A little more than 90 percent of Kentucky residents have access to high-speed or broadband Internet, putting the state 40th out of 50 states for access to high-speed Internet. Brian Kiser, the director of the Kentucky Commonwealth Office of Broadband Outreach and Development, which is funded in part by federal stimulus money, says the group is currently mapping Kentucky's broadband accessibility in an effort to improve Kentucky's access to high-speed Internet. Before a legislative subcommittee on rural issues last week, Kiser said the majority of people with high-speed Internet access are in Lexington, Louisville and Northern Kentucky, roughly 2.25 million people or 55 percent of the population. The rest of the state has patches of areas where high-speed Internet is available, but some of that access is too slow or too expensive. The Commonwealth Office of Broadband Outreach and Development is working with nonprofit Connect Kentucky and Connected Nation as well as other local nonprofit and government groups to find ways to increase high-speed Internet access throughout Kentucky.
