Horizon Connects Toronto Branch Library to High Speed Internet
Creative, Last-Mile Solution Ensures Public Access in Rural Community
CHILLICOTHE, Ohio, March 31, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Patrons of the Toronto Branch of the Public Library of Steubenville and Jefferson County in Toronto, Ohio, now have access to high-speed Internet thanks to an innovative solution that connects the library to reliable, fast data.
Chillicothe-based Horizon Network Partners, a leading broadband and fiber optic data services provider, successfully completed the installation of a high speed data connection to the Toronto library in March by leveraging their world-class fiber-optic network and partnering to deploy cutting-edge wireless communications. As a result, library employees and patrons now have access to high speed data and Internet service that was previously unavailable.
"People have busy lives and not everyone has the means to access the Internet at home," said Alan Hall, director of the Public Library of Steubenville and Jefferson County. "Our patrons depend on the library's services for reliable information, and broadband allows us to help them stay connected to their work and personal lives at high speed."
Since 2010, Horizon Network Partners has been working with the library system to connect its six branch locations to a statewide, fiber optic data network that links together many of Ohio's largest public universities and library systems. But, the Toronto library's location in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains, combined with its distance from a larger population center, made running fiber optic lines directly to the branch cost prohibitive. As a result, the Toronto library was the one location in the system that did not have access to high speed Internet or a high speed data connection to other branch locations.
"At Horizon Network Partners, we are acutely aware of the importance of high speed Internet access to rural communities, and the positive economic impact it can have," said Steve Steele, president of Horizon Network Partners. "Knowing how important high speed access would be to the Toronto library and its community, we worked with our partners to arrive at a creative, non-traditional and customizable solution that ensures dependable service."
Accepting that fiber optic lines could not be run to the library while meeting a price point that met the library's budget, Horizon worked with its partners to deploy a robust network solution which runs on both lightning fast fiber-optic lines as well as high speed wireless communications. This innovative approach involved Horizon building out its fiber optic network to a tower nearby the Toronto library. The wireless partner then deployed its portion of the connection from the tower to the library, completing the end-to-end connection which allows the Toronto Branch to have nearly seven times the bandwidth it previously had.
"Thanks to Horizon, the Toronto library is able to offer faster data services, which ensures that everyone connects quickly and stays connected," Hall said.
To learn more about how Horizon Network Partners connects communities and businesses, visit horizonconnects.com.
About Horizon
With corporate offices in Chillicothe, Ohio, Horizon Network Partners is a leading broadband provider of advanced data services in southern and eastern Ohio. Utilizing its extensive network of fiber optic cable, Horizon delivers advanced high speed data services, Internet, voice, digital video, security and monitoring services. Horizon's entrepreneurial heritage and long-standing commitment to remarkable customer care ensures its devotion to connecting its customers to their worlds through the delivery of cutting-edge broadband technology and proven telecommunications systems.
For more information about Horizon, visit horizonconnects.com.
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SOURCE Horizon Network Partners
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