KEYC Mankato reports on the SMBS upgrades in southwest Minnesota…

When you see communities like Jackson or Lakefield, it’s hard to believe that they have some of the fastest Internet available. It’s a recent system upgrade that has allowed the multiple municipalities owned South Minnesota Broadband Services to offer One gigabyte per second Internet.

That’s about 20 times faster than the fastest cable Internet connections.

“Jackson is very fortunate. This is something that a lot of people probably take for granted And don’t realize how lucky we are in greater Minnesota to have high capacity access,” said Jackson City Administrator Jennifer Bromeland.

“It’s just been so vitally important, and to be able to offer that in the communities of our size is just something else. It’s absolutely fabulous,” SMBS General Manager Travis Thies said.

Here’s why they do it…

“We have the fiber set up to many of our businesses and residents right now, so we have had this for a while and it’s helping or businesses to meet their goals I’m just helping us to keep people in Jackson and attract people to want to move to Jackson, ” said Bromeland.

Think of it as laying the groundwork. As time goes on, Internet demands will only increase. By offering high-speed Internet now it’s hoped that the businesses in these Minnesota communities will continue to grow and thrive as well as attract new business.