Since municipal provider LeverettNet started offering gigabit broadband in April, more than four out of five households in the town have signed up for the high-speed service. Granted, the town boasts fewer than 2,000 residents in total, but the adoption rate is still stunning evidence that gigabit demand is on the rise.

The Leverett gigabit service exists thanks to the Massachusetts Broadband Institute, which deployed a 1,200-mile middle mile fiber network in the region, and a combination of state grants and taxes. The service currently costs about $75 per month, but that price could drop if more subscribers (i.e. some of those in the last 19% of households) sign up. Leverett Municipal Light Plant, the organization that runs the local network, spreads its maintenance fees across the entire subscriber base. If more users buy in, the fee per user will go down.

Of note, Leverett was originally part of WiredWest, a coalition of Massachusetts towns working to raise money for gigabit deployments. However, Leverett says it has since withdrawn from the coalition. (See Gigabites: Google Fiber Forges On.)

US Internet Corp. (USI) in Minnesota is using active Ethernet to deliver multi-gigabit speeds to residents. On top of its existing gigabit service, the service provider now says it will introduce new Internet tiers with speeds up to 2.5 and 5 Gbit/s in early 2016. Costs range from $65 per month for 1 Gbit/s to $99 and $199 per month for 2.5 Gbit/s and 5 Gbit/s respectively. USI also offers a 10Gbit/s broadband service for $399 per month.