When Comcast launched Internet Essentials six years ago, we had no idea how it would be received or how many low-income Coloradans we could reach.
What we did know, however, is low-income households are less likely to subscribe to broadband internet service at home compared to higher income families. According to the American Community Survey, only 56% of households earning less than $35,000 a year have broadband service at home, compared to 92% of households earning more than $75,000 a year.
This digital divide can impact the scholastic achievement and advancement of children from low-income families; it can limit the job prospects for and workforce readiness of the entire household; and it can limit access to healthcare and to news, information, and entertainment for the entire family.
Confluence Denver takes a deeper look into this connectivity gap in an article titled, Meet Tara Chloe: How Comcast and DHA Are Closing the Connectivity Gap. The article highlights Tara Chloe, a resident at Denver Housing Authority, who states she would otherwise not be able to afford internet services without Internet Essentials and now that she has it at home, “It’s everything.”
We’ are proud to connect individuals like Tara to the internet. Since the program’s inception, approximately 168,000 low-income Coloradans are now connected to the internet at home.
With partners like Denver Housing Authority, we can help close the digital divide, as there is still much more work to be done.
To learn more about Denver Housing Authority and Comcast’s partnership read Confluence Denver’s other articles, Yes, This Is Public Housing: How Denver Housing Authority Is Mixing It Up and Making Better Homes and Beyond Basic Shelter: An Inside Look at How DHA Is Teaching Digital Readiness.