High speed broadband is an
essential ingredient for modern life. Benefits include improved healthcare,
enhanced online learning opportunities, increased efficiency and productivity
for local businesses and more. Unfortunately, access to broadband service is
not ubiquitous, particularly in rural areas served by electric cooperatives.
This paper estimates the consumer value that is lost when broadband remains
elusive for millions of co-op members and explores the potential role for
electric co-ops in unlocking these forgone benefits.
