From the abstract: "Broadband Internet is considered as an important determinant of economic growth and development. A number of studies examined the impact of broadband on migration, firm location, and economic growth. However, the relationship between broadband infrastructure and new firm formation in the U.S. has not been investigated. This paper fills that gap by empirically examining the relationship between broadband Internet and new firm formation. It is found that single-unit firm births and the provision of broadband are positive and significantly related across almost all industry sectors in the U.S. However, the impact of broadband provisioning on new firm formation is sensitive to agglomeration and aggregate and sectoral growth patterns of states and economic sectors."