Local governments that have successfully built their very own broadband networks are seeing huge savings and even better reliability for their community. Local governments are able to have increased certainty over future costs because they are now able to determine the upgrade cycle.

In Martin County, Florida, Comcast proposed to increase the price for dark fiber by over 800% over a five-year timespan. The county took swift action after this potential price increase by implementing their own broadband network. This county is now able to operate with a more reliable network and at much lower costs without any potential fear of price spikes.

Martin County was able to save a projected savings of $30 million over the next 20 years. After their initial investment in the fiber asset is paid off in 2017, the Martin County School District will save over $340,000 a year and pay just over $6,000 per year for a gigabit connection to its 26 locations for a rock-bottom rate.

Another example of a community broadband success story lies within the Highland Public Schools where they originally were paying Time Warner Cable $100,000 per year for data needs. As of 2012, they switched services to the Medina County municipal network at a cost of about $18,000 per year, saving them $82,000.

At LanCity, we love to hear these success stories and seeing the initiative of communities as they take control of their telecommunications systems.

Read about more communities who made the switch to their own municipal broadband network here.