Policy & Broadband

Top Takeaways

The lower the costs, the more likely it is that broadband providers will deploy broadband.
Offering incentives and implementing other strategies and policies can make regions and communities more attractive to providers, potentially forming new partnerships between communities and providers.

We recommend that communities work with broadband providers, in part by creating policies that help minimize deployment costs for providers, resulting in low-risk rewards for both providers and the community at large.

It’s a question of high deployment costs versus return on investment. The lower the costs, the more likely it is that broadband providers will deploy broadband. High costs can slow down, or even shut down, broadband expansion. Therefore, community leaders should consider formal and informal policies that will bring down costs, incentivize broadband development and encourage a partnership with a broadband provider.