Internet Connectivity in Rhode Island

The Internet not only plays a huge role in our lives, but in a state’s economy as well, and yet internet access remains elusive to people living in remote or rural areas. The internet is a global social platform that has made various facilities accessible to people, which was not possible before.

Rhode Island might be the smallest state, but it does have big cities with a vibrant lifestyle. Meanwhile, the rural population has a much calmer lifestyle, but the one need that remains common among Rhode Islanders is their need for internet connectivity.

Home to only 1 million people, this state is remarkably well connected as 99% of Rhode Islanders have access to broadband networks with an average speed of 163 Mbps. The lifestyle and ever-growing tourism of this state require stable internet connectivity. While Rhode Islanders in metro areas rely on fiber and cable internet, the rural population has to rely on DSL, fixed wireless, and sometimes only satellite connection.

Internet Coverage in Rhode Island

Cable, fiber, and DSL internet dominate this state as 98% of Rhode Islanders have access to cable internet, 90.3% can access fiberOptic, and 87% have the option of DSL internet. This state is also one of the states with the most fiber internet access and ranks much higher than the national average of 25% of Americans having fiber internet access. Satellite internet is available throughout the state and fixed wireless internet in limited rural areas.

This state is one of the most connected states, with 98.7% of residents having access to 100 Mbps or faster broadband and 98% having access to a 1-gigabit network.

If this state has a well-established infrastructure, then do its residents still face a digital divide? The answer is yes!

Digital Divide in Rhode Island

Although the population of Rhode Island is fairly connected, there is still a disparity among those with affordable high-speed internet access and those who do not. Affordability and accessibility are usually the two key factors to measure the digital divide.

Even with a well-established network infrastructure with 44 ISPs offering their services, 11,000 residents remain without any wired internet service in their area, and 22,000 people have to rely on only 1 service provider.

The affordability data ranks this state much ahead of the nation, with 88.5% of residents having access to an affordable internet service compared to 51.5% of the nation's people.

Best & Worst Connected Cities

Although the average internet speed throughout the state might be 163 Mbps, internet speeds vary from location to location. Considering affordability, coverage, and speed, the top connected cities in Rhode Island are Providence, Central Falls, Woonsocket, Warren, and Westerly.

On the other hand, Block Island, Slatersville, Little Compton, and Albion are the worst connected locations.

Top Internet Providers in Rhode Island

Currently, 44 internet providers in Rhode Island offer their services with Spectrum, HughesNet, and Viasat standing out as prominent names.

Spectrum

As cable internet dominates this state, Spectrum is a reliable choice. It uses a hybrid fiber-coaxial cable to deliver fiber-like internet speeds and offers three internet plans with different speeds; 200 Mbps, 400 Mbps, and 940 Mbps, with costs ranging from $49.99 to $109.99 a month.

If you are an entertainment enthusiast and also want to save some money, you can bundle its services. Its bundles are specially designed to cater to every person’s needs, with Spectrum triple play being the most preferred choice.

HughesNet

Satellite internet with its nationwide coverage is also a popular choice among the rural population of this state. With a consistent speed of 25 Mbps, it offers plans based on different data allowances ranging from 15 GB to 75 GB for $65 to $170 a month.

Viasat

Viasat is another popular satellite internet choice. Compared to HughesNet’s simple plans, it offers various plans with speeds ranging from 12 Mbps to 100 Mbps and more data allowances. Its plans come with promotional prices ranging from $30 to $170 which are hiked by 33% after the promotional period.

Initiatives to Improve Internet Connectivity

COVID-19 became the driving factor to invest in improving internet connectivity. In the Greater Newport Chamber of Commerce Regional Economic Development Division, the main issue faced by many businesses was high-speed broadband connectivity. The Chamber aimed to solve this issue with geographic information system (GIS) mapping and was awarded $50,000 from Commerce Rhode Island. GIS mapping could identify existing weaknesses as it is a way to map infrastructure underneath the ground using a satellite.

Contradictions and Future of High-Speed Internet in Rhode Island

After last November’s change in infrastructure law, the federal definition of adequate internet speed has increased to 100 Mbps download and 20 Mbps upload speed. Recently, the Greater Newport Chamber of Commerce hired consultants to study the broadband speed in the state, and in their report in January, they concluded that about 42% of Rhode Islanders lack this adequate broadband speed. This means almost 134,000 small businesses and houses lack an adequate high-speed internet connection. COVID lockdowns made these inadequate internet speeds more clear.

This report sparked a debate among lawmakers and broadband providers, and not everyone agreed with this report. The President of New England Cable and & Telecommunications Associations claimed that 99% of residents have access to high-speed internet due to the well-established fiber network. Meanwhile, State Rep. Deb Ruggiero refuted that only facilities like hospitals, schools, universities, and others can connect to fiber internet, leaving common people to depend on cable internet.

Conclusion

Despite the claims of well-established network infrastructure, the stats in Chamber’s current report are worrying. The future of high-speed internet connectivity in Rhode Island remains unclear as of now, but the state Representative is hoping for a better solution. Fiber internet connectivity has become an essential requirement for many households, and the biggest challenge is to bring it from the streets to common people’s households.