Man Gets Annoyed With Bad Internet, Builds His Own Network Instead

Technology is great until it turns on us. This week, Gmail users were warned about the latest form of hack to threaten their accounts, and Nintendo Switch owners recently discovered that their consoles are only designed to last around three years. There’s one problem that crops up more than most though, a dodgy internet connection. Well, one man has taken matters into his own hands after experiencing exactly that.

Speaking of Nintendo Switch, have you checked out the latest round of classic tracks to land in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe? Take a look below.

Senior network architect Jared Mauch lives in rural Michigan, USA, and as such, suffers from a terribly unreliable internet connection. He told Ars Technica that he contacted provider Comcast about upgrading his internet setup but extending the network to his home would cost a whopping $50,000 (£40,972). Mauch knew the job wouldn’t be cheap but still, he’d set a budget of $10,000 (£8,194).

Unsurprisingly, Mauch turned Comcast down but instead of coming to terms with his patchy internet connection, Mauch decided to become his own internet service provider. Mauch ended up spending $145,000 (£118,820) on establishing his own broadband network and neighbours soon wanted in on the action. Mauch launched his business, Washtenaw Fiber Properties LLC, which now has 70 customers.

What’s even more impressive is that Mauch has just received $2.6 million in US government funding to roll out an improved internet network to a further 600 rural properties. Big swings, big wins.