Local utility companies are still working to extend high-speed broadband into rural parts of southern West Virginia. Frontier Communications announced just last week that it had completed an upgrade that will extend broadband service to the small Ikes Fork community north of the town of Iaeger in McDowell County.
The broadband expansion project was made possible with subsidies from the federal Connect America Fund, according to Frontier General Manager Mike Swatts.
The announcement also comes one week after U.S. Sen. Jay Rockefeller, D-W.Va., hosted a broadband summit in Morgantown. Some of the state’s biggest Internet providers attended the gathering, including Suddenlink Communications, Frontier Communications, Comcast and Verizon. The companies indicated they are aggressively expanding their networks, and most are creating low-cost options for low-income families.
The expansion of high-speed Internet into the Ikes Fork area of Iaeger is a good example of how the utility companies are working to reach families living in rural areas.
Swatts says the Federal Communications Commission has stated that broadband service is necessary for citizens to have full participation in the nation’s economy and society…
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