Open Cape Helps Boost Falmouth Internet Access

CCB MEDIA PHOTO
The Falmouth Chamber of Commerce headquarters off Main Street.

FALMOUTH – Falmouth Main Street customers of OpenCape Corporation will see a major rate reduction for their fiber-based internet access. 

CEO and Executive Director of OpenCape Steve Johnston said that the rate reduction is the result of over two years of planning and partnership with Falmouth Economic Development and Industrial Corporation and the Falmouth Chamber of Commerce to address poor internet quality in downtown Falmouth and Woods Hole.

“Particularly small businesses were having trouble, primarily in the summer months, managing the flow of their ability to connect and process everything from credit cards to ordering systems for the businesses. It was these businesses that reached out to the Falmouth EDIC and Chamber of Commerce and said ‘Hey, we really need to do something here to upgrade our ability to run our businesses’,” said Johnston. 

“Storekeepers and shopkeepers coming to you and saying they can’t get enough internet connectivity to process a credit card is a real problem.”

After reaching out to MassDevelopment as well, OpenCape built out fiber infrastructure in the area to offer services to local businesses. 

The fiber connection provides a minimum of 250 megabytes per second download speed and 125 MB upload speed for about $117.

However, OpenCape and its partners have recouped the investment made and are dropping rates by about 30 percent, down to the $80 range.

“This is a really important statement because if you live on the Cape, work on the Cape or even off Cape, I’m sure you’re probably frustrated with the ability of your local incumbent provider to provide robust, reliable service at an affordable price,” said Johnston. 

“I think this is a great example of a small, not-for-profit internet service provider that is out-performing national providers in providing really robust service at a really affordable price. That’s what we want to bring attention to. That this is something that is critical both today and looking forward to the future as we talk about economic development and growth on the Cape.”

With inflation hitting the nation’s economy hard, Johnston said that he was proud to be able to bring savings to their customers despite the challenge. 

He added that OpenCape is also working with legislators to bring fiber connections to more communities across the Cape, possibly by utilizing some of the funds provided by the American Rescue Plan Act or other COVID relief.

About Grady Culhane

Grady Culhane is a Cape Cod native from Eastham. He studied media communications at Cape Cod Community College and joined the CapeCod.com News Center in 2019.



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