Broadband Expansion: What Are the Essential Components?

Despite more than three decades of public and private efforts to expand broadband availability, at least 18 million Americans nationwide—and perhaps more than 42 million—lack access to high-speed internet service. And millions more cannot afford a broadband connection even if one is available. 

Broadband relies on a complex, interconnected infrastructure to connect users to content. These networks are overwhelmingly owned and run by for-profit entities, which operate in a largely unregulated policy environment. A range of factors—including population density, historic market patterns, and state law—influence which communities are connected to high-speed, reliable internet service. The publications collected here explore the fundamentals of broadband policy.