The state of New York is working on a plan to make sure that all of its residents have access to high-speed broadband internet within a few years, the state envisions to provide 25Mbps connections to all residents at the very least by the year 2018. It’s going to pump in some $500 million into this program called “New NY Broadband Program,” helping the state bring high-speed internet to areas where existing DSL networks haven’t been upgraded in a long, long time.
New York has issued a Request for Information which will help the state finalize guidelines for the $500 million broadband program with responses due by the end of this month.
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said “High speed Internet access has become an essential ingredient of any strong economy,” which is why it makes sense to spend this kind of money to ensure that all residents of the state of New York get access to high-speed internet.
The proposal doesn’t reveal all of the details about this program but does mention that various solutions will be considered, including public and private partnerships, to ensure that residents of New York get speeds of 100Mbps at least “in most places,” where 25Mbps is the benchmark for the most underserved parts of the state.