When Broadband Doesn’t Work

Losing email service reminded me of businesses' reliance on technology and web platforms that underlie our businesses. The number one issue I hear from businesses is how devastating it is to lose a broadband connection. A lot of businesses go dead when losing broadband. I don’t think the average person realizes how reliant businesses are on broadband. People are not surprised when broadband shuts down consultants, engineers, or architects who rely on broadband to exchange data and files on projects. But the loss of broadband today can shut down businesses that the public doesn’t think of as broadband intensive. One of the goals that most communities have is to make sure that the business community has good broadband. That used to mean making sure that every business could buy broadband from at least one fast broadband provider. But I’ve talked to businesses of all sizes that would gladly buy broadband from two providers to protect against losing connectivity.