Measuring Broadband's (Public) Return on Investment

A Q&A with Ann Treacy of the Blandin Foundation editor of the blog “Blandin on Broadband”

A new study commissioned by the Blandin Foundation may help small communities put some hard numbers behind broadband’s public benefit.  “Return on Investment: Measuring Impact of Broadband in Five Rural Minnesota Communities” looks at communities that have spent public funds on building out networks.  Ann Treacy produced the quantitative portion of the report, while Bill Coleman of Community Technology Advisors gathered stories in each of the communities that illustrate the numbers.  

The resulting numbers are big. For the five areas in the study (Beltrami, Crow Wing, Goodhue, Lake and Sibley counties) the study showed a community benefit of about $150 million annually and another $450 million in the increase in real estate values. The estimates varied widely among the five communities, and they are far from a comprehensive picture of the potential impact of high quality broadband. But for communities wondering whether broadband is a good investment of public money, the implications are clear.