Broadbound by bureaucracy [COMMS Investment]

The US Economic stimulus bill set aside $7.2bn to spend on the delivery of broadband connectivity to rural and other ´unserved and under-served´ locations. As the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) became law in February 2009, there was talk of a two-fold benefit from its communications provisions. Equipment suppliers, network operators and construction companies would receive the short-term Keynesian boost. Then, once fibre was in the ground and 3G/4G basestations transmitting, the money would help bridge the digital divide between the cities and the prairies, fostering longer-term economic growth in some of the country´s more deprived regions.