Anyone who thinks newfangled city-slicker high-speed Internet is of no use to Farmer Joe has got another thing coming. A new report from the US Department of Agriculture shows that farms with broadband Internet connections are far more productive than their dialup and offline counterparts. From learning new farming techniques to discovering new produce markets, it’s easy to see why.

Encouraging rural broadband deployment is part of the reason the Obama administration is offering a $4.7 billion broadband stimulus package. Unfortunately, telcos care more about fighting net neutrality than helping Farmer Joe.

Originally posted on August 21, 2009 @ 4:26 am