Ammon, Idaho’s open access software defined network has earned accolades from industry experts and been hailed as a model approach for other communities. Amid news of expansion, the positive effects of competition via the publicly owned network have recently flashed across news and social media. People who don’t live in the Idaho city are shocked to learn how affordable high-quality Internet access can be.
News
Named the Intelligent Community of the Year by the Intelligent Communities Forum in 2012, Riverside, California has continued to work toward broadband expansion, digital inclusion and take full advantage of their fiber optic infrastructure. To offer more options for commercial and institutional entities in the community, the city council approved a dark fiber leasing program to be operated and maintained by Riverside Public Utilities (RPU).
Coffee and broadband and Craig Settles of Gigabit Nation and cjspeaks.com — these three things go together naturally. Craig and the International Economic Development Council (IEDC) is asking for your opinions about the future of broadband. In appreciation for your time, you’ll receive a $5 Starbucks Card emailed directly to your computer or smartphone. The deadline is Friday, June 14th at 11:59 p.m. PT.
Share your thoughts and take the survey!
From Craig:
Word has it that several Senators want a better handle on the economic impact broadband in US. While this is a notable goal, how much weight will be given to community input? Lord knows we need locally-generated data to fight FCC’s regressive broadband policy-making.
Clarksville, Arkansas, began their journey toward better local connectivity to enhance electric utility efficiencies. Four years after making the choice to deploy fiber, the town has chosen to use that fiber to offer Internet access to the community. Gigabit connectivity is on the way to every premise in Clarksville.
California
Council votes to pursue study of municipal broadband by Anne Ternus-Bellamy, Davis Enterprise
Colorado
Loveland council approves agreements, contracts for municipal broadband by Julia Rentsch, Loveland Reporter-Herald
Idaho
If your broadband bill is too high consider moving to Idaho, they get the Internet for free by Kieren McCarthy, The Register
Up in the Rocky Mountains, the Colorado ski town of Breckenridge has decided to set aside plans to operate its new fiber network as open access, opting instead for a single Internet service provider (ISP).
In May, Breckenridge selected ALLO Communications, a Nebraska-based telecommunications company, as the sole ISP for the town’s planned fiber network, Fiber9600. Town officials had initially planned to run Fiber9600 — named for Breckenridge’s elevation of 9,600 feet above sea level — as an open access network with multiple providers offering services to residents and businesses. However, after interviewing several prospective companies, officials decided to have ALLO be the fiber network’s only provider, at least at first.
Vinton, Iowa, is moving ahead with plans for a Fiber-to-the-Home network. This small town is home to only 5,100, but soon it will have Internet service that rivals the largest cities. Cedar Falls, Iowa, and ImOn Communications will be key to Vinton’s efforts to build the community network.
California
Fullerton FiberCity Network will use open access approach by Phil Britt, Telecompetitor
Colorado
Loveland launches broadband push by Jessica Benes, Reporter Herald
Delaware
Delaware expanding broadband in rural counties by Dani Bozzini, 47ABC
Georgia
Washington's Douglas County Community Network (DCCN) began as a way to improve the local Public Utility District’s electric system; construction of the network started in the late 1990s. Two decades later, people living in some of the state's smallest communities have access to fast, affordable, reliable connectivity that equals their neighbors in the county's busy cities through the publicly owned fiber network.
Before your community can start bringing better connectivity to municipal facilities, offering dark fiber to businesses or local ISPs, or supplying Internet access to residents, you must develop the infrastructure. In the past couple of years, a growing interest in microtrenching has spawned questions from local communities looking for options to traditional excavation. On May 1st, infrastructure product and system manufacturer and distributor Dura-Line held their first Technology Summit focused exclusively on microtrenching. The Austin, Texas, event attracted 200 professionals interested in learning more.
Special guest speakers included:
Beresford, South Dakota (pop. 2,000), has a long history of providing for itself. Located in the southeast corner of the state, Beresford operates its own electric utility as well as a municipal liquor store and golf course. For nearly 90 years, the city has also provided communications services to the community with the Beresford Municipal Telephone Company (BMTC), which currently offers DSL connectivity to residents and businesses.
At a May 6 City Commission meeting in Decatur, Georgia, city leaders approved a project budget of $2.35 million to build a municipal I-Net and award the construction contract to their preferred bidder. The decision came amid demands from cable giant Comcast that the community immediately begin paying exorbitant fees for infrastructure the city has used under a past local franchise agreement. The case of sour grapes was resolved, but once again reveals how large corporate monopolies don't hesitate to flex their muscles when things don't go their way.
The Central Virginia Electric Cooperative (CVEC) announced in January 2018 that they had solidified plans to deploy fiber across 14 counties for smart grid operations and to bring Fiber-to-the-Home (FTTH) to the region. The project, dubbed Firefly Fiber Broadband, is underway, and we’ve got President and CEO Gary Wood along with Communications and Member Services Manager Melissa Gay on the podcast this week to discuss the multi-year project.