Quote:
Originally Posted by jenteh
That doesn't seem right. In Malaysia (a developing country in South-East Asia), broadband penetration is estimated at 30%!
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Still, it's true.
In the US, given the deregulation of the Incumbent Local Exchange Carriers (ILECs), who own nearly all of the existing physical infrastructure, particularly the all important "last mile," most of the would be Competitive Local Exchange Carriers have been driven out of the market, leaving little to no competitive pressures to force the ILECs to expand beyond the most lucrative markets, namely the urban areas.
Therefore, the bulk of the US by area lacks affordable broadband access; even within the East Coast Megalopolis, which extends from Boston, MA to Raleigh, NC, and which contains approx. one-quarter of the total US population, large areas physically isolated from the major cities by mountains and/or water are without effective broadband service.