While national rankings place Delaware at or near the top on many measures of average Internet speeds, obtaining affordable access to reliable, high-speed connections remains a challenge for many businesses and households in rural southern Delaware. This presentation outlines the local geography of broadband access, use, and impacts. It was presented as part of the May 20, 2015 forum "Picking Up Speed: Delaware Broadband for Economic Development" held at the University of Delaware, Carvel Research & Education Center in Georgetown, Delaware.

1. INSTITUTE FOR PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION • SCHOOL OF PUBLIC POLICY & ADMINISTRATION • COLLEGE OF ARTS & SCIENCES WWW.IPA.UDEL.EDU
State of Broadband
in Southern Delaware
Troy Mix
Picking Up Speed:
Delaware Broadband for Economic Development
Elbert N. and Ann V. Carvel Research and Education Center
Georgetown, Delaware
May 20, 2015

2. INSTITUTE FOR PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION • SCHOOL OF PUBLIC POLICY & ADMINISTRATION • COLLEGE OF ARTS & SCIENCES WWW.IPA.UDEL.EDU
Defining broadband
• Advanced telecommunications capability
– “high-speed, switched, broadband…that enables
users to originate and receive high-quality voice,
data, graphics, and video telecommunications”
• Key factors
– Technology neutral
– Speed
• From 4 Mbps/1 Mbps to 25 Mbps/3 Mbps
– Latency
– Consistency, reliability, and redundancy
2

3. 3
Quality of life
Jobs
Future opportunity

4. INSTITUTE FOR PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION • SCHOOL OF PUBLIC POLICY & ADMINISTRATION • COLLEGE OF ARTS & SCIENCES WWW.IPA.UDEL.EDU
State of Broadband in Southern Delaware
• Extent of infrastructure and service
• Adoption and use rates
• Assessing potential impacts
• Charting a path forward
4

5. INSTITUTE FOR PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION • SCHOOL OF PUBLIC POLICY & ADMINISTRATION • COLLEGE OF ARTS & SCIENCES WWW.IPA.UDEL.EDU
5
EXTENT OF INFRASTRUCTURE
AND SERVICE
State of Broadband in Southern Delaware
5

6. INSTITUTE FOR PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION • SCHOOL OF PUBLIC POLICY & ADMINISTRATION • COLLEGE OF ARTS & SCIENCES WWW.IPA.UDEL.EDU
% population with access to 3 Mbps
downloads / 768kbps uploads, 2014

7. INSTITUTE FOR PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION • SCHOOL OF PUBLIC POLICY & ADMINISTRATION • COLLEGE OF ARTS & SCIENCES WWW.IPA.UDEL.EDU
% population with access to 25 Mbps
download speeds or higher, 2014
7

8. INSTITUTE FOR PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION • SCHOOL OF PUBLIC POLICY & ADMINISTRATION • COLLEGE OF ARTS & SCIENCES WWW.IPA.UDEL.EDU
How does southern Delaware’s %
population served by 25 Mbps+ compare?
• Kent County (95%)
– #151 of 1,017 counties with similar rural character
– #21 of 280 other “Rural Govt. Districts”
• Sussex County (93%)
– #206 of 1,017 counties with similar rural character
– #30 of 368 “Bedroom Communities to Midsize
Centers”

9. INSTITUTE FOR PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION • SCHOOL OF PUBLIC POLICY & ADMINISTRATION • COLLEGE OF ARTS & SCIENCES WWW.IPA.UDEL.EDU
1.5 Mbps+
9
25 Mbps+
National Broadband Map, http://www.broadbandmap.gov/speed, June 2014.

10. INSTITUTE FOR PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION • SCHOOL OF PUBLIC POLICY & ADMINISTRATION • COLLEGE OF ARTS & SCIENCES WWW.IPA.UDEL.EDU
% population with access to 2 or more
wireline providers, 2014
10

11. INSTITUTE FOR PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION • SCHOOL OF PUBLIC POLICY & ADMINISTRATION • COLLEGE OF ARTS & SCIENCES WWW.IPA.UDEL.EDU
11
% population with
access to 25 Mbps
download speeds
% population with 2 or
more wireline providers
11

12. INSTITUTE FOR PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION • SCHOOL OF PUBLIC POLICY & ADMINISTRATION • COLLEGE OF ARTS & SCIENCES WWW.IPA.UDEL.EDU
12
ADOPTION AND USE RATES
State of Broadband in Southern Delaware
12

13. INSTITUTE FOR PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION • SCHOOL OF PUBLIC POLICY & ADMINISTRATION • COLLEGE OF ARTS & SCIENCES WWW.IPA.UDEL.EDU
% farms accessing Internet, 2012
13

14. INSTITUTE FOR PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION • SCHOOL OF PUBLIC POLICY & ADMINISTRATION • COLLEGE OF ARTS & SCIENCES WWW.IPA.UDEL.EDU
% farms using Cable or Fiber to access
Internet, 2012
14

15. INSTITUTE FOR PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION • SCHOOL OF PUBLIC POLICY & ADMINISTRATION • COLLEGE OF ARTS & SCIENCES WWW.IPA.UDEL.EDU
How does farm Internet use
in Sussex County compare?
• Internet Use (70%)
– #562 of 1,016 counties with similar rural character
– #18 of top 50 broiler producing counties
• Cable or Fiber Internet Use (25%)
– #115 of 1,016 counties with similar rural character
– #3 of top 50 broiler producing counties

16. INSTITUTE FOR PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION • SCHOOL OF PUBLIC POLICY & ADMINISTRATION • COLLEGE OF ARTS & SCIENCES WWW.IPA.UDEL.EDU
16
ASSESSING POTENTIAL IMPACTS
State of Broadband in Southern Delaware
16

17. INSTITUTE FOR PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION • SCHOOL OF PUBLIC POLICY & ADMINISTRATION • COLLEGE OF ARTS & SCIENCES WWW.IPA.UDEL.EDU
Quality of Life
• Higher rates of broadband adoption can
result in healthier behavior
– Whitacre, B., & Brooks, L. (2014).
• Faster speeds, lower latency allow more
entertainment & communication options
• Telemedicine, telehealth, and telework
– Stenberg, P., Morehart, M., Vogel, S., Cromartie, J., Breneman, V., &
Brown, D. (2009).

18. INSTITUTE FOR PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION • SCHOOL OF PUBLIC POLICY & ADMINISTRATION • COLLEGE OF ARTS & SCIENCES WWW.IPA.UDEL.EDU
Jobs
• Earlier availability spurred employment growth
– Stenberg, P., Morehart, M., Vogel, S., Cromartie, J., Breneman, V., & Brown,
D. (2009).
• Broadband adoption associated with increased
incomes and entrepreneurship
– Whitacre, B., Gallardo, R., & Strover, S. (2014).
• Biggest productivity gains w/skilled workforce
– Mack, E., & Faggian, A. (2013).
• Precision ag. will demand more connectivity
– Whitacre, B. E., Mark, T. B., & Griffin, T. W. (2014).

19. INSTITUTE FOR PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION • SCHOOL OF PUBLIC POLICY & ADMINISTRATION • COLLEGE OF ARTS & SCIENCES WWW.IPA.UDEL.EDU
Future Opportunities
• Skills training necessary to best exploit
broadband in rural areas
– Win-win
• Value for education
• Telework & Distance learning
19

20. INSTITUTE FOR PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION • SCHOOL OF PUBLIC POLICY & ADMINISTRATION • COLLEGE OF ARTS & SCIENCES WWW.IPA.UDEL.EDU
20
CHARTING A PATH FORWARD
State of Broadband in Southern Delaware
20

21. INSTITUTE FOR PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION • SCHOOL OF PUBLIC POLICY & ADMINISTRATION • COLLEGE OF ARTS & SCIENCES WWW.IPA.UDEL.EDU
Conclusions
• Infrastructure and service
– Some gaps in western/southern Kent & Sussex
– Options for redundancy seem relatively limited
– Generally, benefits from “metro” location
• Adoption and use
– Residential and agricultural use rate modest
– Cable and fiber adoption higher than average

22. INSTITUTE FOR PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION • SCHOOL OF PUBLIC POLICY & ADMINISTRATION • COLLEGE OF ARTS & SCIENCES WWW.IPA.UDEL.EDU
Elements of a potential path forward
• Target infrastructure to fill geographic gaps
with specific use cases in mind
• Technical user networks nurture skill sets &
practices for enhanced productivity
• Digital literacy and skills development
• Specific targets and process for evaluation
22

23. INSTITUTE FOR PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION • SCHOOL OF PUBLIC POLICY & ADMINISTRATION • COLLEGE OF ARTS & SCIENCES WWW.IPA.UDEL.EDU
23
Contact information:
Troy Mix, AICP
Policy Scientist
Institute for Public Administration
University of Delaware
(302) 831-6191
mix@udel.edu

24. INSTITUTE FOR PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION • SCHOOL OF PUBLIC POLICY & ADMINISTRATION • COLLEGE OF ARTS & SCIENCES WWW.IPA.UDEL.EDU
References
Mack, E., & Faggian, A. (2013). Productivity and Broadband The Human Factor.
International Regional Science Review, 36(3), 392-423.
Stenberg, P., Morehart, M., Vogel, S., Cromartie, J., Breneman, V., & Brown, D. (2009).
Broadband Internet's value for rural America. Washington, DC: US Department of
Agriculture. Economic Research Service, Economic Research Report(78).
Whitacre, B., & Brooks, L. (2014). Do broadband adoption rates impact a community's
health? Behaviour & Information Technology, 33(7), 767-779.
Whitacre, B., Gallardo, R., & Strover, S. (2014). Does rural broadband impact jobs and
income? Evidence from spatial and first-differenced regressions. The Annals of
Regional Science, 53(3), 649-670.
Whitacre, B. E., Mark, T. B., & Griffin, T. W. (2014). How Connected Are Our Farms?
Choices, 29(3).
24