I am pleased to share the results of a pretty informal but what I think is a very useful charting of Internet speeds in Minnesota Region 6W. Spearheaded by UMVRDC (Upper Minnesota Valley Regional Development Center), they asked County Commissioners in the area to test their speeds. There are only 15 spots plotted on the map but it’s a good snapshot in time.
Plotting 15 points probably doesn’t meet any scientific standard – but it’s a look at what people on the front lines are experiencing. The high level numbers help paint the picture of inequity:
Download speeds:
- Mean Download – 24.85 Mbps
- Median Download – 18.20 Mbps
- Highest Download – 90.61 Mbps
- Lowest Download – 0.63 Mbps
Upload speeds:
- Mean Upload – 22.31 Mbps
- Median Upload – 13.185 Mbps
- Highest Upload – 94.3 Mbps
- Lowest Upload- 0.35 Mbps
It’s important to note that this is reflective of what people are experiencing based on their choice of provider and choice of service. It doesn’t show what’s available. Someone may have access to a faster choice and not take it – due to cost, disinterest or other reasons. And whenever you test a connection speed there are mitigating circumstances – for example speed of local network and speed of computer. But again this is a snapshot in time. If someone were in the field looking for a place to relocate, or trying to get online while on vacation – this is what they could find.
You can see the specific tests charted below. It’s compelling. It would be interesting to see more tests plotted. It would be interesting to have this data for the whole state.
Blandin on Broadband 
HI Ann,
Your chart raises a few questions for me. MVTV services Appleton (in town), Canby, Clara City (outside of town), Granite and Monte. We offer at least 10M, if not 25M.
Did you happen to capture the names of their providers?
Sincerely,
Julie Foote
Market Development
MVTV Wireless Internet Provider
âConnecting Rural Minnesotaâ
http://www.mvtvwireless.com
Phone: 507-360-9651 1790 Hwy 212 West Granite Falls, MN 56241
Julie – you might have to get in touch with UMVRDC on this one. I’m just the messenger – but I did take care to note…
“It’s important to note that this is reflective of what people are experiencing based on their choice of provider and choice of service. It doesn’t show what’s available. Someone may have access to a faster choice and not take it – due to cost, disinterest or other reasons. And whenever you test a connection speed there are mitigating circumstances – for example speed of local network and speed of computer. But again this is a snapshot in time. If someone were in the field looking for a place to relocate, or trying to get online while on vacation – this is what they could find.”
But your question make the point that a larger map (with more plots pointed) would be valuable to providers too. It’s a nice way to see where you might need to spread the word!
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