More than 600 communities in the U.S. have decided to take matters into their own hands and build their own broadband networks due to predatory behavior, slow speeds, and high prices by regional telecom monopolies. One such community is Bountiful, Utah, which voted to build a $48 million fiber network to provide affordable, gigabit broadband to businesses and residences. The network will be open access, allowing multiple competitors to utilize the infrastructure and drive down prices. However, regional telecom monopolies are not happy about these community-owned networks and often employ lobbying and scare tactics to try to stop them. Despite these efforts, locally-owned networks consistently provide better, faster, and cheaper service than regional monopolies.
https://www.techdirt.com/2023/08/04/comcast-centurylink-fail-to-derail-community-owned-gigabit-fiber-network-in-bountiful-utah/