Michigan Businesses With Broadband Create Jobs, Connect Michigan Report Shows

Download: Business Technology Adoption Overview

Survey of Michigan businesses establishes link between high-speed Internet use and bottom line

Lansing, MI — A new report by Connect Michigan shows businesses with a broadband connection are likely to generate more revenue and jobs. Michigan businesses with high-speed Internet connections report having median annual revenues $200,000 more than businesses without broadband

“In the digital economy, businesses must embrace broadband, and other transformative technologies like it, in order to remain competitive and viable,” said Brian Mefford, CEO of Connected Nation, Connect Michigan’s parent organization. “The Internet is driving products and services to the marketplace in an environment where creativity and innovation are both reinforced and rewarded.”

Connect Michigan, a statewide public-private partnership working on broadband expansion, has released a new study on technology usage among businesses in Michigan. The new Business Technology Assessment reveals how technology is being used by businesses and where gaps still remain. The assessment is designed to measure technology adoption and the awareness of available broadband service among Michigan businesses, and establish benchmarks for these metrics.

Findings from this survey illustrate a significant correlation between high-speed Internet adoption and a business’s bottom line. Specific examples include:

• Businesses with high-speed Internet connections report having median annual revenues $200,000 more than businesses without broadband.
• About one-half of all Michigan businesses (50%, or approximately 118,000 businesses) have a website. Median annual revenues among businesses that use broadband and have a website are double the state average.
• Broadband can enable job creation and enhance quality of life. 24% of Michigan businesses let employees telework.
• Statewide, more than eight out of ten Michigan businesses (84%, or approximately 197,000 businesses) use computers for their work functions. Among those that do not use a computer, the largest barrier is the belief that they do not need computers for their work, followed by those that report that their business is too small to benefit from a computer, or that computers are too difficult to use.

Other key highlights:

• 10% - Broadband-connected Michigan businesses that need more bandwidth
• $67 - Median monthly cost for broadband for Michigan businesses
• 75% - Broadband adoption in the Michigan manufacturing sector
• Across the state, approximately 164,000 Michigan businesses use broadband for their daily business needs. This includes 63% of small businesses, or approximately 78,000 businesses with fewer than five employees.

Increasing broadband capacity among businesses is just one area that Connect Michigan is focused on. Across the state, Connect Michigan is collaborating with local partners to increase broadband accessibility and use in vulnerable areas.

Connect Michigan has partnered with the Michigan Public Service Commission to create the state’s first broadband inventory maps and engage in a research project to better understand broadband adoption across the state. The project is focused on gathering accurate and reliable data on the broadband market to aid in planning, the creation and facilitation of local technology planning teams, and the establishment of computer ownership and Internet access programs.

The program is funded by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) under the State Broadband Data and Development Grant Program (SBDD). Connect Michigan’s broadband mapping efforts are in compliance with NTIA’s Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA) for the SBDD and will be reflected in the national broadband map set for release on February 17, 2011.

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About Connect Michigan: As the designated entity for broadband mapping and planning in the state of Michigan, Connect Michigan is a public-private partnership between the Michigan Public Service Commission and Connected Nation to unite local governments, businesses, and citizens in the goal of increasing broadband service in the state’s underserved areas. For more information about what Connect Michigan is doing to accelerate technology in Michigan’s communities, visit www.connectmi.org.

About Connected Nation:Connected Nation is the broadband mapping agent in twelve states and territories under the NTIA’s State Broadband Data and Development grant program. This work comprises approximately 42 percent of the country’s landmass and encompasses approximately 39.5 million households. Connected Nation is a national nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization that expands access to and use of broadband Internet and the related technologies that are enabled when individuals and communities have the opportunity and desire to connect. Connected Nation effectively raises the awareness of the value of broadband and related technologies by developing coalitions of influencers and enablers for improving technology availability and use. Connected Nation works with consumers, community leaders, states, technology providers and foundations, including the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, to develop and implement technology expansion programs with core competencies centered around a mission to improve digital inclusion for people and places previously underserved or overlooked. www.connectednation.org.