Collaboration on Telecommunications Infrastructure Can Help Bridge the Digital Divide

The US faces complex choices in how to fix broadband infrastructure to close the digital divide. Governments, businesses, service providers, telecommunication infrastructure companies, and other players will need to work together to connect users in a scalable, cost-effective way while weighing new technology advancements to build a future-proof network available to and affordable for all. A key factor is dense and quick fiberization; the high cost of building infrastructure that supports both mobile and fixed-network functionality will drive operators to optimize investments to make the case work. In many cases, fiber will provide the necessary backbone to support hyperscale growth and future-proof networks. What’s also clear is that data consumption is growing relentlessly. With data consumption reaching unseen levels during the pandemic, it’s important to build new networks or modernize existing ones. Ultimately, the goal is to deliver on scale, latency and agility requirements that factor in the reality of customer demand and provider infrastructure–whether greenfield or brownfield–and prevent over or underbuilding of assets. Building a sophisticated optimal network that meets the most granular of requirements is a huge, daunting task, but new infrastructure providing internet access for all is more necessary than ever.

[Stephen Szymanski is the general manager for Americas at STL.]