About Us:: Infrastructure :: History of Berkshire Connect

Berkshire Connect, Inc. was incorporated in February 2000 after three years of working as a community to create an advanced telecommunications landscape that would offer affordable and reliable high-capacity broadband services throughout Berkshire County, located in Western Massachusetts.  Prior to the creation of Berkshire Connect, the cost of high speed Internet connectivity was two to three times the price of connections in New York, Boston and other metropolitan areas. Pricing in the county was dependent upon the size of the customer as well as their geographic location.

By aggregating demand among county telecommunications users, over 50 large and small businesses, hospitals, schools, and nonprofit organizations now receive from the facilities-based preferred providers of Berkshire Connect – Global Crossing Telecommunications and Richmond NetWorx -- competitively priced services and equal pricing throughout the county regardless of geographic location or size. 

Berkshire Connect supports problem-solving initiatives that ensure all Berkshire and other regional communities enjoy access to greater broadband deployment.  Such projects include: the Underserved Communities Pilot Project, the collaborative effort of Berkshire Connect and Pioneer Valley Connect to explore how to bring affordable, replicable broadband to un-served and under-served communities in Western Massachusetts; and the Berkshire Wireless Learning Initiative, a pilot program developed in Berkshire County to evaluate a 1:1 approach of using laptop computers and wireless communication in area middle schools to transform teaching and learning.

In conjunction with the Underserved Communities Pilot Project, a comprehensive assessment was conducted of the existing broadband availability in Western Massachusetts communities.  From this database, one can determine which communities have little or no broadband access.

Visting our offices in Pittsfield? Click here for directions >>