STATE SURVEYS RESIDENTS IN FINAL 6 BROADBAND REGIONS TO ASSESS HIGH-SPEED INTERNET USAGE, NEEDS

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo., June 13 -- The Missouri Office of Administration issued the following news release:

As part of Gov. Jay Nixon's efforts to expand high-speed Internet access throughout the state, the governor's MoBroadbandNow initiative is seeking input from an additional 24,000 Missourians to determine their high-speed Internet accessibility. This represents the last group of residents whose input will be sought through the Broadband Residential Survey.

Today, 4,000 surveys were mailed to randomly selected Missourians residing within six of the state's Regional Planning Commissions' (RPCs) regions. The Broadband Residential Survey is designed to determine residents' usage, needs and interests, and seeks to raise the number of Missourians who have access to high-speed Internet. Completed surveys must be postmarked June 30, 2011.

The six regions, and the counties served by them, are listed below:

Boonslick: Lincoln, Montgomery, and Warren counties

Mark Twain: Audrain, Macon, Marion, Monroe, Ralls, Randolph, Pike and Shelby counties

Meramec: Crawford, Dent, Gasconade, Maries, Osage, Phelps, Pulaski and Washington counties

Mid-America: Cass, Clay, Jackson, Platte and Ray counties

Northeast: Adair, Clark, Knox, Lewis, Schuyler and Scotland counties

East-West Gateway: Franklin, Jefferson, St. Charles, and St. Louis counties as well as St. Louis City

"Seeking community input is an important part of the planning process," said MoBroadbandNow Director Damon Porter. "It's critical to have an understanding of the local community's needs in order to provide the tools that can allow them access to high-speed Internet. Broadband can benefit citizens in many ways such as applying for a job or earning a college degree online and from the comfort of one's own home."

The 24,000 residents currently being surveyed represent a portion of 76,000 total Missourians from which input will be sought. The overall number of residents surveyed will provide a scientific statistical sampling of broadband information for Missourians as a whole.

Not everyone will receive a survey, but those who do should fill it out as accurately as possible and return it by the deadline. Over the next several months, each of the six planning teams is expected to discuss the strengths and weaknesses of its regional broadband systems and develop a list of recommendations to improve high-speed Internet coverage.

Broadband typically is defined as a service that enables high-speed Internet access and high-capacity data communications, as opposed to low-speed services such as dial-up connections. The results of the survey will be used to help the planning teams and the state gain a better of understanding of broadband availability and adoption and how these factors lend themselves to better service and faster communication. For any query with respect to this article or any other content requirement, please contact Editor at htsyndication@hindustantimes.com