Multiple Choice, Multiple Answers

Read the passage and select ALL correct options. Wrong selections lose points.

Rural broadband access remains far more limited than in cities, largely because the cost of laying fibre-optic cable per household is much higher across sparsely populated areas, making the economics unattractive for many private providers without government subsidy. Some regions have turned to fixed wireless towers or low-orbit satellite services as faster alternatives to trenching fibre across long distances, though these options can suffer from weather interference and higher latency compared with fibre connections. Governments in several countries now offer grants to encourage providers to extend service into underserved areas, sometimes requiring recipients to guarantee minimum speeds for a set number of years in exchange for funding. Studies linking broadband access to rural economic outcomes have found that reliable connectivity correlates with higher rates of small business formation in the areas studied.