Thousands of households in rural America have yet to transition into the age of high-speed Internet access for a very good reason: no availability of DSL or cable. Because the economics of adding DSL or laying cable in sparsely populated areas doesn’t provide a sufficient return on investment, it could be years before many rural Americans have access to the information superhighway. Increasingly, many stuck on slow dial-up are turning to high speed satellite Internet (similar to satellite TV) as a solution.
Available today from several providers, satellite Internet requires a separate dish antenna mounted at the customer’s home, along with cable running to a satellite modem that connects to a personal computer. Previously this required an upfront investment of hundreds of dollars for home equipment, which also required professional installation. Other drawbacks included reliability issues due to weather related problems, and difficulty in scheduling rapid service calls.
To overcome these challenges, brothers Dwayne & Michael Hay founded SkyWay USA in rural Jackson, Kentucky. For less than $100, the SkyWay USA system can be ordered online, shipped directly to your home, and self-installed in a matter of hours. Coupled with an entry-level service fee of $29.95/month, SkyWay USA touts itself as rural America’s low-cost satellite Internet provider.
Continue reading ‘Satellite Internet Coming to Rural Areas’
