The state of Virginia has many rural pockets on both the Atlantic coast and the interior valley areas. These geographic challenges offer a roadblock to connectivity from incumbent Internet Service Providers, that’s why cooperatives are stepping up to offer connectivity to their member-owners.… Read More
A bill making its way through the Colorado General Assembly is tackling one of the most effective tools that big incumbent ISPs use to secure their positions as monopoly Internet access providers – the right of first refusal. If HB 1099 passes, community leaders and advocates for a competitive broadband market will be able to put a chink in the monopoly armor. Other states may follow their lead.… Read More
Rural Californians have similar problems as many in rural America, a lack of high-quality, affordable Internet access. The story of the Anza Electric Cooperative in rural southern California details how they are expanding and meeting the needs of its 4,000 rural members.… Read More
As an increasing number of rural cooperatives make the decision to offer high-quality connectivity in their service areas, communities where local telephone and electric cooperatives already provide Fiber-to-the-Home (FTTH) are seeing benefits today. Paul Bunyan Communications, offering broadband in Minnesota’s northwest region, has lured a new employer who will bring at least 150 new jobs to the area.… Read More
The SEMO Electric Cooperative in southeastern Missouri recently announced that subscribers are hooked up and taking advantage of Fiber-to-the-Home in rural Scott County and in the towns of Miner, Advance, and Bloomfield. The co-op board saw that providing high-quality Internet access to was filling a demand that incumbents are not meeting, locals want, and assists the community.… Read More
Located about 15 miles northeast of Holland, the community of approximately 7,300 received a $1 million state grant to help pay for redevelopment in Hudsonville’s downtown. They’ve been working on the plan to make the area more walkable for more than 10 years in order to appeal to older residents and millennials. … Read More
Upgrade Cambridge is a newly-formed grassroots broadband group that seeks to address one of the highest concerns of citizens in the city: broadband access. The new group will be used as a way to share information and spread the word about their initiative for a publicly owned fiber optic network.… Read More
Broadband competition in Idaho, like many other states, is highly stratified and unequally distributed. Our latest mapping project details the actual level of broadband competition in the Gem State and details where Idaho’s population actually has access to high-quality Internet and where it firmly doesn’t, all while using the Federal Communications Commission’s shoddy data.… Read More
Last week we reported about the uncertain position that faced Washington ports might find themselves in, should they decide to bring better connectivity to the areas within and around their service areas. We are pleased to learn that the state legislature saw the light and chose to pass the bill without the proposed harmful Senate amendments. It’s good news, but the final bill isn’t ideal.… Read More
