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High-speed Internet access in Wisconsin varies widely, with fast connections missing even in some urban areas, according to a new broadband map produced by state regulators.

In some cases, broadband isn't much faster than dial-up Internet service, a slower connection through telephone wires.

"We have huge underserved areas, even in Milwaukee," said Thad Nation, executive director of Wired Wisconsin, an organization representing telecom firms.

"This is a significant barrier toward growth. When we look at where businesses want to locate and expand, one of the most important factors is high-speed broadband service," Nation said.

In general, broadband is an Internet connection capable of moving large amounts of data through fiber-optic cable and other means.

One study ranks Wisconsin 43rd among states having broadband, according to Nation, who says more than 1 million rural residents here don't have access to broadband speeds greater than 6 megabits per second.

"We are near the bottom of the list, and it's become a quality-of-life issue," he said. "Broadband today is what electricity was 100 years ago."

The broadband map, produced by the Public Service Commission, shows what areas have access to the fastest Internet connections and where those connections fade to service that's barely broadband or no service at all.

There are coverage gaps in rural areas where broadband providers say it's too expensive to offer the service for a relatively few number of subscribers.

"The availability of broadband is closely associated with population density," said Bill Gillis, president of Vision Tech 360, a consultant to the Public Service Commission's LinkWisconsin that produced the online map.

Searchable by counties and communities, the map shows that broadband speeds vary in urban areas including Milwaukee and the suburbs. Nation says his neighborhood, in Shorewood, has some of the fastest broadband in the area with speeds capable of handling applications such as telemedicine and large video files.

"But I am sure that, within two or three miles of me, that's not possible," he said. "There is a huge range between the low end of broadband up to what's considered the fastest."

Broadband providers say it will take a variety of technologies to close the coverage gaps because fiber-optic cable is not an affordable solution in many areas. In general, Nation said, the providers want 200 subscribers per square mile in a rural area.

The Town of Berry, about 20 miles from the state Capitol, is considering a wireless broadband network after it could not convince Madison-based TDS Telecommunications to provide high-speed Internet service.

Town officials filed a complaint with the Public Service Commission over the issue, saying state regulations obligated TDS to provide "reasonably adequate service and facilities," including broadband.

But a change in state law earlier this year dropped many regulations that applied to telephone companies.

"Now it's like we don't even exist," said Town Chairman Anthony Varda.

TDS is the telephone service provider in Berry, a community of about 1,125 residents.

Varda said the company told town officials that residents made a "lifestyle choice" to live in Berry without broadband access.

In its PSC filings, Varda said, "TDS belittled the Berry complaint as being used so that affluent professionals, among others, can build homes in bedroom communities to avoid higher property taxes and still have high speed Internet access."

With $33 million in federal economic stimulus funds, TDS is extending broadband in rural areas. Johnson Creek, Monroe, Lancaster, Medford, Sherwood and Burlington are some communities where it's adding service, the company said.

But it's not extending service to the Town of Berry or nearby Black Earth because the number of potential subscribers doesn't justify the cost of extending fiber-optic cable several miles from where it ends now.

"It is extremely expensive to provide broadband to this community," said Drew Petersen, vice president of external relations and communications.

See the map

To see the state's broadband coverage map, go to wi.linkamericadata.org