Almost 37,000 rural homes and businesses in Central and Southwest Louisiana will gain access to high-speed internet service thanks to $22 million in federal funding, according to a news release from Public Service Commissioner Mike Francis.
The “Connect America” program of the Federal Communications Commission is helping fiber, wireless and satellite internet providers meet the need for broadband service in unserved or underserved areas of Central and Southwest Louisiana.
Francis’ PSC District 4 comprises all or parts of 17 parishes, many of which are sparsely populated rural regions. District 4 encompasses areas from the marshes of Cameron to the hills of LaSalle and Catahoula, and from the pine forests of Vernon & Sabine to the sugarcane fields of Iberia. FCC records indicate that nearly 36,908 homes and businesses in PSC District 4 are eligible for high-speed internet service funded by Connect America. That is 35 percent of the statewide total of 104,523 locations declared “eligible” by the FCC for Connect America’s Phase II funding.
Francis said, “as commissioner of District 4, I also live in a rural area in Acadia Parish and qualify for this service. I understand all too well the challenges faced by those who have decided to live in a rural area and how the Connect America program will benefit the unserved and underserved areas of Central and Southwest Louisiana.”
Across Central and Southwest Louisiana, AT&T is responsible for 52 percent of the FCC-funded broadband expansion. CenturyLink has 31 percent and satellite provider ViaSat has 5 percent. New to the market, Allen’s T.V. Cable Services has 9 percent.
Francis said the FCC has given AT&T and CenturyLink a deadline to finish their build-out of broadband service statewide by the end of 2020. The companies had completed 40 percent by the end of 2017 and will be at the 60 percent mark by the end of this year.
California based ViaSat participated in a separate auction of eligible Louisiana locations earlier this year. To receive funds, ViaSat pledged to build to 40 percent of assigned homes and businesses within three years of becoming authorized to receive support, and to increase build-out by 20 percent in each subsequent year, to be complete by the end of the sixth year.
Connect America lets providers choose their delivery method for broadband expansion so long as customers enjoy minimum download speeds of 10 megabytes per second and upload speeds of 1 mbps. AT&T will offer a “Fixed Wireless” service, CenturyLink and Allen’s TV are using primarily wireline technology, and ViaSat is servicing customers by satellite.
To determine if your home or business is newly served by one of these providers, consult AT&T by website, call CenturyLink at 866-963-6655 or visit www.centurylink.com/ordernow. ViaSat said it will make more information available to the public at a later date. Allen’s TV Cable Services may be reached at their Sunset office 800-624-7219.
