FAQ: General Questions

Becket Broadband offers two primary services over our town-owned fiber-optic network:

• Broadband Internet access
• Digital telephone service

Back to table of contents

Fiber-optics is a communications technology in which digital data is transmitted over hair-thin glass fibers in the form of light, rather than as electrical signals as with copper wire or coaxial cable. One fiber can carry multiple signals at once, and the signal does not degrade over long distances. Unlike coaxial cable, performance is not affected by electromagnetic (RF or Radio Frequency) interference. The fiber-optic network provides high-speed Internet access that runs at the speed of light with a capacity many orders of magnitude greater than older, wire-based technologies.

Each year the use of the Internet for applications and services is increasing. As high-definition video, telemedicine, distance education, telecommuting, and other applications continue to evolve, only fiber technology provides the bandwidth (data rate capacity) necessary to carry the growing load we expect in the foreseeable future. We’re excited that our town will soon be equipped to take advantage of this cutting-edge technology for Internet access, which will support our community well into the future.

Back to table of contents

This is accomplished by running a length of fiber-optic cable from the street to your home, much like a telephone line is run. This connection is sometimes referred to as a “drop.” By default the drop follows the path of the existing electric service to your home. About two-thirds of the homes in Becket have over-head electric drops; the other third have underground or partially-underground drops. 

The cost of the drop varies from home to home and can be expensive. Until July 1, 2023, the town is offering a subsidy of up to $2000, which will completely cover the drop cost for the vast majority of Becket subscribers. Starting on that date the subsidy will be reduced to a maximum of $750 for most customers. For details on the subsidy, including eligibility criteria and more, please see the Installation page of this FAQ: click here and then scroll down a bit to How can I take advantage of one of the town subsidies?

Back to table of contents

5G works great with high-density populations in a limited-obstruction environment. Becket is neither. The hilltowns, generally, are not well-suited for this technology, and so we don’t anticipate wireless companies making the infrastructure investment in our area any time soon, if ever.   

Back to table of contents