Why Internet Access Is Slow And Costly In The U.S.

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People in the U.S. frequently pay more for slower internet service than people abroad, according to a report from the Open Technology Institute. Lawmakers in Washington are attempting to address the high price of internet service, as well as the lack of access for many low income families, by deeming internet access infrastructure. Here’s why high speed internet is so expensive in the U.S., why so many Americans struggle to gain access and what policymakers can do about it.”
Chapters

0:00 – Introduction
1:55 – Prices
4:22 – Economic impact
6:39 – Lack of competition
9:54 – Solutions

A chunk of Americans are having trouble accessing the internet, even as online access becomes more integral to everyday life.

A survey conducted earlier this year by the Pew Research Center found that 7% of Americans lack access to reliable broadband. One reason for this may be how expensive internet access is in the U.S.

“People in the U.S. pay more for slower internet than people abroad,” Open Technology Institute policy analyst Claire Park said. “For many consumers, the cost of getting online right now is simply too high and also too complicated.”

The Open Technology Institute has been studying the price and speed of internet services advertised within the United States as well as abroad. Its 2020 Cost of Connectivity Report found that the average advertised monthly cost of internet in the U.S. is $68.38, which is higher than the average price of internet access for all of North America, Europe and Asia.

Outdated infrastructure in the U.S. may also be impeding internet access to millions of Americans, and lawmakers have been debating how to increase internet availability and performance.

The U.S. Senate passed the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act in August, which includes $65 billion dollars to expand high-speed internet access. The legislation introduces policies that are meant to encourage competition among providers, increase transparency about pricing and upgrade broadband infrastructure.

While the legislation easily passed the Senate, it hit some snags in the Democratic-controlled House. The vote has been pushed back several times as Democrats hammer out details on the wider bill.

To be sure, greater internet access could boost U.S. economic growth. A report published in April by Deloitte found that a 10 percentage point increase in broadband access could have resulted in more than 875,000 additional U.S. jobs in 2014 as well as $186 billion more in economic output in 2019.

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Why Internet Access Is Slow And Costly In The U.S.

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38 COMMENTS

  6. I enjoy providing internet services to rural areas where big companies are not present. I believe everyone should have access to the internet regardless of where they live.

  8. As a Swede, I find these numbers somewhat astonishing. My unlimited 1Gbit fiber/LAN is 20 USD/month. My cell plan is about the same, but that's just because a) I'm too lazy to switch and b) my carrier (Telia) is one the biggest (and oldest) in Sweden, and they have by far the best 3G/4G/5G cell/mobile internet carriage across Sweden including quite a bit out at sea from the coast.

  11. Poland, a well served area- equivalent of 30 US dollars for 600 down, 20 up (up is limited because of the coaxial cable in the building here).

    Oh, and also 2 phone numbers, each with 11 GB of all-EU internet* (and 120GB polish internet). All a package, for $30.

    The internet by itself would be about $15.

    *I'm giving the all-EU number, because people will say the US is vastly larger than Poland. I agree. Meanwhile at Mint mobile in the US I'd get one number for $15 for 5GB of internet, so twice as expensive (I need two numbers) for half the internet.

    But let's assume in-state and out of state internet was split, so it'd be like I have 11GB of out of state and 120GB in-state, that's a rough equivalent.

    Oh, yes, and the cable internet has no data caps, delivers fully on the promised speed at all times, and the modem is not crap (all ISPs provide the modem-router combo, it's not an extra charge, you cannot opt out. If you want your own router you ask them to put it in bridge mode).

  14. The rate regulation regarding that merging companies must keep the low rates for low income customers probably wouldn’t work because the companies are always spinning off and merging over and over again and the requirements get lost in the transactions. This recently happened with the FCC mandate with ARCO gas stations. When BP acquired ARCO, they were mandated to keep ARCO’s low price marketing where the stations did not accept credit cards, saving the stations the credit card transaction fees which they passed on to the consumer with lower gas prices. After the oil spill BP sold off the ARCO gas of the business while keeping the adjoined am/pm convince stores and in the shuffle of the sale the low price marketing requirements were not passed on to the new owners, which in turn started accepting credit cards and the gas prices are much higher, sometimes higher than Chevron, the most expensive gas brand on the west coast. So if the low price mandate can be so easily lost with the switch of an oil company I imagine that with the constant merging and name changes of the cable companies any mandate would easily disappear.

  18. My family has always seemed to struggle with providers. They always offer some deal and NEVER just the service. The offers sometimes say as low as $70 a month. Then the bill sky rockets to $300 a month with no valid reasoning. All you could have is the wifi box and service. That's it. So why tf does it go up to $200-$300??

  19. Internet and communications is the industry I think where India is at the lead, I pay a total of about 19usd(1580rs) monthly for a 200mbps ( proper optic fiber ) unlimited data, a Tv satellite connection with a smart tv box and a 4g sim card with 2gb data everyday….and all of this is cheap and no catch, it works as advertised.

  21. What was left out of this video was the phenomenon of how ISPs deal with each other to skirt the FCC. To claim that they aren’t a monopoly 2+ISPs come to an agreement threat one will provide the best deal while others can provide substandard deals in exchange for demarcating service zones. This allows them all to share the pot and to dodge monopoly accusations.

  22. Its ridiculous how so many are just trying to get a cozy deal.. like the Landlords.. "haha, I can make s few hundred more dollars in my pocket if sI lock in this deal, SCREW my tenants" i am a GOD. That is the norm it seems in this country. There is such a psychopathic GREEDY personality.

  23. You know, it is funny, folks complain about the govt.. Yet it is true, competition probably would bring more innovation and lower costs but the way the system has been constructed.. it has allowed these behemoths to control the system. Partially that is due to GOVT regulation/deregulation policies.. YET the irony, is that the GOVT is the only major play that could probably force more competition into the market… The GOVT has more of an interest in the CITIZENS having basic infrastructure.. than say SPECTRUM which is merely out for profit. There are totally different incentives and missions and the stranglehold needs to be broken NOW!!. My situation is definitely being affected as I cannot get access to remote from home work which I need to make more money.. The Pandemic has been an utter wash… and we are sliding back to the way things were.. isntead of making any progress. I hate the US

  30. This is ridiculous: I've had 400+Mbps for years and it's inexpensive. I've also NEVER MET ANYONE who hasn't had internet since the late 90s. I'm really confused by this video. I've lived and travelled all over the US.

  31. I'm in an Asian country, and my monthly Internet bill is only around $10. It's Wifi, so everyone in my family can use it. We have an Internet TV, 3 phones and a laptop. Sometimes a neighbor or two sneaks in our wifi, too. And it's still running smoothly.
    As for outdoor data, with just about $6 a month, you can effectively have unlimited internet access for your phone

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