A total of 46 Connecticut cities and towns hoping to attract an ultra-high-speed Internet provider to offer services in their communities have signed on to a request for qualifications coordinated by local and state officials, Consumer Counsel Elin Swanson Katz announced.
The number has increased over the past two weeks. On Dec. 8, officials said that 10 had joined. Led by New Haven, West Hartford and Stamford, the coalition also includes Hartford, East Hartford, Bloomfield, Farmington, Glastonbury and a number of other Greater Hartford communities.
The communities are hoping their interest will spur a provider to submit a response to a request for qualifications that went out in September. Responses are due Jan. 13.
At 1,000 megabits per second, gigabit Internet is approximately 100 times faster than typical Internet packages, according to Katz.
Advocates say that such speeds are either too expensive or unavailable in Connecticut.
But existing providers have said most Internet users don’t need those kinds of speeds.
The head of the New England Cable and Telecommunications Association told the New Haven Register this month that Internet providers are already investing towards providing high speeds and that government is “ill suited” to get involved.
Officials are hoping all 169 communities in the state will eventually join, because it will make Connecticut a more attractive place for a company to invest in needed infrastructure.
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