The US is spending $42 billion to provide broadband internet access to its citizens.

The plan was announced on June 26th. Funding comes from the Broadband Equitable Access and Deployment Program, allocated based on the coverage map recently released by the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC).

US President Joe Biden announced a $42.25 billion funding program to bring high-speed internet to all citizens by 2030 on June 26 at the White House. (Photo: Reuters)

Accordingly, Texas and California – the two most populous states – topped the list of funding recipients with $3.1 billion and $1.9 billion respectively. Other states with smaller populations, such as Virginia, Alabama, and Louisiana, also made it into the top 10 for funding due to a lack of broadband access. These states all have large areas of remote and less accessible internet connections compared to major cities.

US President Joe Biden declared this to be the largest investment in high-speed internet in history. He stated that internet access is as important as electricity, water, and other basic services. The minimum amount allocated to each state is $107 million.

The Biden administration estimates that approximately 8.5 million locations in the U.S. lack broadband internet access. Meanwhile, according to Vice President Kamala Harris, 24 million Americans do not have access to high-speed internet because they cannot afford the monthly fees or live in areas not fully connected to fiber optic networks.

Broadband companies like Verizon, Comcast, Charter Communications, and AT&T are hesitant to provide service to remote, low-population areas due to high investment costs and a lack of subscribers. This situation has drawn attention since the Covid-19 pandemic, when students had to stay home from school and learn online.

States will submit preliminary plans by the end of this year to receive 20% of the funding. Once the plans are finalized, the government will provide the remaining funds.

(According to Reuters, Tomshardware)

Google is testing laser data transmission to eliminate internet 'dead zones' in India. Google's parent company is testing bringing internet access to remote and isolated areas using laser beam technology.

Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/my-chi-42-ty-usd-pho-cap-internet-bang-rong-cho-nguoi-dan-2158808.html