Carl Junction, Missouri, is moving ahead with plans to build a fiber network. Steve Lawver, City Administrator, tells us that funding for the $5.2 – $5.6 million project will most likely come through a lease program from the Missouri Public Utility Alliance (MPUA). Lawver tells us that funding will involve private placement non-taxable bonds, available to … Read More
We finally see television news outlets asking the tough questions of bill pushed by powerful cable and telephone companies to prevent giving residents a real choice in cable and Internet service providers. We been covering this Georgia bill closely, and were glad to see this segment: CBS Atlanta 46 The segment makes an error in suggesting … Read More
The Wall Street Journal, March 6, 2013 Sensing a threat to their business model, telecom companies are pushing more states to curb the spread of publicly funded high-speed Internet access, arguing the networks could squash competition. Time Warner Cable Inc., Windstream Corp., Comcast Corp. and AT&T Inc. are among the companies that have gotten involved in … Read More
New Hamsphire FastRoads is making significant strides in connecting residents, businesses, and community anchor institutions in the southwestern section of the state. FastRoads is funded by a combination of American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) grants, private donations, and funds from local communities. While the network is certainly making progress and scheduled for completion this summer, … Read More
ILSR is following HB 282, restrictive legislation moving through the Georgia General Assembly. The bill would effectively end the ability for existing networks to expand. Communities considering investing in their own telecommunications networks would face almost insurmountable financial and practical hurdles. As the bill is heavily lobbied by incumbent telecom giants, local leaders make the trek … Read More
Chattanooga has made the national TV news, with CBS doing a segment about America’s best Internet network – owned and operated by the city of Chattanooga. They make a few minor mistakes – Chattanooga is one of several cities that have made gigabit available to everyone (including Bristol VA and TN; Morristown, TN; Lafayette, LA; and … Read More
Government Technology, March 5, 2013 About 340 communities nationwide offer publicly-owned fiber-optic or cable networks, according to a new map from the Institute for Local Self-Reliance. But as one expert told The Atlantic Cities, there are few big cities on the map. The largest city-owned broadband network serves about 170,000 households in Chattanooga, Tenn., with Lafayette, … Read More
The New Hampshire Fast Roads Initiative is bringing great Internet access to rural New Hampshire. Project CEO Carole Monroe joined us for this week’s Community Broadband Bits podcast. Fast Roads is the culmination of years of local organizing and several efforts to improve access to the Internet in the region. The project is already benefiting the … Read More
The Seattle Times has published an opinion piece I wrote about the need to move from Internet access business models based on scarcity to those based on abundance. Many of us have grown accustomed to the speeds offered by modern cable networks. They aren’t particularly speedy, but we are used to them. When we find ourselves … Read More
