We don’t often get the opportunity to interview people from Texas, so when we heard about Mont Belvieu’s gigabit fiber optic network we knew we had to have them on the show. When we learned that four officials from the east Texas town would join us we said, “Even better!” City Manager Nathan Watkins, Director of Broadband and IT Dwight Thomas, Assistant City Manager Scott Swigert, and Communications and Marketing Director Brian Ligon are on the show this week to talk about their publicly owned network, MB Link.

Before they were able to provide the fast, affordable, reliable service to residents all over town, Mont Belvieu had to assert themselves in a legal proceeding against the State of Texas. In this conversation, the guys discuss their elegant argument that won over the court. You’ll also hear why community leaders decided that, even though Mont Belvieu had a thriving oil and gas industry, they felt that investing in high-quality Internet access for residents was a goal they aimed to achieve for the public good. The residents in Mont Belvieu drove this project.

People in Mont Belvieu have clambered to sign up for the network. Our guests discuss how they’ve used their town’s strengths to market the services they offer and how they continue to use communications to help subscribers get the most from MB Link. The guys also talk about how the city plans to add businesses to the network and the reactions from incumbents.

Read more about the network and the court action in our coverage about Mont Belvieu.

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Great Lakes Energy (GLE) in Michigan decided in late 2017 to approve a plan to incrementally deploy Fiber-to-the-Home (FTTH) to cooperative members, beginning with a pilot project in Petoskey. This week, Vice President of Communications, Marketing and Energy Optimization Shari Culver from GLE joins Christopher to talk about what could possibly become the largest FTTH project in the state.

GLE anticipates offering its symmetrical Truestream Internet access to members in the pilot area as early as the end of October. The planning process, however, has involved several feasibility studies and at least two years of planning in addition to several more years of contemplation. Shari explains how the region GLE serves covers many different types of geographies, subscriber income levels, and different levels of Internet access competition. Some folks have only dial-up, while others have the option of cable Internet access. One of the challenges GLE faces is educating potential subscribers about the differences between what they have now and the potential with Truestream.

She explains that the cooperative has decided to approach deployment with a flexible incremental approach, carefully examining demand as they deploy to determine where they go next across their service area. There’s a significant portion of seasonal homes in this northern section of the lower peninsula, and GLE sees that high-quality Internet access can help boost local economic development if those seasonal visitors have the ability to stay longer by working from the cabin.

For more on the project, check out our...

Caller ID spoofing, robocalls, and general spam phone calls are one of the hassles of 21st century life. This week on Community Broadband Bits, Christopher and Richard Shockey of Shockey Consulting talk about how the problem has progressed and what leaders in telecommunications are doing about it.

As we transition from our old telephone system to one that involves session initiation protocol, commonly known as SIP, we create a new frontier for those who are finding ways to misuse the technology. Richard, with decades of experience in Data Communications, Voice over IP Technology, Numbering and Signaling, sits as Chairman of the SIP Forum. The SIP Forum brings together people in the industry to advise, advance, and consult on matters related to IP communications and services that are based on SIP. One of their challenges involves finding ways to improve the problems associated with caller ID spoofing, robocalls, and spam calls that are associated with SIP.

In this conversation, Richard gives us a history lesson. He shares his technical expertise to help explain how market conditions, lack of investment, and the transition to the new technology have created a perfect environment for increased caller ID spoofing, robocalls, and the like. Richard describes the work of the SIP Forum and some of the challenges they’ve faced, which aren’t all technical. They have concrete plans to improve the situation, but rollout isn’t easy or quick. Policy, transparency, and rules are all issues that experts must address as they determine how we move forward.

Learn more about the work of the SIP Forum at their website and sign up for one of their mailing lists to learn more about specific tech issues.

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This show is 39 minutes long and can be played on this page or via iTunes or the tool of your choice using this feed.

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Plenty of local communities are interested in the possibilities of creating publicly owned Internet infrastructure but pause when it comes to funding. This week on the podcast, Christopher interviews Jase Wilson, CEO, and Lindsey Brannon, Head of Public Finance, from Neighborly. The firm is working with local communities and using an innovative approach to financing publicly owned infrastructure projects, including broadband networks.

Neighborly provides an online investment platform that allows individuals to invest in projects funded through municipal bonds. In addition to more traditional projects suited to the muni bond market, such as transportation, education, and housing, Neighborly is working with local communities that want to develop open access municipal networks. In this interview, Jase and Lindsey describe how the open access network fits so well with the firm's philosophy.

In addition to helping drum up the capital for muni deployment, Neighborly sharpshooters recognize that the opportunity for individuals to invest directly in a municipal project in their community will help the project ultimately succeed. After all, the investment is about more than turning profit when it’s providing fast affordable, reliable connectivity in your own hometown.

Lindsey and Jase discuss some of their past work and talk about the new Community Broadband Accelerator program that offers additional tools to communities investing in open access fiber networks. Specifics about the program are available on the Neighborly website and during the interview we get to hear more about the advantages of participating in the Community Broadband Accelerator program.

We want your feedback and suggestions for the show-please e-mail us or leave a comment below.

This show is 36 minutes long and can be played on this page or via iTunes or the tool of your choice using this feed.

You can download this mp3 file directly from here. Listen to ...