Microsoft strikes next deal to extend broadband in Ohio and 2 other states

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Microsoft Corp. and an Ohio-based provider of telecommunications services announced an agreement to extend broadband internet access to underserved rural areas of Ohio, Indiana and Illinois over the next three years.

The deal between Microsoft and Lima-based Watch Communications aims to make reliable high-speed internet available to another 815,000 people throughout the region. That includes 288,000 of the roughly 1 million Ohioans who federal figures show are not currently using the internet at high speeds.

The project is part of Microsoft's national Airband Initiative, which is seeking to fill regions unserved by high-speed internet across the country. Among its partnerships is a deal Microsoft struck last year with Canton-based Agile Networks to reach 110,000 unserved people in rural Ohio.

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