28 Nov 2017

The Fiber Future is Cooperative: Policy Brief On Rural Cooperative Fiber Deployment

by | Date: 28 Nov 2017 | posted in: MuniNetworks | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

Rural communities across the United States are already building the Internet infrastructure of the future. Using a 20th century model, rural America is finding a way to tap into high-speed Internet service: electric and telephone cooperatives are bringing next-generation, Fiber-to-the-Home (FTTH) networks to their service territories. This policy brief provides an overview of the work that cooperatives have already done, including a map of the cooperatives’ fiber service territories. We also offer recommendations on ways to help cooperatives continue their important strides.

Download the policy brief, Cooperatives Fiberize Rural America: A Trusted Model For The Internet Era here.… Read More
24 Nov 2017

Commentary: Local Communities Deserve to Make their Own Choices

by | Date: 24 Nov 2017 | posted in: Media Coverage, MuniNetworks | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

This article was originally published in Port Huron Times-Herald on November 14th, 2017. Recently, a Michigan state lawmaker went viral on the Internet — but for the wrong reasons. Last month, state Rep. Michele Hoitenga filed a bill that would preempt local governments from spending public funds to build community broadband Internet networks. Across the country, high-speed … Read More
22 Nov 2017

An Open Letter to Burlington on Local Ownership & Burlington Telecom

by | Date: 22 Nov 2017 | posted in: MuniNetworks | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

At the Institute for Local Self-Reliance, we have been watching the latest developments with Burlington Telecom from afar but with extreme curiosity. We have watched a wonderful local movement grow to Keep Burlington Telecom Local and that fits entirely with our values. Because of the challenges from BT’s prior mismanagement and court settlement, Burlington’s options are limited. The benefits of … Read More
22 Nov 2017

A Thanksgiving Feast Of Municipal Fiber Models

by | Date: 22 Nov 2017 | posted in: MuniNetworks | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

Like some of the foods on a traditional Thanksgiving Day table, different publicly owned network models uniquely suit the needs of their communities. We all have our favorite dish from a holiday dinner, which made us reflect on some of the characteristics of five of the most well known models and their benefits. We found fun comparisons to share with readers who understand the way publicly owned fiber optic networks nourish the communities they serve.… Read More
21 Nov 2017

Fast Company Covers the FCC’s Disappointing Net Neutrality Decisions, Interviews Chris Mitchell

by | Date: 21 Nov 2017 | posted in: Media Coverage, MuniNetworks | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

In the News: Christopher Mitchell November 22, 2017 Media Outlet: Fast Company Federal Communications Commission Chair Ajit Pai’s plan to dismantle net neutrality, the set of protections that keeps content flowing freely on the Internet regardless of who your service provider is, is now official. In this disappointing moment of corporations flexing their supreme muscle with … Read More

21 Nov 2017

The Burlington Chronicles: Catching Up In Vermont

by | Date: 21 Nov 2017 | posted in: MuniNetworks | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

The people of Burlington have proven beyond a doubt that they believe in publicly owned Internet networks. They’ve fought harder than any other community we’ve seen to maintain a voice in the future of their much loved publicly owned fiber optic network, Burlington Telecom (BT). Now after months of ruminating, debating, and examining their options, the future of BT is still uncertain.… Read More
20 Nov 2017

Wilson, North Carolina’s Fiber Network Headlines Economic Development Plan

by | Date: 20 Nov 2017 | posted in: MuniNetworks | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

Wilson has made their community-owned Greenlight fiber network central to their economic development plan, a move that may forge a new approach for other communities with similar assets. Revitalization Efforts In 2008, when Wilson’s Greenlight community network first launched, the Federal Communications Commission ranked North Carolina last in the nation in percentage of households subscribing to at least … Read More
15 Nov 2017

Lessons From the Nation’s Oldest Open Access Fiber Network – Community Broadband Bits Podcast 279

by | Date: 15 Nov 2017 | posted in: MuniNetworks, Podcast | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

This is episode 279 of our Community Broadband Bits podcast! Community Broadband Bits is a short weekly podcast featuring interviews with people building community networks or otherwise involved with Internet policy. Grant County’s Public Utility District was, along with some nearby PUDs, among the very first deployers of Fiber-to-the-Home networks shortly after the turn of the millennium. And … Read More
13 Nov 2017

Local Fiber Network Will Expand to Six More Vermont Towns

by | Date: 13 Nov 2017 | posted in: MuniNetworks | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

In August, East Central Vermont Telecommunications District (ECFiber) released their 2018 construction plans to expand fiber optic network to the towns of Braintree, Brookfield, Granville, Hancock, Rochester, and Stockbridge in east-central Vermont. Homegrown And Community Owned According to Irv Thomae, the District Chairman: “Our mission is to build and operate a universal, open access, fiber-to-the premises network, ensuring … Read More

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