Who: Three’s Rural Broadband Working Group

Objective: What began two years ago as a project to provide mobile broadband to rural areas, has become a means for Three to engage with MPs. The Rural Broadband Working Group uses Three’s existing 3G coverage to provide connectivity to towns, businesses and individuals across Great Britain that would otherwise not have access to the internet. Three found an appetite for broadband in unconnected regions on the part of local businesses, organisations and charities; alongside which was the desire of MPs in rural areas’ to improve access in their communities.

Strategy: “The strategy is simple,” head of corporate communications Guy Middleton says. “Go where there is a need and find someone who really cares about connectivity, and let them be your advocate.” The mobile provider works with charities like the Merchant Navy Welfare Board to provide access to mobile internet for merchant seamen in port in Britain. Those mariners can then communicate with their families across the seas and, perhaps, meet their newborn children for the first time. Three also engages with local MPs who advocate for the penetration of mobile broadband into their communities from a business and employment standpoint. That relationship gives Three a means from which to have a conversation with Government about broadband access, the 4G spectrum and Three’s pursuit of ubiquitous connectivity and access to mobile internet.

Rationale: “The project is a strong illustration of the benefits of the internet and the role of our network in delivering it and gives us a platform to talk people about what we do in a practical and human way. Although connectivity feels like a commodity for many people, our network can bring real benefits to those on the margins of access – either physically or socially. The difference that a decent internet connection has made to some the people we’ve helped through this work really tells our story,” Middleton says.