BT Openreach, a UK telecom, is planning a fiber-to-the-home build that will offer 300 Mbps speeds. The company is investing $2.5 billion into the project. Japan, Korea and the Netherlands all currently offer gigabit broadband speeds in select areas. The US is now lagging farther behind with an average connection speed of 5.1 Mbps.

While Verizon and Google are both working to launch fiber-to-the-home in the US, the digital divide in rural areas is still a major concern.  Many underserved areas are still struggling to access minimum broadband speeds. SDN Communications is dedicated to helping reach those areas as part of its Broadband Technology Opportunities Program (BTOP). As part of this $20 million stimulus grant, SDN is reaching 305 anchor institutions in rural areas across the state.