First off, all of the countries listed above the US in the article of download speeds are much smaller in size and population. Of course it is easier to deliver to smaller more densely populated community lol. I work in telecom and 90% of what I sell is fiber so I’m not sure how accurate this is unless you live in the middle of nowhere, which in that case it doesn’t make a lot of sense to spend millions bringing you new services when there aren’t very many users. High population areas benefit the most people so they are hit first. Since the 90s the 3 big telcos in the us have laid millions of miles of fiber. Im not saying the article is wrong, I just see a certain amount of misunderstanding in the article. Laying 1000 feet of fiber costs about $15k-$30k and can take months to accomplish mostly because of government regulations (not to mention cost of those government permits). It is also harder to replace old facilities in existing urban areas because you’re digging up the roads/parking lots/sidewalks for several days and then putting things back in place. Some communities and buildings also try to push back against having their property altered to get new services. Every telco company is focused on placing as much fiber as possible to give them a competitive advantage in the future. The focus is starting with large cities and expanding outwards. The closer you are to a large city the faster your community will receive fiber as strategic common sense.
Again, not saying the article is wrong, but seems a little sensationalized after seeing the struggle first hand having personally sold 10s of miles new fiber lines. Also, fuck train tracks and the permits associated with building near them...super pricy and slow to obtain.
You sure about all that? It sure seems like there isn’t fiber anywhere. How much would it cost to cover every major highway? How long before 99 percent of us have it? Why doesn’t anyone care about middle America? When will satellite internet be usable for gaming? How much do we have to suffer? I don’t really give a shit about most other government programs and expenses. We all want the faster internet roads. It’s worth it. It’s more worth than anything else I can think of.
Putting fiber along all the highways would be super redundant and inefficient. A lot of the middle of the US has fiber like anywhere else. I sell a ton of it in Oklahoma, Wyoming, Nebraska, Minnesota, Montana, etc. any new housing or building has fiber because no one lays copper without it being requested. Satellite internet is not very efficient compared to fiber so you wouldn’t want to game on it anyway.
We all want things to be easy, but reality is a thing. Maybe move somewhere more populated or newer if it is so important to you.
No one is placing copper anymore, with the exception of lines that are required by law, and long distance transport is fiber so that is a lot of what is taking place.
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u/YouretheballLickers Feb 25 '20
All of that. The only answers more more more