at-large, and businesses; (2) rural broadband availability; and (3) broadband’s social and economic effects on rural areas. It also summarizes results from an ERS-sponsored workshop on rural broadband use, and other ERS-commissioned studies. In general, rural communities have less broadband Internet use than metro communities, with differing degrees of broadband availability across rural communities. Rural communities that had greater broadband Internet access had greater economic growth, which conforms to supplemental research on the benefits that rural businesses, consumers, and communities ascribe to broadband Internet use.
Keywords: Internet, broadband, high-speed Internet, rural economies, rural economic growth, digital economy, telemedicine, rural, urban, Census data, June Agricultural Survey, Agricultural Resource Management Survey (ARMS)
In this publication...
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Report Summary, Pdf file 84 kb | HTML
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Abstract, Contents, and Summary, Pdf file 118 kb
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Introduction, Pdf file 99 kb
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The Internet Economy, Pdf file 98 kb
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Broadband Internet Adoption and Use, Pdf file 124 kb
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Geography of Rural Broadband Providers, Pdf file 709 kb
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Broadband’s Effect on the Rural Economy, Pdf file 106 kb
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Rural Communities and Broadband Internet Use, Pdf file 119 kb
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Broadband Availability Leads to Use, Pdf file 256 kb
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Broadband Internet Use and Rural Businesses, Pdf file 126 kb
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Conclusion, Pdf file 97 kb
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References, Pdf file 80 kb
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Appendices, Pdf file 2,908 kb
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Entire report, Pdf file 5,460 kb
Charts and graphs (in .png format) from this report are available in the .zip file listed below. The .zip file also contains a document (readme.txt) that lists the name and title of each chart or graph file.
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