We’re excited to share that for the twelfth time in eight years, we are expanding the eligibility of the Internet Essentials program to include all low-income Utahns. The expansion is the most significant change in the program’s history and the company estimates that nearly three million additional low-income households, including households with people with disabilities, are now eligible to apply.
Internet Essentials is the largest and most comprehensive broadband adoption program for low-income families in the U.S. Since 2011, the company has connected more than eight million low-income Americans to the Internet. Including:
- 112,000 individuals across Utah
- 27,200 individuals in Salt Lake City
- 13,600 individuals in West Valley City
- 10,800 individuals in Ogden
- 5,200 individuals in West Jordan
- 4,300 individuals in Orem
- 4,000 individuals in Logan
- 3,200 individuals in Midvale
- 2,800 individuals in Provo
Whether the Internet is used for students to do their homework, adults to look for and apply for new jobs, seniors to keep in touch with friends and family, or veterans to access their well-deserved benefits, it is absolutely essential to success in our modern, digital age.
Families all across the state, such as the Lake family from Midvale, Utah have benefitted from having the internet at home to connect to news, resources, educational tools, and their friends and family networks. Learn more about how the Lake’s have benefited from the program here.
“The Internet is arguably the most important technological innovation in history, and it is unacceptable that we live in a country where millions of families and individuals are missing out on this life-changing resource.”
– David L. Cohen, Senior Executive Vice President and Chief Diversity Officer of Comcast NBCUniversal.
Comcast attributes some of the recent growth of Internet Essentials to its easy-to-use mobile application, which now accounts for more than a third of all enrollments. The company has also redesigned its Internet Essentials Learning Center with new content from Common Sense Media and ConnectSafely.org. The site now includes a variety of free videos, tools, and resources that can help individuals learn vital Internet safety and digital skills.
The announcement follows 11 prior eligibility expansions, including last year’s extension of the program to low-income veterans. To be eligible to apply to the program, low-income applicants simply need to show they are participating in one of more than a dozen different federal assistance programs. A full list can be found at www.internetessentials.com.
Internet Essentials has an integrated, wrap-around design meant to address each of the three major barriers to broadband adoption that research has identified. These include: a lack of digital literacy skills, the lack of a computer, and the absence of a low-cost Internet service. The program is also structured as a partnership between Comcast and tens of thousands of school districts, libraries, elected officials, and nonprofit community partners.
For more information, or to apply for the program, go to www.internetessentials.com or call 1-855-846-8376. Spanish-only speakers can call 1-855-765-6995.
