Bandwidth envy

[Comentary] A study released by the Fiber Optic Council last week purported to show was that homeowners preferred high-speed Internet connections via fiber optics to other amenities. But fiber optic connections are one amenity that a homeowner often can't choose to get. It's not like putting a pool in your backyard or adding a deck — your service provider has to decide to offer fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) and to bring that network to your neighborhood and even to your street. Once it's there, sure, you have a choice. But whether you take the FTTH-based service or not, being able to say it's available could help sell a home. Conversely, there are a lot of U.S. residents who would love to have this amenity but can't get it and most likely won't ever get it. Some of those residents can't even get broadband and aren't likely to anytime soon.