A Blueprint for Alaska's Broadband Future

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While much progress has been made over the last decade to improve access in Alaska, many challenges still remain. In fact, one could argue that the “digital divide”—that is, the gap between areas that have access versus those that do not—is actually widening, as robust fiber and 5G gigabit wireless access is deployed in urban areas, while rural and remote areas of the country struggle to keep up with even basic levels of access.

As content and application companies in Silicon Valley and elsewhere develop products to “ride” on top of these robust connections in urban markets, those applications and services may simply be inaccessible to everyone else, further exacerbating the divide.

Therefore, it is imperative that all stakeholders—public, private, and nonprofit — work together proactively to ensure that Alaska, and particularly rural and remote Alaska, is not left behind.

Released in December 2019, this report examines where Alaska began, progress made, and what still needs to be done.