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Challenges Ahead for Telecommunications in Rural AreasJun 18, 2013 (The Chronicle - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- Technology in today's market doesn't just allow swift communication, it requires it. And increasingly, Lewis County students and job-seekers are unable to join the conversation. The moment an invitation for a followup interview pings into a job applicant's inbox, the clock starts ticking. A swift reply indicates the applicant is eager, courteous, driven. He has, perhaps, 24 hours -- 48 on the outside -- to respond. But many in Lewis County's outlying communities, where mobile and fixed broadband are not available or is prohibitively expensive, cannot do that. Their ability to procure and keep a job, to seek higher learning and to access news and information, all are hindered without access to quality Internet. Locally, the poorest, most remote communities -- those with the county's highest unemployment -- can access only the slowest, most expensive internet; a paradigm that ensures the gap between those wired in and those left out will only continue to widen. And new federal policies could compound those communication challenges. Previously, federal and state funding was available to all providers serving rural areas. But, over the next eight years, the federal government will require providers to agree to certain performance requirements regarding service in rural area, before they can receive the money. For many telecommunications companies, the cost of meeting those requirements is greater than the benefits of government funding. Without a financial incentive, providers are unlikely to improve service -- or provide any service at all -- to their rural customers. East of Salkum, the median household income is less than $33,000, according to the National Broadband Map, a mapping tool managed by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration under the United States Department of Commerce. Web downloading in East Lewis County runs less than 1.5 megabits per second, enough bandwidth to download a movie in slightly more than nine hours. Along Interstate 5, from Chehalis to Napavine, the median income is more than $47,000 a year; Internet there is available at more than 25 mbps, enough to download a movie in 16 minutes, according to the NTIA. In most cases, the slower internet costs more. One of the county's largest internet providers, for example offers high speed internet and a rental modem to Centralia residents for about $47 a month, with a one-year contract. Off the I-5 corridor, that price jumps to $57, for what's advertised as the same level of service. But advertised internet services aren't always what they seem. Usually, a customer can expect 85 to 100 percent of the promised speed, according to the provider. But, that speed is determined based on the speed of the outside network to the first equipment the line connects to -- not to your own device. "(The speed) will vary depending on the amount of bandwidth our network uses in delivering service to you... Such as customer location, the quality of the inside wiring within the home, the websites accessed by the customer, usage of the network during peak periods of the day and the customer's equipment within the home or premise," the provider wrote in its services policy statement. Upcoming changes to Federal Communication Commission's (FCC) policies on cell and internet service could improve or further damage services in rural areas, depending on who you ask. According to information provided by the FCC, the changes are intended to "ensure that robust, affordable voice and broadband service, both fixed and mobile, are available to Americans throughout the nation." But for more than a decade, telecommunications companies that serve rural areas have had mechanisms to make back the money lost, relative to providing service in urban, populous areas. Under a system known as intercarrier compensation, for example, companies that transported or terminated telecommunications traffic -- those providing the costly middle or end-of-the-line services -- were able to charge the original provider. Companies providing the rural services also were eligible for federal funding intended to increase communications access for all. The FCC's new rules will eliminate intercarrier compensation and will add requirements regarding the type and amount of rural services required in order to receive the funding. For many companies, accepting the federal funding does not make financial sense, according to a study by research firm, Balhoff and Williams. "If a carrier decides it cannot justify accepting federal support with the new broadband mandates ... (they) will have no choice except to focus on economic clusters of population and withdraw from offering broadband and voice services to high-cost customers," the firm said in a report about the FCC's new policies. In line with its stated mission, the FCC also will cut off federal funding for landlines. "Networks that provide only voice service are no longer adequate for the country's communication needs," the FCC wrote in an explanation of its new policies. "Fixed and mobile broadband have become crucial to our nation's economic growth, global competitiveness and civic life." The change effectively forces customers to purchase cellphones or Internet, or be cut off from communication all together -- including the ability to make emergency calls. The FCC will phase in these changes over the next seven years. "Their default defense mechanism is this is stupid," Meja Handlen, the Transition Specialist for the Lewis County Special Education Co-op said about the attitude of many students who lack internet access at home. In reality, it's not so much "stupid" as it is frustrating to lag behind their peers. Homework assignments and projects that require online research must be done at school. And while, many teachers have gone "above and beyond," there's only so much they can do to help bridge the gap, Handlen said. "Other students, who have the Internet access, have beautiful poster boards with things printed out, handwritten things they learned on the Internet, because they are able to go home and access that information. Within 30 minutes, boom, it's done," Handlen, who works with students throughout the county, said. "It's heartbreaking to see them (students with Internet), just not be a part of it, because they don't have access," she said. National statistics indicate cost is likely the number one barrier. Throughout the country, seventeen million children do not have access to the Internet, and of those, 7.6 million come from low income households, according to a survey funded by the NTIA. Forty-three percent of low income households cite price as the barrier. Local information indicates that Lewis County mirrors those trends. The majority of Morton High School students, for example, lack broadband access at home, according to Morton K-12 Counselor Robin Pierce. Approximately 90 percent of students in the district are on the Free and Reduced School Lunch Plan, an indicator of poverty, she said. The dynamics of Lewis County families also may play a role in determining the relative importance of technology in a household. Handlen estimates, based on her experience interacting with families throughout the county, that children raised by older adults are less likely to have Internet access. In Morton, 58 grandparents have one or several of the city's 262 children living in their home; in Mossyrock that's 14 grandparents for 200 children; and in Pe Ell, it's 24 grandparents for 98 children, according to the most recent U.S. Census. Older caretakers often do not understand the role that broadband plays in education, according to Handlen. "The reply we get is, 'why can't you print this out? Why isn't this being offered at school?'" she said. But many assignments -- and particularly extra credit assignments -- intended to be completed at home, require the web. "If you're a junior and you have three credits and you need 19 to graduate, credit retrieval at home would be very helpful," Handlen said. "Grandparents just kind of say that doesn't make sense, they should just be doing it while they're at school." ___ (c)2013 The Chronicle (Centralia, Wash.) Visit The Chronicle (Centralia, Wash.) at www.chronline.com Distributed by MCT Information Services |