Washington, D.C. – Today, Dean of U.S. House of Representatives John D. Dingell (D-MI15) commended President Barack Obama for traveling to Marquette, Michigan, to speak about the Administration’s new National Wireless Initiative.

“I’m glad the President has come to Marquette, Michigan, to view first-hand how my home state’s universities and businesses are benefitting from high-speed Internet access.  Northern Michigan University’s WiMAX network is the largest 4G educational network in the United States and permits improved distance learning to NMU’s student body, two-thirds of which lives off-campus.  Businesses in Marquette have used high-speed Internet to grow and access markets they otherwise could not have reached with their products and services.

“The benefits of high-speed Internet, whether wireless or through cables, for education and business cannot be overestimated.  Connect Michigan estimates that median annual revenues for Michigan businesses with broadband Internet access are $200,000 greater than for businesses without it.  This is money that could be invested in job creation, which, now more than ever, is key to this country’s economic future.  With this in mind and speaking for a state in which only 67 percent of households have broadband access, I support calls for increased investment in communications infrastructure, whose benefits more than justify its costs.” 

Connect Michigan collects broadband data for Michigan. It is a non-partisan non-profit subsidiary of Connect Nation. 

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