Libraries are a lynchpin for national, state, and local digital inclusion efforts—particularly our 16,500+ public library locations across the country. Mobile Beacon’s report “Creating Opportunity Through Connectivity”, as well as research on rural library hotspot lending in “At the Edges of the National Digital Platform”, provide evidence of this critical library role and the need for affordable, mobile, and uncapped internet service to empower all people to fully participate in our digital world.
The Mobile Beacon research offers insight into:
- How libraries (and other community anchor institutions) are leveraging mobile internet services to meet community needs;
- The importance of robust data to fully engage with online content;
- Current benefits and limitations of mobile internet services offered through libraries and other institutions; and
- Issues to watch and address through policymaking and library practices.
Read the full article at The Benton Foundation.
