Uncertain Times Fueling a Shift in State Broadband Efforts

Source: Gov Tech Published: May 15, 2020

Just as COVID-19 has made the Internet a necessity for the vast majority of Americans, it has impacted the short- and long-term plans of state broadband initiatives.

The Massachusetts Broadband Institute (MBI) and KCST, the operator of Massachusetts’ 1,200 middle-mile network, launched a new Wi-Fi hot spot program in late April. The program is setting up free Wi-Fi hot spots at public institutions — libraries, police stations, and so on — within 23 unserved communities.

The program is intended to help citizens who don’t have fast Internet in their homes right now, but the state wants to measure the demand for the hot spots and see what it can learn for the future, said Peter Larkin, chair of the MBI board.

“What will this evolve into?” Larkin said. “I don’t know. It’s clearly a benefit to these communities that have nothing, but it will be sort of interesting to see how this plays out.”