Telecommunications

State-of-the-art equipment and facilities are available to virtually every industrial site. Local and long distance rates are very affordable and competitive, but are based upon individual usage.

Mississippi has more than 300,000 miles of fiber optics in place with more being put into the ground every day. Mileage relative to population density is among the highest in the nation.

More than 18,000 Mississippians are currently employed in telecommunications industries.

Research and Development Facilities

• The Institute for Technology Development's Advanced Microelectronics Division designs and builds advanced microchips for the telecommunications industry.
• NASA's John C. Stennis Space Center is home to the NASA Technology Transfer Office and the Mississippi Enterprise for Technology, which help private sector firms commercialize and market new technologies developed by NASA and 21 other federal and state agencies operating at Stennis.
• Two of the Department of Defense's four Major Shared Computer Resource Centers are located in Mississippi, further strengthening the state's position as a super computing power.
• The University of Mississippi's Center for Wireless Communications conducts applied research for telecommunications and provides consulting services in technological, legal and business aspects of the industry
• The Mississippi FiberNet 2000 project was the nation's first fiber optic, fully interactive, two-way distance learning network operated over public telephone switched facilities.

Specialized Telecommunications Training

• The Work Force and Education Act allows employers to control state-funded industrial technology training for employees.
• A joint project of Hinds Community College and the Mississippi Department of Education, The Center for Emerging Technologies provides specialized telecommunications training for technicians, customer service representatives and marketing personnel.
• The state's four largest universities offer specialized telecommunications curricula.
• The Jackson Graduate Engineering Program offers numerous courses with an emphasis in computer and electrical engineering.
• The University of Mississippi's Center for Wireless Communications offers undergraduate and graduate degrees in engineering and computer science with an emphasis on telecommunications which provides a pool of highly trained graduates ready for employment.
• Mississippi is the only state in the nation to offer U.S. Marines the opportunity to earn college degrees as they move around the world. The courses, taught through two-way interactive distance learning, are offered by Mississippi State University and Hinds Community College.

Communications and Information Technology Cluster Study

Mississippi is primed for a telecommunications cluster, according to a study authored by Dr. Michael Porter, Harvard University business professor.

Entitled "Enhancing the Competitiveness of the Central Mississippi Region: The Communications and Information Technology Cluster (CIT)," the study shows that Mississippi has the building blocks in place to create a telecommunications community.

"I've made a bet that Mississippi is going to be successsful," Porter said in presenting the results of the study at an annual meeting of the Mississippi Economic Council.

If you are interested in receiving a copy of the Michael Porter study “Enhancing the Competitiveness of the Central Mississippi Region: The Communications and Information Technology Cluster”, select The Communications and Information Technology Cluster.

As an outgrowth of the CIT cluster study, the CIT.ms industry association was formed. Now with 150 active participants, the mission of CIT.ms is to preserve and promote the value of communications information technology as the centerpiece of economic development in Mississippi and to connect CIT.ms members to information, resources and tools.

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