The Logan Journal recently reported that the Russellville Electric Plant Board (EPB) now offers gigabit service to local businesses. The article notes that Net Index, an online tool to measure download and upload speeds, recognizes EPB as the first Gig city in Kentucky. To learn more about the community and its network, we talked with Robert White, … Read More
The incomparable Diane Rehm show on WAMU recently tackled the network neutrality ruling [listen to it there]. Guests included Cecilia Kang, Susan Crawford, and Jeffrey Eisenach from the American Enterprise Institute, a think tank famous for promoting what is best for massive, politically influencial firms. Jeff and I both took part in a debate about municipal … Read More
About six months ago, I was quite bullish on advances in over-the-top (OTT) video making it easier for communities to build fiber networks because they would no longer have to deal with the challenges of securing and delivering traditional cable television channels. I explored these challenges in a recent post. OTT video includes Hulu, Netflix, Apple … Read More
ILSR and the Center for Popular Democracy now offer the Building Community Access Policy Brief. We teamed up with CPD to bring you a fact sheet that succinctly describes our country’s problem with unequal access to broadband. The fact sheet also offers basic solutions that can facilitate development of publicly owned networks. In addition to offering … Read More
The municipal electric utility in Russellville has launched Kentucky’s first citywide gigabit service on its FTTH network. Russellville Electric Plant Board General Manager Robert White joins us to share their motivations for building a fiber network. The utility had originally offered some telecommunications services over a wireless system but recognized the need for a more robust … Read More
AT&T has announced a program that has put many of us on edge – “Sponsored Data.” As an example, I may have a 500 MB cap on my monthly AT&T plan, but Facebook could pay AT&T so that its content does not count against my cap. Both Free Press and Public Knowledge have taken strong stands … Read More
The Southeast Assocation of Telecommunications Officers and Advisors has announced Christopher Mitchell will receive its 2014 Community Broadband Advocacy Award at its upcoming conference on March 24 and 25 in Raleigh, North Carolina. I am honored to receive this recognition alongside Jim Baller and the Georgia Municipal Association, with whom I have worked on several occasions … Read More
Government Technology, January 17, 2014 Many open Internet advocates were disheartened at a recent U.S. Court of Appeals decision that shot down the FCC’s net neutrality rule. But for those in favor of local government-owned broadband networks, the ruling may have something in it to cheer about. Circuit Judge Laurence Silberman, dissenting from part of the … Read More
This article originally ran January 15 on MuniNetworks.org, our site dedicated to broadband and community networks. Our analysis zeros in on the Court’s take on local authority, an issue near and dear to our mission at ILSR. As we noted yesterday, the DC Circuit of Appeals has decided that the FCC does not have authority to implement its … Read More
