As part of the FCC’s initiative to bring broadband access to rural communities, the Connect America Fund received over $225 million in funding to connect almost 1 million people who lack service.
This phase of the project will provide over 400,000 homes and businesses in rural areas in 41 states with access to broadband. AT&T, CenturyLink, Fairpoint Communications, Frontier Communications and Windstream Corp. were the five carriers that will use these funds in rural areas in their service region where support from the Connect America Fund was lacking and broadband expansion was not likely.