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The New NY Broadband Program is a program funded by the New York government to close the digital divide in New York State. This program is allocating funding to qualified internet providers like HughesNet and GotW3 capable of delivering high speed internet access to currently underserved and unserved areas in New York State. It calls for approved internet providers to bring speeds of 100 Mbps to most areas statewide with speeds up to 25 Mbps in the most remote areas.
Bridging The Digital Divide In New York State
In 2015 New York Governor Cuomo took a hard stance at improving internet availability in underserved and unserved areas of New York State. He found that approximately 30% of New York residents lacked access to broadband internet. That means those residents couldn’t surf the internet, work from home, do schoolwork like so many other people do across the state in urban areas with ease. Expanding service areas for internet providers is often cost prohibitive in areas of low population. With little to no way of making expansion profitable, internet providers simply leave those areas underserved. With the New NY Broadband Program, the funding available makes expanding to these areas a viable option. To become an approved internet provider, each company had to submit a proposal that was reviewed by the Broadband Program Office.
New NY Broadband Program Phase 1
Phase 1 of the New NY Broadband Program was completed in 2016. It accepted applications for the New NY Broadband Program and its award recipients have already been announced. During this phase of the program broadband internet access was expanded to 97% of New Yorkers. Here is the full list of phase 1 awardees:
| Internet Provider Phase 1 Awardees | Areas That They Will Be Served |
| Armstrong Telecommunications | Finger Lakes, Southern Tier, Western NY |
| Citizens Of Hammond | North Country |
| Empire Access | Southern Tier |
| Frontier Communications | Capital Region, Mohawk Valley, North Country, Southern Tier |
| Gtel Teleconnections | Capital Region |
| Haefele TV Inc. | Southern Tier |
| Hancock Telephone Company | Southern Tier |
| Mid-Hudson Data Corp. | Capital Region |
| Middleburg Telephone Company | Capital Region, Mohawk Valley |
| MTC Cable | Mid-Hudson, Southern Tier |
| State Telephone Company, Inc. | Capital Region |
| TDS Telecom | Central NY, Finger Lakes, North Country, Southern Tier |
New NY Broadband Program Phase 2
Phase 2 of the New NY Broadband Program was completed in 2017. It accepted applications for the New NY Broadband Program and its award recipients have already been announced. During this phase of the program broadband internet access was expanded to 98% of New Yorkers. Here is the full list of phase 2 awardees:
| Internet Provider Phase 2 Awardees | Areas That They Will Be Served |
| Altice | Long Island |
| Armstrong Telecommunications | Finger Lakes, Southern Tier, Western NY |
| Cable Communications of WIllsboro | North Country |
| Castle Cable TV Television, Inc. | North Country |
| Champlain Telephone Company | North Country |
| Chazy and Westport Telephone Corporation | North Country |
| Citizens of Hammond | North Country |
| Delhi Telephone Company | Southern Tier |
| DFT Local Service Corporation | Western NY |
| DTC Cable Inc. | Southern Tier |
| Empire Telephone Corporation | Finger Lakes, Southern Tier |
| Fairpoint Communications | Capital Region, Mid-Hudson, Western NY |
| Frontier Communications | Capital Region, Central NY, Finger Lakes, Mid-Hudson, Mohawk Valley, North Country, Southern Tier, Western NY |
| Gtel Teleconnections | Capital Region, Mid-Hudson |
| Haefele TV Inc. | Central NY, Southern Tier |
| Mid-Hudson Data Corp. | Capital Region |
| Middleburgh Telephone Company | Mohawk Valley |
| MTC Cable | Capital Region, Mid-Hudson, Mohawk Valley, Southern Tier |
| New Visions Communications | Central NY |
| Newport Telephone Company | Mohawk Valley, North Country |
| Oneida County Rural Telephone | Mohawk Valley |
| Otsego Electric Cooperative | Central NY, Mohawk Valley, Southern Tier |
| Pattersonville Telephone Company | Capital Region, Mohawk Valley |
| Slic Network Solutions | Capital Region, North Country |
| TDS Telecom | Central NY, Finger Lakes, North Country, Southern Tier |
New NY Broadband Program Phase 3
Phase 3 of the New NY Broadband Program was completed in 2018. It accepted applications for the New NY Broadband Program and its award recipients have already been announced. Here is the full list of phase 3 awardees:
| Internet Provider Phase 3 Awardees | Areas That They Will Be Served |
| Armstrong Telecommunications | Finger Lakes, Southern Tier, Western NY |
| Clarity Fiber Solutions | Central NY, Southern Tier |
| DTC Cable Inc. | Mohawk Valley, Southern Tier |
| Frontier Communications | Finger Lakes, Mohawk Valley, North Country, Southern Tier |
| Gtel Teleconnections | Capital Region |
| Haefele TV Inc. | Central NY, Southern Tier |
| Hudson Valley Wireless | Capital Region, Mohawk Valley |
| Hughes Network Systems, LLC | Capital Region, Central NY, Finger Lakes, Long Island, Mid-Hudson, Mohawk Valley, North Country, Southern Tier, Western NY |
| Mid-Hudson Data Corp. | Capital Region |
| Middleburgh Telephone Company | Capital Region |
| MTC Cable | Capital Region, Mid-Hudson, Mohawk Valley, Southern Tier |
| Otsego Electric Cooperative | Mohawk Valley |
| Slic Network Solutions | Capital Region, North Country |
| TDS Telecom | North Country |
| Verizon Communications | Capital Region, Central NY, Mohawk Valley, North Country, Southern Tier |
| Windstream New York | Western NY |
