Threat of an Internet Dark Ages for Rural Areas

• Property values in less densely populated areas have risen almost twice as fast as in urban hubs
• The broadband infrastructure is lagging behind in rural areas
• With the increase of population in areas with poor infrastructure, this will strain the current internet connections.
• There has never been a more essential time to have good broadband with families being unable to meet and work being conducted from home.-Peak network traffic will have doubled by 2025

If nothing is done now some rural areas will be left in a digital dark age.

Rural property values in less populated areas have risen almost twice as fast as urban hubs over the last year. Naturally, this is due to people making the most of the freedoms we have been allowed and craving more space- inside and out.

Whilst rural housing prices have been rising to meet this demand, rural broadband infrastructure has not. In urban settings, good broadband is a common sight, with FTTP availability on the up and being fueled by the Governments ‘Project Gigabit’ scheme. However, in rural locations good internet is more of a luxury with some big providers refusing to touch the rural areas with anything more than FTTC, deeming them unprofitable.

Naturally, these factors create a dilemma as increased service in this area may leave residents struggling to connect to the internet and strain the existing infrastructure. In a time where good broadband is essential for contacting family and friends but also to work from home, this could cripple whole villages from keeping up with modern life.

Compare Fibre research has predicted that peak network traffic will have doubled by 2025. In this time, left unchecked, the fallout of this could be anything from damaged mental health due to increased loneliness right up to people being made unemployed for not being able to do their job. It is here then that the digital divide has very real implications.

With rural living on the up, infrastructure in these areas needs to be futureproofed within the next four years. It is in the interest of the residents, the housing market and the telecoms industries to do so with FTTP connections adding value to property prices. Alt Nets such as B4RN are already stepping up and bringing Gigabit-capable broadband to rural areas but these are a patchwork of networks across the country. If the dots are not connected in this time then some rural locations will inevitably be heading for a digital dark age.

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