CANTON, Ohio (AP) - Microsoft Corp. and an Ohio-based provider of telecommunications services have announced an agreement to extend broadband internet access to 110,000 unserved people in rural Ohio over the next four years.
Microsoft and Canton-based Agile Networks announced the agreement this week. They say it will help address a need for reliable broadband access in rural Ohio and provide access to digital advances in agriculture, telemedicine, and education.
Officials say the project also will support public-safety functions, including hospitals.
The project will use a mix of technologies, including the unused broadcast frequencies between TV channels known as TV white spaces.
The project is part of the Microsoft Airband Initiative. Microsoft says that initiative aims to extend broadband access to 2 million unserved people in rural America by 2022.
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