Finland to make broadband internet access available to all citizens by 2016
Finland's Ministry of Transportation and Communications announced on Wednesday that they will now be providing 1 megabit broadband internet access for nearly all of its 5 million citizens. The internet today is where most people get their information, be it news, gossip, education, etc. It is a source abound by the voices of anyone willing and able to make themselves heard. Citizens of all ages can begin to explore the grandeur of the internet, filling themselves with knowledge for whatever it is that drives them.
Finland has always been a front runner when it comes to investments in technology amongst EU member states. The plan is to distribute this 1Mb connectivity all over the country, but unfortunately there are remote areas in the country where it will not be available; totaling to about 2,000 households. According to Harri Pursiainen, permanent secretary of the Ministry of Transport and Communications, the cost of building the fiber-optic cable network capable of delivering free connectivity to areas where it would not already be built commercially would be in excess of 200 million euros; the government could only pay a maximum of one-third that amount. By 2016, it is estimated that over 99 percent of households will have access to these networks.
